Your nuts are in the mail

Chestnuts were placed in the tender care of the U.S. postal service
this morning. Should be arriving at their intended new homes in a
coupleathree days.

Each recipient was sent about twenty seeds, approximately half of
which are already sprouted. They should be planted as soon as is
possible. Plant in 8 inch pots if weather is still on the wintry side
or if you wish to delay placing in what will become their permanent
homes. They must, at all costs, be protected from late season frost.
They MUST also be COMPLETELY protected from the depradations of
squirrels, deer, and other rodents. Ask anyone who got some last
year.

COMPLETELY means that there remains absolutely no possibility that
squirrels, in particular, can get at them for at least one full year,
as the seed is remarkably persistent; it will remain as an
irresistible attractant to rodents throughout the first growing season
and beyond.

American chestnut seeds vaguely resemble a sort of flattened acorn. A
typical burr will contain three seeds aligned in a row. The two
outside seeds will be flattened on one side, the center one on both.
Seeds should be planted as they would lie if tossed onto a tabletop,
which is to say that they should lie in the soil on one of the
flattened faces.....on their sides, as it were. This will seem like
an unnatural act because the root radical actually emerges from the
pointed end. It looks like it ought to be planted with that end
down. But the emerging radical splits into the proto-root and the
proto-stem. Horizontal is the right way. It should be covered by
about an inch of loose rich soil or potting mix and kept well
watered.....the soil should remain very moist to the touch. Treat
unsprouted seeds just like those that have already sprouted.
Germination rates are very high. Odds are that nearly all of them
will eventually sprout.

Full sun is best, though chestnuts will tolerate a good deal of
shade. In either case, the seedlings MUST be watered regularly and
frequently, depending on the nature of the soil and evaporation. Do
not let them get dry for the first two growing seasons. After that
they can be left to their own devices assuming they are not subjected
to especially arid conditions.

The growth rate of American chestnut is, under ideal conditions,
nothing short of phenomenal. A two year old seedling may be two feet
tall and after that it may put on three, four or even five feet per
year for several years.....once again, under ideal conditions. We
have trees here that are six years old and twelve to fifteen feet tall
and 4 inches dbh.

And did I mention that they MUST be protected, far beyond what any
normal person would think is reasonable, from the ****ing squirrels?*

giles
*"hardware cloth", quarter inch mesh steel wire is best, and don't
neglect to close the top.