Chinese chestnut | |
---|---|
![]() | |
Scientific classification ![]() | |
Kingdom: | Plantae |
Clade: | Tracheophytes |
Clade: | Angiosperms |
Clade: | Eudicots |
Clade: | Rosids |
Order: | Fagales |
Family: | Fagaceae |
Genus: | Castanea |
Species: | C. mollissima |
Binomial name | |
Castanea mollissima | |
Nutritional value per 100 g (3.5 oz) | |
---|---|
Energy | 1,000 kJ (240 kcal) |
52.36 g | |
1.19 g | |
Saturated | 0.175 g |
Monounsaturated | 0.620 g |
Polyunsaturated | 0.307 g |
4.48 g | |
Tryptophan | 0.052 g |
Threonine | 0.178 g |
Isoleucine | 0.167 g |
Leucine | 0.276 g |
Lysine | 0.243 g |
Methionine | 0.108 g |
Cystine | 0.117 g |
Phenylalanine | 0.203 g |
Tyrosine | 0.134 g |
Valine | 0.235 g |
Arginine | 0.459 g |
Histidine | 0.129 g |
Alanine | 0.213 g |
Aspartic acid | 0.909 g |
Glutamic acid | 0.573 g |
Glycine | 0.196 g |
Proline | 0.172 g |
Serine | 0.196 g |
Vitamins | Quantity %DV† |
Vitamin A equiv. | 0% 0 μg |
Thiamine (B1) | 13% 0.150 mg |
Riboflavin (B2) | 8% 0.090 mg |
Niacin (B3) | 10% 1.500 mg |
Pantothenic acid (B5) | 12% 0.592 mg |
Vitamin B6 | 34% 0.437 mg |
Folate (B9) | 18% 72 μg |
Vitamin B12 | 0% 0.00 μg |
Vitamin C | 46% 38.4 mg |
Minerals | Quantity %DV† |
Calcium | 2% 19 mg |
Copper | 19% 0.387 mg |
Iron | 12% 1.50 mg |
Magnesium | 25% 90 mg |
Manganese | 81% 1.708 mg |
Phosphorus | 15% 102 mg |
Potassium | 10% 477 mg |
Sodium | 0% 4 mg |
Zinc | 10% 0.93 mg |
Other constituents | Quantity |
Water | 40.20 g |
| |
†Percentages are roughly approximated using US recommendations for adults. Source: USDA FoodData Central |
Castanea mollissima, also known as the Chinese chestnut, is a species of chestnut tree in the family Fagaceae that is native to China, Taiwan, and Korea. [2]
It is a deciduous tree growing to 20 m tall with a broad crown. The leaves are alternate, simple, 10–22 cm long and 4.5–8 cm broad, with a toothed margin. The flowers are produced in catkins 4–20 cm long, with the female flowers at the base of the catkin and males on the rest. The fruit is a densely spiny cupule 4–8 cm diameter, containing two or three glossy brown nuts; these are 2–3 cm diameter on wild trees. The scientific name mollissima derives from the softly downy shoots and young leaves. [2] [3]
Synonyms: Castanea bungeana Blume; C. duclouxii Dode; C. fargesii Dode; C. formosana (Hayata) Hayata; C. hupehensis Dode; C. mollissima var. pendula X. Y. Zhou & Z. D. Zhou; C. sativa Miller var. formosana Hayata; C. sativa var. mollissima (Blume) Pampanini; C. vulgaris Lamarck var. yunnanensis Franchet. [2]
In Vietnam, Chinese chestnuts which are grown in Trùng Khánh district, Cao Bằng province have highest quality with 3.3-5.4% glucose, 43.36- 46.47% glucid, 1.16 – 2% lipid, 3.12 – 3.62% protein analyzed by Vietnam National Vegetable and Fruit Researching Institution in 1999.
