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- Q.I’m Trying To Grow A Horse Chestnut Tree From Conkers; Am I Doing It Right? - I'm based in North England, just outside of Manchester. I've been collecting conkers hoping to plant them and I wanna ...
- Q.My Neighbor Has A Chestnut Tree And It Carries Over My Yard And All The Chestnuts Fall On My Side. Can I Get Rid Of The Chestnut From - producing each year please help it is so dirty I need help thank you My neighbor has a chestnut tree and ...
- Q.Indoors Losing Leaves In Fall - I have planted several horse chestnuts or chestnut trees from nuts. They are indoors and until recently were doing great. ...
- Q.Horse Chestnut Pruning - you mention to avoid pruning horse chestnut trees from early spring to mid-summer, but then recommend instead from mid-spring to ...
- Q.Horse Chestnut Replanting - My partner grew a horse chestnut from a conker 25 years ago on a river bank before transferring it into ...
- Q.Planted Conkers Last Autumn, Where Should They Be Now? - Firstly, thanks for replying to my question last year. I'm growing conkers from conkers, I put them in pots last ...
- Q.Horse Chestnut Tree Root Ripped - I planted some conkers in a raised bed because I didn’t have enough pots, turns out the ones in the ...
Asked by
nathanr11881 on
September 27, 2020
EnglandQ.I’m Trying To Grow A Horse Chestnut Tree From Conkers; Am I Doing It Right?
I'm based in North England, just outside of Manchester. I've been collecting conkers hoping to plant them and I wanna know if I'm doing it right. I collected them, did the water test. ones that sank, got potted, rest went onto the compost heap. I put the good ones in pots and watered them (late sep) I also ran out of pots so put some in the ground but I'm not too bothered by them. I plant to make little cages out of plastic bottles to protect them from animals. Once Spring comes around, some should start sprouting, shouldn't they? Also, I know they take years to grow, but do you have a guess as to how long it'll take for conkers to start appearing? I've seen 5 years thrown about but I've also seen some people say 20+ years.
Answered by
BushDoctor on
September 28, 2020
Certified ExpertA.From seed, you will look at around 20 years. That's a good guess, but it could be more or less.
I would say what you are doing sounds fine, and they will likely sprout after the natural cold stratification.
Here is an article that will help:
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- Asked by
Anonymous on
September 30, 2020Q.My neighbor has a chestnut tree and it carries over my yard and all the chestnuts fall on my side. Can I get rid of the chestnut from
producing each year please help it is so dirty I need help thank you My neighbor has a chestnut tree and it carries over to my yard and all the chestnuts fall on my side and it is so dirty and there are thousands of chestnuts on my patio please help.
- Answered by
GKH_Susan on
October 2, 2020
Certified ExpertA.The chestnuts themselves can be composted. This is a nuisance issue you may want to take up with your city or county, if you haven't been able to work with your neighbor. The tree could be pruned, but it is not always legal to cut someone else's tree. If you receive official permission to cut the tree back, it would be best to talk to someone at your local agricultural extension office or a certified arborist. Here's a link to your closest extension office in Westchester County: https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/extension-search?zip=06902&radius=50&services_search_action=search&submit=Search
Was this answer useful?00 - Asked by
Anonymous on
October 25, 2020Q.Indoors Losing leaves in fall
I have planted several horse chestnuts or chestnut trees from nuts. They are indoors and until recently were doing great. They are about 1 1/2 feet tall and are now getting brown leaves and losing them like if they were outdoors. Is this normal fall behavior for the trees?
- Answered by
GKH_Susan on
October 26, 2020
Certified ExpertA.Yes, this is normal fall behavior for all deciduous trees. Enjoy this article:
https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/ornamental/trees/tgen/what-are-deciduous-plants.htm
https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/ornamental/trees/horse-chestnut/horse-chestnut-varieties.htm
https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/ornamental/trees/horse-chestnut/toxic-horse-chestnuts.htmWas this answer useful?00 - Asked by
Anonymous on
February 18, 2021Q.Horse Chestnut Pruning
you mention to avoid pruning horse chestnut trees from early spring to mid-summer, but then recommend instead from mid-spring to mid-summer. can you better define this in terms of months/mid-months. I'm confused.
- Answered by
GKH_Susan on
February 19, 2021
Certified ExpertA.The safest time to prune would be in mid to late winter, when the tree is dormant. In months that would be in January to February in the northern hemisphere and July to August in the southern hemisphere.
Was this answer useful?00 - Asked by
Anonymous on
March 9, 2021Q.Horse Chestnut Replanting
My partner grew a horse chestnut from a conker 25 years ago on a river bank before transferring it into a big planting pot. It's is currently 4ft and we would love to plant it back on the river bank as we have just purchased the adjacent property. Do you think the tree will survive this or should we keep it in the planter?
- Answered by
GKH_Susan on
March 11, 2021
Certified ExpertA.If it is only 4 feet tall, I would go ahead and plant it on the river bank. It will likely grow quickly.
https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/ornamental/trees/horse-chestnut/potted-horse-chestnut-care.htm
Was this answer useful?00 - Asked by
nathanr11881 on
March 17, 2021
EnglandQ.Planted Conkers Last Autumn, Where Should They Be Now?
Firstly, thanks for replying to my question last year. I'm growing conkers from conkers, I put them in pots last year and some have the white-pink worm thing coming out, which I think is the root, but none of them have grown above the soil line yet, is this normal? if so, when will they grow above the soil line? I'm based in North England if that makes a difference to the growth rate - Thanks.
- Answered by
BushDoctor on
March 18, 2021
Certified ExpertA.Roots will not move, so anything that resembles a worm is likely not a root. Unfortunately, your photo did not come through. I am unable to see what is being referenced.
It can take a year or so to break dormancy, though it is usually a little less than that. You can check the status of the seed by, gently, scraping away the soil to uncover the top of the seed.
If there are plenty of roots throughout the soil, then you could expect to see some growth by the end of spring.
Now, being in England, which is equivalent to our zone 9, there is a chance that it does not get cold enough to break dormancy. If this happens, you will want to put the seed into your refrigerator for at least a few weeks. After cold stratification, it will sprout.
Here is an article that will help:
Was this answer useful?00 - Asked by
nathanr11881 on
April 22, 2021
EnglandQ.Horse Chestnut Tree Root Ripped
I planted some conkers in a raised bed because I didn’t have enough pots, turns out the ones in the raised bed did the best. Ever since the leaves came up, our dogs have been after them so I was forced to take it out the ground, in doing so I accidentally ripped the root of it. It’s still got leaves (see pic which didn't go through on last question), what do you reckon the odds of survival are? It still has a fair amount of white root (at least 7 inches I would say) I’ve since put it in a pot with soil. Also, there’s still one in the raised bed, what should I do with it if the dogs are attacking it and I’m not able to protect it?
- Answered by
BushDoctor on
April 22, 2021
Certified ExpertA.Chances for something to go wrong are extremely high due to the break, unfortunately.
You can increase the chances of survival by making sure that the area has a chance to dry out, slightly, between watering. This will decrease the chance that a pathogen gets established in the soil.
Other than proper care, and using beneficial microbes in the soil, there is little that you can do to help it recover. These articles will help:
https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/garden-how-to/soil-fertilizers/what-are-microbes-in-soil.htm
https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/composting/basics/compost-bacteria-information.htm
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