Question
I read your note on starting oaks from acorns and found it straightforward and logical.  Could one use this technique, or a variation of same to begin to root chestnuts?  Should one score the chestnuts before attempting to root?  I have about 50 chestnuts from a neighbor's tree.

Thanks,

Howard Lambert
Zone 5 (Illinois)

Answer
The chestnuts should be stored in slightly dampened sphagnum moss in a plastic bag, closed with a twist-tie. Keep the bags in a refrigerator at about the level of the vegetable crisper, so that there will be no danger of freezing.

Chestnuts start to germinate as soon as they have had enough dormant time, and roots will be seen coming out of the nuts. This usually happens in early February, but will depend on the temperature of your refrigerator. They can be kept in the cold until mid-May for outside planting, or planted in potting mix (not soil) in containers. The half-gallon cardboard containers from milk make excellent pots. Poke a few holes in the bottom for drainage, fill with potting mix, carefully place the germinated chestnut in the top and cover with about one inch of potting mix.

When they are about a foot tall plant out where you want them to grow.  When planting seedling chestnuts outside you must find the old nut shell (still clinging to the root) and carefully twist it off. Animals will pull up the trees looking for the nut if you don抰 do this.

Trees start best with a little shade. Never fertilize trees when planting: this encourages leaf production, and they first need to make roots. Make sure that they have plenty of water during dry spells. If you keep a coffee can near them you can gauge the amount of every rainstorm. If the trees have not gotten one inch of rain in a week, give them an inch of water (set up a sprinkler and check the coffee can). They need to be watered as long as they have leaves (during the growing season).

In their second season outside you may start fertilization, but don抰 apply fertilizer later than late July. Keep weeds away from the base of the trees to reduce their competition, and to keep people with lawn mowers and weed-whackers from damaging them. Chestnuts can grow very rapidly, and under good conditions Chinese trees will have nuts when about 5 years old, American trees at about 8 years old.