Chinese chestnut has been cultivated in East Asia for millennia and its exact original range cannot be determined. In the provinces of Anhui, Fujian, Gansu, Guangdong, Guangxi, Guizhou, Hebei, Henan, Hubei, Hunan, Jiangsu, Jiangxi, Liaoning, Nei Mongol, Qinghai, Shaanxi, Shandong, Shanxi, Sichuan, Xizang, Yunnan, and Zhejiang, and also to Taiwan and Korea. It grows close to sea level in the north of its range, and at altitudes of up to 2,800 m in the south of the range. The species prefers full sun and acidic, loamy soil, and has a medium growth rate. [2] [3]
When cultivated close to other species of chestnut (including Japanese chestnut, American chestnut and sweet chestnut), Chinese chestnut readily cross-pollinates with them to form hybrids. [4]
Chinese chestnuts have evolved over a long period of time in coexistence with the bark fungal disease chestnut blight (Cryphonectria parasitica, formerly Endothia parasitica), and have evolved a very successful resistance to the blight, probably more so than any other species of chestnut, so that, although it is not immune, it typically sustains no more than minor damage when infected. It's important to realize, though, that Chinese chestnut trees vary considerably in blight resistance. Some individuals are quite susceptible while others are essentially immune to the disease. [5] Japanese chestnut is also comparatively resistant to blight, with European chestnut somewhat less so. In the 1890s, Chinese and Japanese chestnuts were imported to the United States with the intention of utilizing them as orchard trees due to their small, compact size compared to the towering American chestnut. The results unfortunately were disastrous as the imported Asian species introduced blight to which C. dentata lacked any resistance. The disease was first noticed on a tree in the Bronx Zoo in 1904 and quickly spread out of control, ravaging American chestnut trees. Within 30 years, there were virtually none left in their native range. An active program has been pursued in North America to cross-breed the Chinese and American chestnuts to try to maximize various desirable traits of the American chestnut, such as larger stature, greater nut sweetness, while also isolating and carrying the blight resistance from the Chinese chestnut. [6]
The nuts are edible, and the tree is widely cultivated in eastern Asia; over 300 cultivars have been selected for nut production, subdivided into five major regional groups: Northern, Yangtze River Valley, Sichuan and Guizhou, Southern, and Southwestern. Besides that, the Dandong chestnut (belonging to the Japanese chestnut – Castanea crenata) is a major cultivar in Liaoning Province. [7] Some cultivars, such as 'Kuling', 'Meiling', and 'Nanking', have large nuts up to 4 cm diameter. The nuts are sweet, and considered by some to have the best taste of any chestnut, [8] though others state they are not as good as the American chestnut. [9] The nuts also provide a significant food source for wildlife.
The chestnuts are the deciduous trees and shrubs in the genus Castanea, in the beech family Fagaceae. The name also refers to the edible nuts they produce. They are native to temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere.
The American chestnut is a large, fast-growing deciduous tree of the beech family native to eastern North America. As is true of all species in the genus Castanea, the American chestnut produces burred fruit with edible nuts. The American chestnut was one of the most important forest trees throughout its range.
The pathogenic fungus Cryphonectria parasitica is a member of the Ascomycota. This necrotrophic fungus is native to East Asia and South East Asia and was introduced into Europe and North America in the early 1900s. The fungus spread rapidly and caused significant tree loss in both regions.
Castanea sativa, the sweet chestnut, Spanish chestnut or just chestnut, is a species of tree in the family Fagaceae, native to Southern Europe and Asia Minor, and widely cultivated throughout the temperate world. A substantial, long-lived deciduous tree, it produces an edible seed, the chestnut, which has been used in cooking since ancient times.
Morus alba, known as white mulberry, common mulberry and silkworm mulberry, is a fast-growing, small to medium-sized mulberry tree which grows to 10–20 m (33–66 ft) tall. It is generally a short-lived tree with a lifespan comparable to that of humans, although there are some specimens known to be more than 250 years old. The species is native to China and India and is widely cultivated and naturalized elsewhere.
The American Chestnut Foundation (TACF) is a nonprofit American organization dedicated to breeding a blight-resistant American chestnut tree and the reintroduction of this tree to the forests of the Eastern United States.
