Here are excerpts from a couple of folks who grow and hawk chestnut trees for a living; it would seem the Dunstan name has a reputation.
Whitetail Hill Chestnuts
"We are located in the northwest corner of Alabama near the town of Cherokee on the banks of the Tennessee River. Please make an appointment by contacting us by email or phone if you would like to pick up your trees here at the farm! Phone: 256-415-4085 Email: whitetailhillchestnuts@gmail.com"
"Hybrid chestnuts are also the absolute best choice if you're looking to start an orchard. They are fantastic for human consumption and are the same variety grown by most commercial chestnut growers. If you're interested in learning more about starting an orchard see our article here: Growing Chestnuts as a Cash Crop. All bare root trees are covered by our Survival Guarantee. Tree Size When Shipped: 1yr old approx. 12-36 inches tall
Variety: Castanea dentata X mollissima (This variety is also commonly called dunstan)
Time Till Production: 2-5 years Nut Size: 0.75 - 1.5 inch diameter
Height at Maturity: 60ft Spacing: 25-30ft Nut Production at Maturity Per Year: 50-100lbs/tree (2,000-3,000lbs/acre)
Years Till Maturity: 15 Zone: 4b-9 (From Northern Michigan to Central Florida) pH Range: 4.5-6.5
Time to Plant: Early Spring or Fall, preferably during dormancy"
Chestnut Hill Nursery ….. Dunstan Chestnuts /
"Dunstan Chestnut seedlings produce heavy yearly crops of very large and sweet-tasting nuts. The nuts average 15-35 nuts per pound, as compared to Chinese nuts (35-100 per pound) and American nuts (75-150 per pound). They are much better tasting than imported European nuts and are never bland or bitter. The nuts peel easily, unlike imports that have clinging and ingrown pellicles (seed coats). The nuts ripen in September-November. Dunstan Chestnuts can produce nuts in only 3-5 years of age depending on care and climate. Trees planted in colder regions such as USDA zone 5, may bear between 5-7 years of age."
TyTY nursery .....
" (NEW) Revival Chestnut, Castanea 'Revival' is a NEW hybrid chestnut tree is the super-version of the Chestnut hybridization process that has led to the development of the incorporation of the DNA genetic material of the Chinese Chestnut Tree, Castanea mollissima with the Native American Chestnut Tree, Castanea dentata (emphasis added - Dunstan!). Both the Chinese Chestnut trees were excellent producers of large nuts, however, the flavor of the Chinese Chestnut tree nuts was rather bland or mealy, while the native American Chestnut tree nuts was very sweet with a distinct nutty flavor. The American Chestnut trees were almost headed towards extinction after being infected by an untreatable blight that was imported from trees grown in Europe. One surviving American Chestnut tree was found to be alive and producing nuts in the center of an infected and devastated chestnut orchard, that even after being inoculated with infection of the blight spores, was immune from the blight that had virtually destroyed all other American Chestnut tree survivors, once they reached a bearing size. This discovery of a single instance of American Chestnut tree blight immunity stimulated various researchers to hybridize this surviving immune American Chestnut tree with a Chinese Chestnut tree that produced and a number of interesting hybrids was found that showed excellent characteristics to include:
Cold Hardiness to USDA Zone 5 Total blight immunity Sweet Flavor Very Large Nuts Consistent, High Annual Yields
Whitetail Hill Chestnuts
"We are located in the northwest corner of Alabama near the town of Cherokee on the banks of the Tennessee River. Please make an appointment by contacting us by email or phone if you would like to pick up your trees here at the farm! Phone: 256-415-4085 Email: whitetailhillchestnuts@gmail.com"
"Hybrid chestnuts are also the absolute best choice if you're looking to start an orchard. They are fantastic for human consumption and are the same variety grown by most commercial chestnut growers. If you're interested in learning more about starting an orchard see our article here: Growing Chestnuts as a Cash Crop. All bare root trees are covered by our Survival Guarantee. Tree Size When Shipped: 1yr old approx. 12-36 inches tall
Variety: Castanea dentata X mollissima (This variety is also commonly called dunstan)
Time Till Production: 2-5 years Nut Size: 0.75 - 1.5 inch diameter
Height at Maturity: 60ft Spacing: 25-30ft Nut Production at Maturity Per Year: 50-100lbs/tree (2,000-3,000lbs/acre)
Years Till Maturity: 15 Zone: 4b-9 (From Northern Michigan to Central Florida) pH Range: 4.5-6.5
Time to Plant: Early Spring or Fall, preferably during dormancy"
Chestnut Hill Nursery ….. Dunstan Chestnuts /
"Dunstan Chestnut seedlings produce heavy yearly crops of very large and sweet-tasting nuts. The nuts average 15-35 nuts per pound, as compared to Chinese nuts (35-100 per pound) and American nuts (75-150 per pound). They are much better tasting than imported European nuts and are never bland or bitter. The nuts peel easily, unlike imports that have clinging and ingrown pellicles (seed coats). The nuts ripen in September-November. Dunstan Chestnuts can produce nuts in only 3-5 years of age depending on care and climate. Trees planted in colder regions such as USDA zone 5, may bear between 5-7 years of age."
TyTY nursery .....
" (NEW) Revival Chestnut, Castanea 'Revival' is a NEW hybrid chestnut tree is the super-version of the Chestnut hybridization process that has led to the development of the incorporation of the DNA genetic material of the Chinese Chestnut Tree, Castanea mollissima with the Native American Chestnut Tree, Castanea dentata (emphasis added - Dunstan!). Both the Chinese Chestnut trees were excellent producers of large nuts, however, the flavor of the Chinese Chestnut tree nuts was rather bland or mealy, while the native American Chestnut tree nuts was very sweet with a distinct nutty flavor. The American Chestnut trees were almost headed towards extinction after being infected by an untreatable blight that was imported from trees grown in Europe. One surviving American Chestnut tree was found to be alive and producing nuts in the center of an infected and devastated chestnut orchard, that even after being inoculated with infection of the blight spores, was immune from the blight that had virtually destroyed all other American Chestnut tree survivors, once they reached a bearing size. This discovery of a single instance of American Chestnut tree blight immunity stimulated various researchers to hybridize this surviving immune American Chestnut tree with a Chinese Chestnut tree that produced and a number of interesting hybrids was found that showed excellent characteristics to include:
Cold Hardiness to USDA Zone 5 Total blight immunity Sweet Flavor Very Large Nuts Consistent, High Annual Yields
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