Another potential pest not seen here in our farm is the Asian chestnut gall wasp. The main issues are: chestnut blight, chestnut weevil and root rot. Like any fruit, grain or nut crop there are pests and diseases that like it as much as we do. Also in Michigan growers have found the European and Japanese hybrids produce 2 to 5 times the nuts that Chinese chestnuts do and produce nuts at a much earlier age. The main cultivar grown in Michigan is Colossal and it was found when nuts from Colossal were pollenated by a Chinese chestnut tree that up to 30% of the nuts would quickly rot internally making the crop suspect at best. Fulbright of Michigan State University Extension. A phenomenon known as Internal Kernel Breakdown (IKB) has been described by Dr. 1 Chestnut Native Range in dark greenĬommercial chestnut orchards are currently suggested to have either European and/or Japanese hybrids in an orchard or have Chinese hybrids in an orchard but, do not have both types of trees in the same orchard. Chestnuts are now grown from Michigan to Florida.įig. The trees will grow wherever in North America there is enough warmth, well drained soil and rain, as the native area is expansive as shown in Figure #1. In a banner year 7000lbs have been reported in Michigan. Chestnuts typically sell for $7.00/lb.in stores.Ī mature well planned and maintained hybrid chestnut orchard with a proper mix pollinizers and pollen sterile trees should achieve well over 2000 to 3000 pounds of nuts per acre. According to a recent newspaper report, a 17 acre chestnut orchard and winery in upstate NY sold out of chestnuts in one day during their chestnut festival selling chestnuts at $3.50 per pound. The chestnut industry is growing as the crop is sustainable, soil friendly and well accepted by the consumer. The European, Japanese and Chinese chestnut trees have a long history of being cultivated for nuts and the named selections are generally a size similar to a standard apple tree with large nuts that can be 10 nuts to the pound. The American chestnut tree is a very large timber type tree with relatively small chestnuts. The native trees are now being crossed and back crossed to develop blight resistance by The American Chestnut Foundation (TACF) and other researchers.Ĭhestnut trees and their close relatives come in all sizes from bush to “Redwood” timber size. The foreign Chinese chestnut trees brought a blight (Cryphonectria parasitica) to North America that the Chinese trees are resistant to. The Native American chestnut trees are susceptible to the chestnut blight and are all but eradicated. Chestnuts have been grown throughout Europe, China, Japan and United States as a food staple since time immemorial.
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