Found alongside Quercus ilicifolia, Quercus imbricaria, and Quercus alba. Located on dry, sandy ridge top
Very ridged spathe, but leaves lighter green underneath, and leaflets shape is gibbous.
Sympatric with Castanea alabamensis. In the fourth photo, that’s C. alabamensis in the foreground and C. dentata in the background.
At the Morton Arboretum. Apparently the sole wild individual in the Arboretum.
Growing at approximately 3000’ elevation. Infertile nuts. No signs of blight. **Caution, Evidence of bears in the area
This tree is over 114 feet tall, just over diameter of 2.2 feet, and the crown spread is at least 60 feet. This tree is wild, and was never planted.
Teeth on leaf margins are quite long and curled inwards. Buds on twigs are pointed away from the twig rather than being pressed snugly against the twig. The underside of the American chestnut leaf is glabrous (see closeup photos), unlike the leaves of the Chinese chestnut which are pubescent. For comparison purposes, I have included photos of the underside of the leaf of a Chinese chestnut. The last two photos show the underside of a Chinese chestnut leaf I collected from a tree in Queens about a week ago - you can see hairs under magnification.
I’ve spoken to many naturalists about this one all of whom unanimously agree this is indeed American Chestnut. This is the first documented one in Minnesota that has a possibility of being native origin. There were a few saplings in the clearing in the middle of this SNA, pin should be spot on. Being out of range means that this is either a disjunct or unintentionally planted by a migrant animal or a person, being off the trail and in a weird spot makes me question where it came from.
Some intrepid explorer left fresh nut and leaf remnants along a trail....... Hopefully in the future the tree remains undisturbed, tree was not visible to my eyes, does look American to me, long hairs under leaves, curved teeth, small white lenticels on twigs
Stand of American chestnut planted probably 85 years ago beyond range of the blight, fully naturalized in an oak wood.