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  • From: EarthNSky <erthnsky AT gmail.com>
  • To: homestead AT lists.ibiblio.org
  • Subject: Re: [Homestead] Chestnuts
  • Date: Mon, 20 Sep 2010 13:26:46 -0400

I have an American Chestnut that is about 7 or 8 years old now. It produces nuts, but only a few. I can't explain how it is pollinated, unless somewhere in the forest there is still a living chestnut. Last year, I planted the nuts, and right now I have two small trees that I will plant in the late fall. These trees grow really fast.
I remember Tvo telling us that chestnuts were often used to feed and fatten pigs, that often their pens were placed under chestnut trees for that reason. I planted my first one near the creek in the back, but I intend to plant one of these new trees in an area that would be easy to build a pen under, and the other one along the creekbed further upstream. I may never see them large enough to feed pigs, but maybe my son will.
As for cooking with them other than just eating them, the only thing I can think of is a stuffing or dressing, but I haven't done that. The quality of the nuts so far hasn't been great. I don't know if that is because the trees are young or perhaps due to genetics or pollination or what. Perhaps I should find a Chinese Chestnut and hope that cross pollinating will increase nut size, but I want to give these trees a few more years first.

B

On 9/20/2010 12:55 PM, Lisa Kae Van Meter Perry wrote:
Hi all,

I spent time this morning learning about chestnuts. I learned more than I
needed, but it was all interesting and new (to me).
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chestnut

On a walk that I take with my husband, we pass two chestnut trees and I
began collecting nuts. Lots of us are familiar with roasting chestnuts, but
I wondered what else could be done with them.

I didn't know that they lost moisture almost immediately, like fruit. To
keep them longer (without refrigeration), they should be soaked in water for
a day and dried.

Do any of you harvest chestnuts, and if so, do you use them other than for
roasting? Dried and ground into flour? Or?

Just wondering....

Lisa
sw VA
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EarthNSky Farm 34.498N 85.076W
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  • [Homestead] Chestnuts, Lisa Kae Van Meter Perry, 09/20/2010
    • Re: [Homestead] Chestnuts, EarthNSky, 09/20/2010

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