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Chestnut. Three species of tree or true chestnuts are cultivated in this country for their nuts,—the European Castanea sativa, the American Castanea dentata, the Japanese Castanea crenata. See Castanea. The horticultural characters that distinguish these three types are as follows:

Chestnut. Three species of tree or true chestnuts are cultivated in this country for their nuts,—the European Castanea sativa, the American Castanea dentata, the Japanese Castanea crenata. See Castanea. The horticultural characters that distinguish these three types are as follows:

European chestnuts.—Tree large, with a spreading but compact head, stocky, smooth-barked twigs and large glossy buds of a yellowish brown color; leaves oblong-lanceolate, abruptly pointed, with coarse sometimes incurved serrations, thick and leathery, generally pubescent beneath when young, but green on both sides when mature. Burs very large, with long branching spines, and a thick velvety lining. Nut larger than American chestnut, sometimes very large, shell dark mahogany-brown, pubescent at tip, thick, tough and leathery; kernel inclosed in a thin tough and astringent skin: quality variable from insipid, astringent to moderately sweet. The leaves remain on the trees until late in autumn, but are more susceptible to the attacks of fungi than the American and Japanese species. At least one variegated and one cut-leaved variety are grown as ornamentals. This species is variously known as European, French, Spanish and Italian chestnut (Castanea sativa), and sweet chestnut of English writers. It is an inhabitant of mountain forests in the temperate regions of western Asia, Europe and north Africa, and is esteemed for its nuts in Spain, France and Italy, where they have constituted an important article of food since an early day. Introduced to the United States by Irenee Dupont, at Wilmington, Delaware, in 1803, although recorded by Jefferson, under the designation "French chestnut," as grafted by him on native chestnut near Charlottesville (Monticello), Virginia, in 1773.

European chestnuts.—Tree large, with a spreading but compact head, stocky, smooth-barked twigs and large glossy buds of a yellowish brown color; leaves oblong-lanceolate, abruptly pointed, with coarse sometimes incurved serrations, thick and leathery, generally pubescent beneath when young, but green on both sides when mature. Burs very large, with long branching spines, and a thick velvety lining. Nut larger than American chestnut, sometimes very large, shell dark mahogany-brown, pubescent at tip, thick, tough and leathery; kernel inclosed in a thin tough and astringent skin: quality variable from insipid, astringent to moderately sweet. The leaves remain on the trees until late in autumn, but are more susceptible to the attacks of fungi than the American and Japanese species. At least one variegated and one cut-leaved variety are grown as ornamentals. This species is variously known as European, French, Spanish and Italian chestnut (Castanea sativa), and sweet chestnut of English writers. It is an inhabitant of mountain forests in the temperate regions of western Asia, Europe and north Africa, and is esteemed for its nuts in Spain, France and Italy, where they have constituted an important article of food since an early day. Introduced to the United States by Irenee Dupont, at Wilmington, Delaware, in 1803, although recorded by Jefferson, under the designation "French chestnut," as grafted by him on native chestnut near Charlottesville (Monticello), Virginia, in 1773.