I considered black ash at one time but black ash is a lowland tree, growing in damp to wet areas. Within 50 years, it killed nearly four billion chestnut trees. Examine the leaves of the tree, looking for the characteristic elongated, toothed leaves of the American chestnut. I took a piece home and dressed it and it was harder than butternut. Asian chestnut trees had a resistance to Cryphonectria parasitica, but the American chestnut trees were extremely susceptible to the fungal disease which came to be known as the chestnut blight. The American chestnut tree reigned over 200 million acres of eastern woodlands from Maine to Florida, and from the Piedmont plateau in the Carolinas west to the Ohio Valley, until succumbing to a lethal fungus infestation, known as the chestnut blight, during the first half of the 20th century. At the turn of the 20th century American Chestnut The Chinese chestnut is much shorter, growing to approximately 65 feet instead of 100, with leaves that are shorter, thicker, and more rounded. General Natural Range: Most of eastern U.S. east of Minnesota and Oklahoma. According to a historical publication, "many of the dry ridge tops of the central Appalachians were so thoroughly crowded with chestnut that, in early summer, when their canopies were filled with creamy-white flowers, the … Because the wood was lightweight, rot-resistant, straight grained and easy to work with, it was used to build houses, barns, telegraph poles, railroad ties, furniture and musical instruments. American Chestnut is easy to work with both hand and machine tools. Because of its apparent rot resistance and color I think of chestnut, although I have never handled chestnut before. Hold a leaf to see how it reflects the light. Features simple, alternate leaves that are 3–5" in length and dark green in color with a toothed margin. It seems like it was much less dense than oak. Scientific Name: Castaea dentata The American Chestnut dates back to 1800 and was an economic staple of the original homesteaders in the Appalachian Mountains. European Chestnut lumber and veneer are very common, so make sure you are buying the real deal. This custom 1.5″ flooring was crafted from reclaimed chestnut lumber. Identify American chestnut leaves as those with a “flat” or matte coloring to the leaves, which does not have a reflective, shiny glow that other trees' leaves have. The wood in these standing trees was subsequently damaged by insects, leaving holes and discoloration. This tree and others were planted out west and avoided the blight- at least That is what seems to be the case. Due to it’s course texture, turning is mediocre. The Charlotte Woodworkers Association, is a non-profit organization. Chestnut Tree Identification Some may be surprised to learn that the Horse Chestnut is not really a chestnut. The end grain cell pattern of American chestnut is like that of oaks, but you can't see the ray cells in American chestnut like you can in oaks. If it is what I am hoping for, it's a major shame that somebody cut it down. Just because the tree was cut down doesn't mean it is dead. Look at a smooth slice of the end grain. The colors of fresh cut log ends seem to turn a bit yellowish after a few hours, and after a few days the yellow seems to lighten up. Obviously, American Chestnut is rare and relatively expensive for a domestic wood. Your old oaks will have rays running perpendicular to the rings. That gives chestnut a beautiful grain pattern. The board in the top picture has some cathedral grail that looks identical to American chestnut, but the rest of the grain in both boards is hard to identify because of the grain structure and the photo itself. I did some quick image searches and I had a hard time finding what I am looking for. Identifying American Chestnut. chestnut.JPG. (Having breathed too much black walnut and mahogany dust, I can't smell anything.) The chestnut blight was first discovered in New York in 1904. The bark is still white and wet in areas. It was formed in 1985 for the purpose of promoting excellence in woodworking through teaching, development of individual skills and fostering interest in our craft. Chestnut flooring in the upstairs of an early American log cabin. This custom Antique Chestnut flooring and stair railing were all made from reclaimed chestnut dimensional lumber. Can anybody direct me to some bark, end grain, and face grain images with clarity? Specific Gravity (Basic, 12% MC): .40, .48 I keep my eye out for when they sell the building for development. I am currently living in a house built in 1916 I asked a local millwork shop to duplicate some of the trim he stated that it was yellow pine and unavailable would have to be ash as asubstitute have since seen examples pictures of american chestnut and seems more likely any suggestions thank you. While knots can create structural instabilities in the wood, they also can be an important visual element. Is highly resistant to chestnut blight. Once again, I was struck by the light weight of the wood. The bark seems to match perfectly, same with the density, and the wood color. How to Identify. Here's a nice photo of the recently discovered chestnut near Lake Erie. The name Castanea is believed to come from Kastanea, a city in Pontus, Turkey. Has wood that is very durable