1904.] W. Gollsin^Note on the Chestnut. 45 



The only other centre I know of where the nuts are an article of trade 

 is at Bhamo, Upper Burma, and there the nuts come in from China. 



In the old reports of the Saharanpur and Mussoorie gardens, prodi- 

 gious quantities of nuts are noted by the late Dr. W. Jameson as having 

 been imported from time to time from Europe into N.-W". India, but it is 

 not clear from these reports that these nuts ever yielded plants that at- 

 tained to the age of nut-bearing trees. The native tradition of this garden 

 is that the chestnuts now bearing at Dehra Dun belong to stock intro- 

 duced by Fortune from China along with the tea plant. The trees now 

 bearing in the Kulu Valley may be of the self- same stock. The plants 

 could easily have reached that valley from the Saharanpur garden 

 through the adjoining or neighbouring Kangra Valley where Dr. Jame- 

 son had charge of a Government experimental tea plantation. 



The nuts now found at Dehra Dun and those which appear in the 

 Bhamo bazar every season from China, are identical in general appear- 

 ance. Both are very like the sweet chestnut of Europe, but neither are 

 so well filled nor do they keep for so long. When perfectly fresh, they 

 differ very little, if at all, from the nut of Europe, but they shrivel up 

 and rot much sooner, and when a month old only a small percentage are 

 fit to eat. I have tried both plants and seeds of chestnut from Europe, 

 and in the course of an experience of over 25 years, have only established 

 one plant at Arnigadh, Mussoorie, a grafted plant from Italy. This 

 particular plant is over 20 years old and is still a round-headed bush 4 

 to 5 feet high and about the same through. 



There are therefore very strong reasons for assuming that the 

 European strain of sweet chestnut has been a most complete failure every- 

 where in Northern India, and that the small success we have had, is 

 through seeds or trees of Chinese origin, introduced into N.-W. India 

 by Fortune and established by Jameson. 



