Backyard and Beyond

Starting out from Brooklyn, an amateur naturalist explores our world.

As John Burroughs said, “The place to observe nature is where you are.”

5 responses to “Ode to the American Chestnut”

  1. Beautiful chestnut can be seen in the home of Rutherford B. Hayes in Fremont, Ohio.

  2. If you want to read about these great trees, read “American Chestnut: The Life, Death, and Rebirth of a Perfect Tree” by Susan Freinkl. I’ve been fascinated by these trees since I was a kid. While on a scouting hike, a forest ranger showed us several decaying trunks, with the young shoots still trying to send up new growth from the roots. Until a few years ago, there was a 80-year-old or so tree in Maryland. The blight finally got it, though.

    1. Thanks, Judysbirds! I’ll look that book up. Just to imagine a forest full of these trees, a third of a continent full of them…

  3. Check out this photo to see what these beautiful trees looked like:

  4. […] More pictures of the spiny husks and fruits. […]

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