American Chestnut
Castanea dentata
The American chestnut was once the dominant canopy tree of eastern forests before chestnut blight; surviving sprouts and blight-resistant breeding keep it alive. Plant as part of restoration, knowing blight remains a risk.
- Family
- Fagaceae
- Type
- tree
- Lifespan
- perennial
- Height
- 50–75 ft
- Spacing
- 50–75 ft apart
- Light
- sun, part shade, shade
- Soil moisture
- moist
- Soil pH
- acidic, neutral
- Bloom
- June, July
- Bloom colors
- white
- Wildlife value
- larval host
- Caterpillar hosts
- ~127 butterfly & moth species
- Landscape uses
- specimen
- Native states
- AL, CT, DC, DE, FL, GA, IL, IN, KY, LA, MA, MD, ME, MI, MO, MS, NC, NH, NJ, NY, OH, PA, RI, SC, TN, VA, VT, WI, WV