Personally, I don't see anything wrong with trying. After all this time, if these trees have grown and stayed alive long enough to bear chestnuts, it might be they have more resistance (from random genetic changes) to the chestnut blight. I would do more research, however, to find out its cultural requirements (such as needing periods of cold or warm weather, lapse of time, etc. in order to germinate). And yes, they are rare. I have seen sprouts growing from the stumps of killed trees, but nothing bigger than that. Good luck!

You could contact the American Chestnut Foundation for information. They have a Massachusetts Chapter.

Claire

Here is a link that might be useful: American Chestnut Foundation

Alas, the chestnuts you see sprouting will grow as tall as 25 ft but they are "almost" guaranteed to develop the orange fruiting body's of the blight. But nature can and does throw curve balls every now and then so good luck. You never know. I do know that there is an area in Wisconsin and one in Washington state where native chestnuts grow but nothing east of the Mississippi grows beyond being a toddler.

The tree they are from looks healthy. How can I tell if it were to have this blight?

Are you sure it's an American Chestnut tree? I'm certainly no expert, but I thought that here in the east they don't survive long enough to produce chestnuts.

If they really are American Chestnuts you should notify the Foundation. These people have organized to save the trees and would probably want to use them in breeding programs.

Claire

Here is a link that might be useful: How to identify the tree

I agree completely with Claire. It's doubtful these are American Chestnut trees. Probably Chinese Chestnuts.

A note on that website says:

"A good place to start is to compare American and Chinese chestnuts. Over 80% of the leaves that are sent to us each year for identification are either from Chinese chestnuts or Chinese/American hybrids, because these trees are resistant to the chesnut blight. Also compare true American chestnut with three trees often confused with chestnut: chestnut oak, beech, and horsechestnut."

I think we all hope that your trees really are true American Chestnuts - it would be a terrific find. Just not very likely.

Claire

Massachusetts Audubon Society (Land Protection Division)have been contacted. Waiting for there input. I am taking pictures of them and the leaves measure 9 - 10 inches long and 3 - 3.5 inches wide. The tree is about 35 feet tall. Becuase it is at the edge of the woods and there is wetlands beyond this young one. I am going to attemp to scrounge the inner wooded area for any signs of where this offspring came from. I am sending a clipping to ACF Massachusets rep. in Pennsylvania. I will post pictures soon on my website.

Good move.

Claire

I have sprouted lots of chestnuts. Easy. Very easy!
If you have a cold frame just dig them in about 3" deep and cover with soil. I plant them in rows in the cold frame. As each one sprouts in the spring I quickly dig and pot it in friable soil before the tap root really forms.
If a cold frame is not available then plant in quart pots, one seed per pot. Bury the pots close to a building and secure chicken wire over them to ward off squirrels. Once sprouted you will be surprised to see a growth of 3'- 4' the first year. Be prepared to repot in the fall, although it is best to get them in the ground at that point and protect them from deer.

Hope you will let us know what the 'experts' say about your trees.

On a garden tour in Chelmsford some years ago, I saw a thriving Southern magnolia in someone's backyard. It was at least 20' tall. Must be something in the soil in Chelmsford.

I'm reviving an old thread, humbly suggesting that those of you who are interested in American gardening check out the recent info. regarding the American chestnut. This used to be the dominant hardwood tree of Eastern North America, and various state chapters of the American Chestnut Foundation are in various stages of progress toward reintroducing this wonderful tree to the Eastern American forest.

The Massachusetts/Rhode Island chapter's link is here, but other states have their own chapters (deliberately so, since this will help preserve the species' genetic diversity). Check them out if you are at all interested in helping to restore this hugely ecologically significant tree, the one mentioned in Longfellow's poem "The Village Smithy" ("Under a spreading chestnut tree ..."). In Virginia we are apparently within just five years of reintroduction!

This was a tree at least as rot resistant as redwood, with timber just as good. It was a wonderful timber tree, producing a long bole, with limbs high up, so there were lots of board feet of highly rot-resistant timber. It also was a fine furniture wood (even used for making musical instruments). If it was still around those of us in the East would not be using redwood for the decks of our houses, but American chestnut.

You can help restore this tree to our land, and soon (within 10 or 15 years, or maybe less)!

Seems like we are getting closer to a blight-resistant american chestnut tree. There are two avenues being pursued. One is finding and breeding surviving pure american chestnut trees and testing for blight resistance, then breeding with those trees.

The second avenue is cross breeding with the blight resistant chinese chestnut. They now have a 15/16 american chestnut tree that they are starting to plant in forests.

I will be looking into the first effort to see if I can obtain some purebred american chestnuts.

Elm trees have made a big come back up here. I hope the Dutch elm disease has run its course and is over. Because of this I see no reason why American Chestnuts couldn't make a come back as well.