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Sweet Chestnut (Castanea Sativa)
Note that plant is matured and large size some to 1.6m tall. Plants has started flowering again.
Do you know that Sweet Chestnut can live to 700 years!
Although the sweet chestnut is confused with the horse chestnut, it is related to oak and beech. Everything about the sweet chestnut is more beautiful than the horse chestnut: the edible (versus toxic) fruit, the tightly packed coat of spines, the elegant glossy, serrated leaves, the swirling, deeply fissured bark.
The leaves are dark green, turning yellow in autumn before falling. The flowers are quite insignificant, but are followed by the tasty nuts.
Unlike the nuts of the horse chestnut, those of the sweet chestnut are edible to humans and can be roasted and used in a variety of recipes, including stuffing for poultry, cake fillings, nut roasts and much more. The Romans ground sweet chestnuts into a flour or coarse meal.
Sweet chestnuts are a rich source of vitamins C (the only nut that is) and B, and minerals including magnesium, potassium and iron. Their high level of starch is similar to that of wheat and twice as high as the potato.
Plant Care
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Light |
Partial shade is best, when established they would tolerate very hot summers. |
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Water |
Regular watering is not necessary. When young need regular watering until the plant is established. |
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Soil |
They will grow on almost any soil. Place the plant in rich well-drained soil and mulch with organic matter. |
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Fertilizer |
Trees benefit from organic mulch. |
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Wind |
Will tolerate almost any condition, including salt and will tolerate a little bit of wind |
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Frost |
They are very drought tolerant, but would not like frost or heavy wind. They are deciduous around winter and shed leaves like the plum and come back around spring. |
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Fruiting |
Seedling will take 20 years to fruit. Grafted plant 3-5 years. Need winter cold for better production of fruit. Plant has male and female flowers, self fertile however with another chestnut tree of any variety nearby will increase fruit set |
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Pruning |
Is necessary to keep them small as they can grow really tall. They grow pretty fast especially around summer. |
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