The height of the tree can reach 30 meters in height, the trunk is slender, and the crown of the chestnut tree is spreading and lush. The chestnut leaves are large, with a simple and pleasant ornament, located opposite on long petioles. Chestnuts bloom in May. The crown of the tree is covered with cone-shaped inflorescences of a white or pale pink hue, consisting of many small flowers.

The chestnut is especially interesting for its fruits, which many peoples eat (certain edible varieties of chestnuts) and use them in folk medicine. Fruit ripening time is the beginning of autumn. At first, the fruits look like green round boxes with thorns. After they ripen, the box opens into three doors and ripe nuts fall from it to the ground. Inside the nut are seeds of a slightly flattened shape, covered with a dark skin.

Useful properties and uses of chestnut fruits

The beneficial properties of chestnut are widely used in folk and traditional medicine. The fruits contain active biological and tannins, a huge amount of pectins, flavonoids and oils, which help to reduce the permeability of blood capillaries, they are actively used for stagnation of venous blood. Preparations based on the healing properties of chestnut are used to treat varicose veins, ulcers, thrombophlebitis, and are used to increase the tone of the veins. They have an analgesic effect on the body, relieve inflammation. They take medications and medicinal products both internally and externally.

How to choose a chestnut variety for planting?

Chestnuts are widespread in the European part of the CIS, the Caucasus, and Central Asia. In nature, it can be seen in forests, slopes. It should be noted that tall trees with spreading crowns, blooming in May with fragrant white inflorescences that we see on the streets, in parks and squares of many cities, are an inedible species of chestnut, whose name horse. Horse chestnut looks very much like an edible chestnut, but belongs to a different family - horse chestnuts, while the chestnut, the fruits of which are used for food, belongs to the Bukovy family.
Many gardeners, when choosing a chestnut variety for their site, prefer horse chestnut. He is loved for its decorative luxurious crown and mesmerizing flowering. It is important to remember that the horse chestnut is an individualist and requires a sufficient amount of space, so small garden plots are not suitable for this handsome man. The shadow cast by the dense crown of the tree will prevent the successful cultivation of other plants or crops.

Consider what varieties of edible chestnuts you can plant on your site:

American (notched)

It is a fruit tree with brown bark with deep grooves, luxurious crown and powerful thick branches. Its height can reach over 30 meters. The toothed chestnut has large leaves pointed at the ends with a wedge-shaped base. The leaves are shaped like a hemp leaf. The shape of the leaves is very beautiful, especially in autumn, when the foliage takes on a bright yellow and purple hue. Chestnut leaves are an excellent specimen for herbarium lovers. The inflorescences of the toothed chestnut reach 20 cm in length; the time of its flowering is July.

Its fruits are original in their shape. This is a light green plushka 7 cm in diameter with thin long spines, in which there are 2 to 3 light brown sweet fruits. The fruits of the American chestnut are a delicacy in many countries and are considered a valuable product.

European (sowing)

A large, tall tree, reaching a height of over 35 meters with a straight trunk, about 2 meters in diameter. There are several names for this species: noble, sowing, edible chestnut. The leaves of the European chestnut are covered with fluff at the bottom, which gives the impression that they have a gray tint. The shape of the leaf is very beautiful, pointed with crescent teeth, the color is rich green.

Chestnut is a flowering tree, its flowering time is June. The inflorescences take the shape of an ear. Male inflorescences look like a spikelet with inflorescences 35 cm in length, female ones - short, also have a spike-like shape. The tree begins to bear fruit at the end of October, when the foliage begins to fall. The edible fruits of the sowing chestnut are hidden in a spherical box covered with small thorns. When they ripen, the capsule cracks. Fruits to taste are sweetish, loose and fatty in composition; delicious dishes are prepared from it. They are fried, baked, boiled, used in baking and for making confectionery. It should be noted that the older the tree, the more it bears fruit.

Chinese chestnut is the softest

An unusually beautiful type of chestnut, the tree is not tall, reaching a height of 15 meters. The branches are spreading, the leaves are finely toothed with a whitish edge below. The inflorescences of the Chinese chestnut are erect, fluffy, the color of the inflorescence depends on the variety. The fruits are extremely nutritious and have an unrivaled taste.

Japanese chestnut (crenate)
The homeland of chestnut is Japan, Korea, China. The tree grows quickly, already in the second or fourth year it begins to bear fruit. Japanese chestnut is distinguished by large edible fruits, their diameter can reach 6 cm, and weight up to 80 grams.

Horse chestnut

A magnificent decorative powerful tree with inedible fruits. The main advantage of the species is its decorative effect, especially during flowering in spring. During this period, the horse chestnut becomes the most attractive, just look at the photo of flowering chestnuts. Ornamental leaves form a lush, dense crown, which will create a wonderful shade in the garden in the recreation area. Horse chestnut is not picky in care, resistant to many diseases and frost-resistant. However, the tree does not grow as fast as we would like. It grows very slowly for the first ten years. Among the most beautiful varieties of horse chestnut are:

How to grow chestnuts

To plant greenery on your summer cottage and plant a luxurious chestnut tree, you need to take into account the peculiarities of the growth of the tree and decide on what you will grow the plant from: from fruits or plant seedlings.