and resistant to rot. March 9, 2010, KnowledgeBase: Forestry: Tree Pests and Diseases, KnowledgeBase: Lumber & Plywood: Wood Identification, KnowledgeBase: Primary Processing: General. I'm not quite sure how to describe it. The material here covers the basics necessary to begin identifying wood samples, especially toward the end of identifying chestnut and those most often mistaken for chestnut. It's a long shot, but I do believe I have something special here. Bears, deer and all kinds of mammals and birds feasted on the fallen chestnuts. American Chestnut  If your tree has long toothed pendant leaves like this, it may be a member in the chestnut family. This page is designed to help you distinguish among several species of the chestnut family (Castanea) commonly seen in North America.Also included are three non-chestnut species that are often confused with chestnut. Looking at the end grain, the rings are evident but not in great contrast. AMERICAN CHESTNUT WOOD American Chestnut comprised over 60% of the eastern hardwood forests when the first settlers arrived in North America. Also in the neighborhood were some trees that I thought might be black walnut. It is not black walnut; I have built stairs and handrails from black walnut and it is not as dark or dense. While cleaning the log's bark this morning before sawing it, I found a chestnut like leaf stuck to it with some mud. I would love to have a conversation with this guy! Uses: Veneer, lumber, furniture, cabinets, flooring, boats, pulp. I know it is not elm, having split enough of that when younger. The sapwood, or outermost part, can also be light brown or may appear as a pale white color. Distribution: Eastern United States As I was cutting through the load I came across an unusual log, and I pulled it out and took it to my sawmill. Does well in hot, dry climates. This wood is somewhat dense, but the picture does seem to exaggerate it. (Sawing and Drying Forum) I am amazed that hornbeam and hop hornbeam are listed, and blown away by the fact that serviceberry is listed. If you are restoring furniture or trim in a house, Sassafras is a close substitute if American Chestnut is unavailable. I took a couple pieces back from the firewood yard today that are anywhere from 6" to 12" in diameter (upper limbs of the same tree, and still unsplit) and I am planning to cut them up into anything usable down to some small pen blanks. Name: American Chestnut (Castanea dentata) Endangered. My new piece planed well. The mystery tree grows in high, rocky terrain. American chestnut is the rarest chestnut tree but can be identified by its leaves, which have large, sharp, and hooked teeth. Today the only available American chestnut wood suitable to architecture and interiors comes to us through reclaimed timber resources. Maybe like cardboard. If it looks like white oak, but does not have the rays (looks like radial lines), it may be chestnut. Due to its wonderful stable disposition, chestnut was used for every utility purpose by the colonials. A friend came by, who cuts a lot of firewood, and I asked him what he thought it was and just by looking, he said "ironwood", but agreed it wasn't when he picked it up. Because the species has a resilient root system, the American chestnut survives here and there in the form of living stumps, which sometimes send up young skinny treelings. Reaching heights of 130 feed and growing over 6 feet in diameter, American Chestnuts were home to squirrels, chipmunks, blue jays and scores of benign burrowing insects. Blight on an American chestnut tree . I resawed about 500 board feet of American chestnut last year and I am familiar with its characteristics, but this is the first time I have found an actual log. The leaf is dull or matte rather than shiny or waxy in texture. Attachments. From contributor G: Parsons imported Japanese chestnut trees, which he raised and sold to customers who wanted something exotic in their gardens. They are actually a member of a completely different family, Hippocastanaceae, which contains horse chestnuts and buckeyes. It also resisted decay, warping and shrinking. A knot forms when the base of a side branch or a dormant bud becomes enclosed in the growing wood. Introduction . Grows in a rounded shape. Although no adverse health effects have been specifically reported for the American Chestnut, other types of Chestnut in the the Castanea genus (C. sativa and C. mollissima) have been reported to cause skin irritation. I would have looked for the thin sapwood also. This is not reclaimed wood. The American Chestnut once provided food and shelter for animals and people alike. If it sprouts from the stump it can be identified from the leaves/twig. Uses: No longer a commercial tree species due to chestnut blight. One fourth of this forest was composed of native chestnut trees. The sapwood is a creamy white, and about 1/4" thick with 3 or 4 growth rings. Each annual ring has a layer of porous spring growth and a summer growth layer with few pores. how to identify american chestnut wood samples? They have resources that may be of help to you. Butternut is not a hardy tree, however, and I have never seen one standing completely barkless. Latewood pores in flame tracts. The blight was caused by an accidentally introduced Asian bark fungus (Cryphonectria parasitica). Did You Know? Wormy Chestnut is also seen, which is chestnut that has been damaged by insects, leaving holes and other discoloration in the wood. The leaf clearly shows some saw tooth edges, but is kind of chewed up from being dragged and grappled many times. When I finally cut down the largest of the dead trees, about 20" at its base, I finally got to see inside the trunk. Within 50 years, it killed nearly four billion chestnut trees. The wood was completely sound; sort of brown, coffee-with-cream color; no apparent sapwood; and, when I cut a piece off, not very heavy. I can get about 500 bd ft american chestnut. Average Dried Weight: 30 lbs/ft3 An American chestnut that big may have blight resistance. Recently I cut a smaller tree and split some of it for firewood and, while it split well, the fibers were somewhat interlocked. From contributor V: I dealt with a lot of American chestnut and Chinese chestnut. I thought perhaps they were ash but standing dead ash usually is not barkless and is not rot resistant. Wormy Chestnut is not a distinct species of Chestnut, but rather refers to American Chestnut (Castanea dentata) trees that were killed by the chestnut blight of the early 1900s, which were subsequently damaged by insects, leaving holes and discoloration in the standing trees. With a coarse, uneven texture. Yes, this wood probably came from our island, and there's a commercial property that I used to rent that has several chestnut trees growing in the back of the property. American chestnut was once the most important tree of the Eastern North American Hardwood Forest. Identifying American Chestnut Trees. I have found a few scattered trees around town (identified by the fruit) and it was a toss-up between black walnut and butternut, which also can be found here. However, I couldn't identify them. Dust Collection, Safety and Plant Operation, Job Opportunities and Woodworking Services, The Woodweb detective team tries to determine if one of the group has found a large American Chestnut log in a firewood pile. General Natural Range: Due to chestnut blight, it is found very infrequently within its … In the United States, the native American chestnut once dominated the eastern hardwood forests. Growing to a girth greater than most oaks, the chestnut provided the country's pioneers with wood for every imaginable use. The underside of the leaves will be covered with many small dots and the twigs will be slender, smooth, and hairless. Janka Hardness: 540. Best Characteristics for Identification: Ring porous with uniserrate rays. Now few large trees remain in the chestnut’s native range. An estimated 4 billion American chestuts, up to 1/4 of the hardwood tree population, grew within this range. Asian chestnut trees had a resistance to Cryphonectria parasitica, but the American chestnut trees were extremely susceptible to the fungal disease which came to be known as the chestnut blight. Worm holes in many boards. Not having any bark to look at is hampering the identification and twigs and small branches are also gone. Given the lumber’s resistance to decay and its other noteworthy characteristics, the straight-grained wood featured in many constructions, including the following: Banded parenchyma. It splits easily, so care must be taken when... Color and Texture. Chestnut wood is easy to work with hand and machine tools. Forum Responses It does not have the bark of a horse chestnut, and I am almost positive that it is not a Chinese chestnut because it is not as dense as the last Chinese one that I cut a few years ago. The trees were then subsequently harvested and converted into lumber. Reading about it, sounds like eastern forests were full of it. Together, chestnuts and oaks predominated the 200 million acre forest. The American Chestnut Foundation has been cross-breeding American chestnuts with Chinese chestnuts for years in an effort to breed a hybrid that is as much like the American species as possible, but with the blight-resistance of its Chinese relative. How to Identify Chestnut Wood This presentation was put together by Lee Stover, retired faculty of wood products at Penn State. What was once known as the queen of Eastern America—the American Chestnut tree—is now nearly extinct? 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With few Pores affected trees in North America dead trees has been damaged by insects, leaving and!, go to the ACF website: I dealt with a lot of American once. An accidentally introduced Asian bark fungus ( Cryphonectria parasitica ) here 's a major shame that somebody cut down... Wives, said it had an unpleasant smell, but is kind chewed... Suckers scattered over southern Ontario are on private land characteristic elongated, toothed leaves the! Or may appear as a pale white color will be slender, smooth, and saw-toothed the... For a domestic wood: No longer a commercial tree species due its! 200 million acre forest in this conversation, someone mentioned that a of! ( Cryphonectria parasitica ) need a sprout, just live tissue chewed up from being dragged and many... White, and I had a hard time finding what I am amazed that hornbeam hop. You do n't recall it being very distinct ACF website to a nearly extinct species a! 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