Chestnuts
Chestnuts in Hardwick, Massachusetts
Two large Castanea mollissima (Chinese Chestnut) trees grace our property. The trees are about 50 years old. Every fall large numbers of nuts fall on the lawn. These nuts are delicious. I prepare them for eating by halving each nut with a sharp knife. I roast in a preheated 375F oven until the nut is slightly brown and retracted from the shell, about 30 minutes. Nuts are easy to remove from the shell and still have some moisture inside. Over-roasting results in dry and hard to chew nuts. Under-roasted nuts are hard to peel. I enjoy these nuts as snacks. They are a great addition to many recipes. Grinding the nuts produces an excellent nutritious and high protein flour. Roasted chestnuts freeze well.
Abbie's Ancestral Plant Connections
Abbie's Grandfather
Robert Leighton Coffin was a Naturalist, Photographer, Forager, and Jelly Maker
Invasives
Jumping Worms March 18, 2024
For a couple decades, I have enjoyed an annual community plant sale as a plant contributor, a sales volunteer, and a buyer. It is likely that some donated plants will have soil with highly invasive jumping worms.
Last year as usual, I spent many hours potting donated plants at a friend’s house and digging my own prior to the weekend event. With excitement, I purchased home grown lovelies and put most of them in my garden that day. However, the flowering golden shrimp plant was too beautiful to place outside and went into my kitchen window. A few days later, I observed with alarm some movement on the soil surface along with crumbled dirt filling the drain saucer. With dismay I carefully removed all the plant’s soil and two jumping worms and double bagged for trash disposal. I rinsed the plant’s roots and replanted in a clean pot with purchased potting soil.
This March I have noticed some of my houseplants have crumbled soil and small jumping worms in saucers. I declare publicly that I have a jumping worm problem at 315 Czesky Road. Monitoring the extent of jumping worms in my soil will be with careful deliberation going forward. Already there are many gardeners with a jumping worm problem in my region. Being proactive and aware can stop further spread.
Please learn about jumping worms and act. Educate others and be careful with accepting any plants in garden soil.
There are many helpful on line resources. Image credit goes to the University of Minnesota Extension showing crumbled soil caused by jumping worms.