Where to plant chestnuts and soil preparation

Chestnut is a large tree, with a wide crown, and prefers illuminated places. For the successful cultivation of chestnuts, it is necessary to make the right choice of a site for it, the following factors should be taken into account:

1. The root system of the tree is extensive and requires a lot of space. For full-fledged development on a site within a radius of 5 meters, there should be no outbuildings, other plants or garden crops.
2. It is necessary to plant chestnuts in an area well-lit by the sun or in a place where there will be no shade throughout the day. In the shade, the chestnut does not bloom well.
3. Give preference to a calm area, where there are no drafts and there will be no strong gusts of wind to prevent deformation of the trunk of young seedlings.

What soil is needed for planting chestnuts

The chestnut has a superficial root system, so that the roots do not rot and water stagnation does not occur, the soil must have good drainage. It is preferable that the soil is loose. An excellent option for planting chestnuts is a loamy substrate with lime and sand, black soil is also suitable. The substrate should be moderately moist and neutral. Dense soils are not suitable for growing chestnuts.

Planting chestnuts: breeding methods

You can plant chestnuts in several ways:

1. Seeds. Chestnut seeds do not have a high germination rate and it will take a long time to wait for the first shoots.
2. Purchase ready-made chestnut seedlings. This is the fastest and easiest way to grow a tree. The age of the seedling for planting is 7-10 years.
3. Fruit from the tree. A long way of growing, which requires adherence to certain rules.

How to prepare chestnuts for planting

If you decide to grow chestnuts from fruits or seeds, use the following instructions:

Autumn planting

Keep the fruits harvested in the fall for 7-10 days in the cold. Choose whole, healthy chestnuts. You can use a natural idea and throw fallen leaves on the chestnut fruit where you would like to grow the tree. In the spring, you will find the fruits that have already sprouted, from which beautiful seedlings will be obtained. It is necessary to plant prepared fruits in the ground to a depth of 2-3 fruit diameters. The soil must be watered. When planted in autumn, chestnut fruits give stronger and healthier shoots, as they undergo additional natural stratification in winter.

Spring planting

You can plant chestnut fruits even with the arrival of spring. To do this, it is necessary to store them in the refrigerator throughout the winter, and place them in warm water for 5 days before planting, remembering to change it. It is necessary to wait until the fruit swells so that it is easier for the sprouts to overcome the shell. It is necessary to plant swollen fruits in moist soil.
In addition, you can plant the chestnut fruit directly in a flower pot in November or December, during the winter it will germinate, and in the spring the sprout can be planted in open ground.

Rules for planting chestnut seedlings

When planting chestnut seedlings, observe the following rules:

1. The planting site should be extensive, at least 5 meters for one seedling.
2. The landing pit should be in the shape of a cube, 0.5 meters deep.
3. Be sure to lay a drainage layer 20-30 cm thick at the bottom of the pit. Sand, crushed stone can be used as a drainage layer.
4. Add a mixture of soil with humus and 500 g of dolomite flour to the planting hole if the soil is acidic.
5. Place the seedling in the hole so that its root collar is at the level of the soil.
6. To avoid exposing the tree trunk, due to soil subsidence, it is necessary to raise the planting hole and make it 5-10 cm higher.
7. The seedling needs abundant watering, about 3-4 buckets of water will be needed.
8. A young tree needs a temporary support in the form of wooden pegs, which will protect the seedling from gusts of wind. When the root system of the tree is strong, the support can be removed.

Chestnut care

It is easy to care for the chestnut, the tree does not need abundant watering and it tolerates drought remarkably. During a long dry period, it is recommended to water an adult tree at the rate of 1 bucket of water per 1 square meter. crown projection. And young trees are more demanding for watering, it is recommended to water them regularly.

In addition to watering, the chestnut needs fertilization, soil mulching, as well as sanitary pruning from drying out, damaged branches. You should also remove shoots and shoots from the trunk. Typically, the tree is grown as a standard tree with a central trunk.
The trees are fertilized in spring with organic matter, a solution of 10 liters is used: mullein - 1 kg, urea - 15 grams. For autumn feeding, 15 grams of nitroammophoska is added to this solution. Wood chips, peat or peat compost are used as mulch for the trunk circle, the mulching layer is about 10 cm.

Preparing chestnuts for winter

Chestnut is frost-resistant, but young seedlings must be covered in winter in the first 2-3 years after planting. The soil of the trunk circle is mulched with peat or fallen leaves 20 cm thick. The trunks of young trees must be wrapped in burlap using several layers and secured. The older the tree, the higher its frost resistance.
Severe frosts can lead to cracks in the bark of the tree, in this case, the damaged areas of the bark are treated with antiseptic agents and covered with garden varnish.

Chestnut pests and diseases

Most often, chestnut is susceptible to attack by chestnut (or miner) moths and tree mites, and it also suffers from powdery mildew.

Chestnut in landscape design

The chestnut tree looks great as a single plant and as in group plantings along roads, streets, garden paths and alleys. Chestnut is beautifully adjacent to spruces, pines, birches and acacias. The luxurious chestnut looks solemn and majestic as a single planting in the center of a green lawn, in the shade of which you can hide from the scorching rays of the sun in summer.

Having provided proper tree care, observing the rules for planting young seedlings, in a few years your site will ennoble a majestic tree with fragrant flowering in spring, giving aesthetic pleasure and with an incredibly beautiful crown, sheltering you from the heat in a hot summer.

Chestnut tree photo