Castanea crenata, the Japanese chestnut or Korean chestnut, is a species of chestnut native to Japan and Korea. Castanea crenata exhibits resistance to Phytophthora cinnamomi, the fungal pathogen that causes ink disease in several Castanea species. The mechanism of resistance of Castanea crenata to Phytophthora cinnamomi may derive from its expression of the Cast_Gnk2-like gene.
Castanea pumila, commonly known as the Allegheny chinquapin, American chinquapin or dwarf chestnut, is a species of chestnut native to the southeastern United States. The native range is from Massachusetts and New York to Maryland and extreme southern New Jersey and southeast Pennsylvania south to central Florida, west to eastern Texas, and north to southern Missouri and Kentucky. The plant's habitat is dry sandy and rocky uplands and ridges mixed with oak and hickory to 1000 m elevation. It grows best on well-drained soils in full sun or partial shade.
Amentotaxus formosana, the Taiwan catkin yew, is a species of conifer in the family Taxaceae. It is a small tree to 10 m (33 ft) tall, with a slender trunk. It was previously recognised as a variant of Amentotaxus argotaenia.
Corylus americana, the American hazelnut or American hazel, is a species of deciduous shrub in the genus Corylus, native to the eastern and central United States and extreme southern parts of eastern and central Canada.
Hypovirus is a genus of viruses, in the family Hypoviridae. Fungi serve as natural hosts. There are four species in this genus. Infection reduces the virulence of its parasitic host, making it a hyperparasite useful for blight control.
Dryocosmus kuriphilus is a species of gall wasp known by the common names chestnut gall wasp, Oriental chestnut gall wasp, and Asian chestnut gall wasp. It is native to China and it is known in many other parts of the world, particularly the Northern Hemisphere, as an introduced species and an invasive horticultural pest. It attacks many species of chestnut, including most cultivated varieties. It is considered the world's worst pest of chestnuts.
Bouche de Bétizac is a French chestnut cultivar developed in 1962 by INRA at the station of Malemort-sur-Corrèze near Brive. It is a controlled hybrid between Castanea sativa and Castanea crenata. This variety produces large to very large chestnuts. It has very good flavor for a hybrid. With Marigoule, it is the variety currently most cultivated in the French chestnut groves because it is very productive. Its fruit is bright, light chestnut-brown quickly turning brown and dark brown.
The Precoce Migoule is a chestnut hybrid, a natural cross between a European chestnut and a Japanese chestnut. It was discovered by J. Dufrenoy at the orchard of Migoule in Brive-la-Gaillarde. The tree is vigorous and erect growing with growth of a metre or more in a season if the conditions are right. It is a large sized chestnut tree with height reaching 20 m or more and 7.5-10 m wide. Trees start to bear after 3 to 5 years. Full nut production in 12 - 20 years depending on the location.
Marsol is a natural chestnut hybrid, a cross between a European chestnut and Japanese.
The chestnut cultivar Colossal originates from the USA - California Central Valley. It is a Castanea sativa × Castanea crenata hybrid that is cold hardy to −20 °F (−29 °C). The tree can be grown in Zones 4-8, blooms early, and is pollen sterile. Colossal is chestnut blight, root rot and kernel rot susceptible.
Castanea ozarkensis, also known as the Ozark chinkapin, is a species of tree that is native to the United States. It is in the Castanea genus that includes chestnuts and types of chestnut known as chinkapins.
Castanea × neglecta, the chinknut, is a named hybrid chestnut tree; it is a cross between Castanea dentata and Castanea pumila. It was first formally named by Louis-Albert Dode in 1908. The chinknut is native to the southeastern United States.
Castanea seguinii, called Seguin chestnut, Seguin's chestnut, or Chinese chinquapin, and in Chinese: 茅栗, mao li, is a species of chestnut native to south‑central and southeast China.
Castanea henryi, Henry chestnut, Henry's chestnut, or Chinese chinquapin, pearl chestnut, and in Chinese: 锥栗, zhui li, is a species of chestnut native to south-central and southeast China. A tree reaching 30 m, it is a source of good timber, but has smaller nuts than its size might suggest. Like its close relative Castanea mollissima it is widely cultivated in China, and quite a few varieties have been developed in recent times.