Topic: Small chestnuts

[jeremyf]

There are 2 large trees near me which normally have nice chestnuts. This year, however, all the chestnuts on the ground are tiny. Is it a bad year for chestnuts or is it still a bit early?

[oliveoyl_25]

It's not just you... I found some trees a few days ago and the nuts on them are tiny... I didn't know if I'd just found duff trees or if it was a bad year, but now I've seen your post I guess it's a bad year.

I'm in NE Lincolnshire.

[kypfer]

Usually, on the trees I visit, the first few days of harvest are mostly small nuts (or those that haven't developed at all). It's as though the tree is rejecting the nuts that haven't developed properly (much like the "June drop" for apples). The bigger nuts usually fall a week or two later ... unless there's a significant wind in the meantime. Down here in "sunny" Jersey the small nuts have only just started to fall in the last few days, I'd expect to be able to collect worthwhile size nuts next week or the week after.

[Robert_Brenchley]

Do you mean sweet or horse chestnuts? Apparently, horse chestnuts nowadays are significantly smaller than they used to be dut to disease. If you mean sweet chestnuts, there are lots of trees round here which drop small nuts, and I've never seen a big one yet!

[Vinlander]

Sweet chestnuts of course - nobody except a schoolyard Lord Amstrad needs more than 6 conkers!

Here in N.London the empty nuts were falling 2 weeks ago and I'm hoping to find some full sweet ones on Friday.

There are usually lots round here though they are never more than 80% of the size of the biggest shop ones - also you have to expect the depredations of those damned grey squirrels (oversized, oversexed and over here).

I once found a variety that was sweet raw - like lettuce heart but better - unfortunately it was in a stately home estate so I can't go back easily even if I could find the tree...

Cheers.