Many Grantham residents attended the April 22nd event sponsored by the Grantham Conservation Commission (GCC) “Local Successes in Restoring the American Chestnut Tree”. We had three speakers who did a wonderful job of describing the history of the American Chestnut Tree, the blight that killed virtually all (4 billion) chestnut trees and the current effort to restore the American Chestnut tree to our area. The New London Conservation Commission has a robust effort underway and one we hope to model as we develop our own Grantham Restoration Project.
This is a new project for the GCC that will be implemented on the Town Forest land. There is much to do in assessing the ideal location for planting, soil preparation prior to planting, seed planting in pots 6-9 months in advance of seedling planting, protection of the seedlings from rodents and deer, and eventually statistic tracking as the orchard becomes established and developed in the coming years.
Our effort began with the acquisition of 30 American Chestnut seeds from The American Chestnut Foundation (TACF) in early April as part of their Annual Seed sale. These seeds had already spent 60-90 days in cold storage to give them the sense of winter conditions (cold stratification) so that they would be ready for planting once we received them. Those seeds were immediately planted in pots and housed in a heated woodshop with exposure to some light. One thing we had to keep in mind is that not all seeds will germinate, sprout and produce a seedling so we needed to set our expectations accordingly. As of today (approximately nine weeks after planting) we have 19 thriving seedlings that were moved mid-May to a greenhouse. We’ve attached a couple of photos.
The plan is to plant these seedlings early this fall in the Town Forest. Over the couple of months we’ll be evaluating the soil conditions and identifying specific planting locations for the 19 seedlings from this, our 2025 crop. We’ll be clearing away underbrush, weeds and laying weed barrier in anticipation of the planting this fall.
Our goal for planting seeds in early 2026 will be to not only acquire seeds through the TACF Annual Seed sale but to also seek seeds from the VT/NH TACF chapter as we continue to work with them in their harvest of seeds from the American Chestnut trees near Barre, VT. This is an annual event for them and allows them to offer seeds locally to members of TACF who have chosen to also be members of the local chapter. We expect that we could have between 50 and 80 seeds to plant next Spring which could yield 30 to 50 seedlings.
A member of the GCC has volunteered to assist the New London Conservation Commission in the planting of their seedlings as well as adapt some of their existing planted seedlings for appropriate deer and critter protection so that we are well positioned to do the same when we initially plant our first crop next Spring.
We will provide periodic updates on this restoration project and will welcome those residents who wish to participate in the planting this fall. If you are interested in assisting please email me at [email protected].
This is a new project for the GCC that will be implemented on the Town Forest land. There is much to do in assessing the ideal location for planting, soil preparation prior to planting, seed planting in pots 6-9 months in advance of seedling planting, protection of the seedlings from rodents and deer, and eventually statistic tracking as the orchard becomes established and developed in the coming years.
Our effort began with the acquisition of 30 American Chestnut seeds from The American Chestnut Foundation (TACF) in early April as part of their Annual Seed sale. These seeds had already spent 60-90 days in cold storage to give them the sense of winter conditions (cold stratification) so that they would be ready for planting once we received them. Those seeds were immediately planted in pots and housed in a heated woodshop with exposure to some light. One thing we had to keep in mind is that not all seeds will germinate, sprout and produce a seedling so we needed to set our expectations accordingly. As of today (approximately nine weeks after planting) we have 19 thriving seedlings that were moved mid-May to a greenhouse. We’ve attached a couple of photos.
The plan is to plant these seedlings early this fall in the Town Forest. Over the couple of months we’ll be evaluating the soil conditions and identifying specific planting locations for the 19 seedlings from this, our 2025 crop. We’ll be clearing away underbrush, weeds and laying weed barrier in anticipation of the planting this fall.
Our goal for planting seeds in early 2026 will be to not only acquire seeds through the TACF Annual Seed sale but to also seek seeds from the VT/NH TACF chapter as we continue to work with them in their harvest of seeds from the American Chestnut trees near Barre, VT. This is an annual event for them and allows them to offer seeds locally to members of TACF who have chosen to also be members of the local chapter. We expect that we could have between 50 and 80 seeds to plant next Spring which could yield 30 to 50 seedlings.
A member of the GCC has volunteered to assist the New London Conservation Commission in the planting of their seedlings as well as adapt some of their existing planted seedlings for appropriate deer and critter protection so that we are well positioned to do the same when we initially plant our first crop next Spring.
We will provide periodic updates on this restoration project and will welcome those residents who wish to participate in the planting this fall. If you are interested in assisting please email me at [email protected].
American Chestnut seedlings that are currently growing in a greenhouse
American Chestnut tree planted by Eastman's Youth Conservation Corps near the upper tennis courts.
New London Conservation Commission American Chestnut Restoration Project saplings that can be seen on the open field to the right of the path that leads to Clark Lookout.