Castanopsis chinensis seed

LATIN NAME: CASTANOPSIS CHINENSIS

COMMON NAME: Chinese Chinquapin

The Chinese chinquapin domes the tall, evergreen tree with the dense, rounded crown of the glossy, dark-green, oval leaves with the coarse teeth along the edges, the slender, cream catkins opening through the spring, and the small, round, spiny cups that hold the edible nuts, ripening through the autumn. The crown holds the deep green through the whole year, and the old trunks build the firm, grey-brown bark. It stands the warm, humid weather well, and it likes the sun, and the deep, moist, well-drained soil.

Scientific Research & Plant Biotechnology

The evergreen habit of the Chinese chinquapin gives it a recognised place in the research on the warm-climate nut trees of the beech family, and the species appears in the studies of the dense-crown growth and the nut biology. The work looks at the way the tree holds the deep green through the year, the sweet, starchy kernels, and the seed handling. The foresters value the hard, durable timber, and the growers of the evergreen timber and nut trees keep the species in their catalogues.

Ecological & Economic Value & Wide Applications

In the warm garden and the woodland, the Chinese chinquapin domes the garden with the dark evergreen green. The canopy gives the deep, cool shade, the nuts feed the birds, the squirrels and the people, and the timber serves the construction, the furniture and the fuel for the ages. It thrives in the deep, moist, well-drained, sunny ground. Broad, evergreen and nut-generous.

To grow the Chinese Chinquapin from seed, press the fresh nuts into the moist, gritty bed in the autumn, then cover them with a couple of inches of the soil, keep the bed moist, and the young trees surface within a few weeks.

Keep the bed gently watered, and give the young trees the open, sunny spot. The domed crown comes over the years. Set the young trees in the deep, moist ground, and the domed crown will dome over the years.