Hi dzejna, I just happened to gather a bucket full of horse chestnuts in October. If you are still looking for some, or want more, send me an email. We can either trade or I will send you some for the cost of postage. Katie

And if it is the flower buds, rather than the leaf buds/growth tips, being eaten, then you will get no, or fewer, flowers this spring. I don't know if they would work, so am offering it only as a suggestion - but one of the critter-ridder sprays, probably one that claims to deter groundhogs or rabbits, might work. I know red pepper/cayenne powder will mostly keep squirrels out of my bird feeders (I mix it with the seed), but didn't stop a raccoon from taking several feeders down from the hooks at night, and dragging them off into the bushes if they were hard to open (hanging the feeders from light ropes did the trick). If you are dealing with a large tree, the suggestion becomes impractical. It might be too late for this year, but you could make yourself a note and spray next year at this time or a bit earlier. The other thing to remember is that the trees evolved with bud-eating "varmints", so it probably won't kill the tree unless the varmint (whatever it is) keeps it up over the entire spring and summer, for a couple of years. The tree won't get bigger, or will do so more slowly than it might otherwise, but it will probably live, as long as the varmint moves on soon. Whatever the "varmint" is, it is probably attracted to the nutrient-rich buds, in the absence of other foods. You could always "give in to it", in a sense, and put out some other food that it can get to - either bird seed, suet or peanut butter come to mind. This would at least keep it from the chestnut buds. It would also, unfortunately, teach it to look to you for food, so it's a toss up.

Usually it's a case of pollination. If the flowers were pollinated by another suitable Aesuculus tree, then the fruit develop to maturity. But if the flowers either weren't pollinated, or were unsuccessfully pollinated by an incompatible Aesculus, then the fruit would either initially look like they are developing only to drop off soon afterwards. This happens a lot with Magnolias and Oaks. They will hold on to their fruit, and the fruit will even look to be developing, but then sometime before maturation, they will drop the developing fruit(Magnolias do this 4 to 6 weeks after flowering and Oaks will do this as long as 3 or 4 months after flowering) because the flower wasn't properly pollinated. I suspect that since you have all the same cultivar they are probably not self compatible enough to properly pollinate their own flowers and hence the fruit are dropped. Since they are all the same cultivar, they are all genetically identical, so any pollen landing on any flower would be the same as if the pollen from one lone tree landed on it's own flowers. Plant another variety of Red Horsechestnut (Aesculus x carnea), like 'Briotii or 'O'neill', or perhaps even one of it's parents(A. hippocastanum or A. pavia) and you should get some fruit, although some claim at least some Red Horsechestnuts are sterile.

There used to be a great forum called QDMA Quality Deer Management Association. There were great posts on Chestnuts. This appears to have been discontinued. I think some have moved to the new forum below. In the United States, hunters/landowners grow habitat attracting food plots and nut trees to attract wildlife. Try searching "forum hunters chestnut" to locate good forums on planting Chestnut trees. There is also great resources on Chestnuts through the American Chestnut Foundation. You will increase your search results on Chestnut growing if you search for the "Dunstan Chestnut". A blight resistant variety gaining great popularity with growers and hunters in the US. To answer your question, germinated Chestnuts can be planted anytime. You should protect the tree closely outside until the Chestnut is removed since squirrels/mice/rats will destroy the tree to eat the remaining nut. I typically let mine grow all season and plant in the ground first Fall after germinating. Keep in mind they are highly sought out by wildlife and will be eaten down to the ground if you have deer or other foraging species. I would invest in some tree tubes if you are planting out in a wildlife area. Try this site below. http://habitat-talk.com/index.php?threads/growing-chestnut-trees-from-chestnuts-transferred-from-qdma-forum.5676/