# Sweet chestnut (Castanea sativa)

> A long-lived tree of up to 35 m with spirally fissured bark, long serrated leaves and spiny husks holding edible chestnuts. In southern Europe it is an orchard and coppice tree of enormous cultural importance; in south-east England it has been coppiced for fencing for centuries and is treated as an honorary native though it was introduced, probably by the Romans. Nuts ripen fully only after hot summers.

Source: https://treerm.org/trees/castanea-sativa · Updated 2026-11-08 · License CC BY 4.0

## Facts

- Also called: Spanish chestnut, European chestnut
- Family: Fagaceae
- Type: Broadleaf, drops leaves
- Mature height: 30 m; spread 20 m
- Growth: Medium growth; lives about 700 years
- USDA hardiness zones: 5 to 7
- Light: Full sun
- Water: Moderate water
- Soil: Deep, light, acidic to neutral free-draining soils; intolerant of lime and waterlogging
- Native range: Native to the Balkans, Greece, Türkiye, the Caucasus, Lebanon-Syria and northern Iran; introduced and long naturalised across western Europe including Britain.

**Benefits:** Edible, Long lived, Wildlife, Pollinators, Shade, Stores carbon well

**Good for:** Food, Timber, parks, Yard shade, Agroforestry

**Watch out for:** Heavy litter, Pest prone

## Care

Plant in winter on acidic, well-drained soil and water through dry first summers; trees take about 30 years to bear well. Coppice on a 10 to 20 year cycle or prune in winter. Sweet chestnut blight (Cryphonectria parasitica) and oriental chestnut gall wasp have arrived in the UK; Phytophthora root rot kills trees on heavy wet soils. Squirrels damage young bark.

## Where it stands

- **Native:** Greece; Türkiye
- **Adapted:** Spain (Introduced per WCVP); France (Introduced in antiquity per WCVP); ENG, United Kingdom (Non-native, long naturalised and coppiced, especially in Kent and Sussex); Ireland (Introduced per WCVP); Italy (Introduced in antiquity per WCVP; a major orchard and coppice tree)

## Sources

- https://www.woodlandtrust.org.uk/trees-woods-and-wildlife/british-trees/a-z-of-british-trees/sweet-chestnut/
- https://apps.worldagroforestry.org/treedb/AFTPDFS/Castanea_sativa.PDF
- https://www.gbif.org/species/5333294
- https://www.missouribotanicalgarden.org/PlantFinder/PlantFinderDetails.aspx?taxonid=280759
- https://plants.ces.ncsu.edu/plants/castanea-sativa/