Decembeb 6 , 1913 . 
THE GARDENERS’ MAGAZINE. 
i THE HORSE CHESTNUTS. | 
t ❖ 
Exactly why two such very distinct trees 
as the ^sculus and Castanea should both 
bear the popular name of Chestnut is not 
very clear. Admittedly, there is some re¬ 
semblance in the spiny husks and shining 
brown fruit or seeds^ but here the likeness 
ends. Not only do the Horse Chestnut and 
the Sweet Chestnut belong to different 
genera, but they are members of widely 
distinct natural orders, ^sculus to Sapin. 
daceie and Castanea to Cupuliferae. 
^sculus. 
Among large ornamental-flowering trees 
of otliCT species are quite smooth. A second 
peculiarity is that several species have 
four and others five petals. These charat*- 
ters were foinnerly use<l as a generic <lis- 
tinction, those with spiny fruits and five 
petals being kno\\ni as .^scales, or Horse 
Chestnuts, and the species with four 
petals and smooth fruits as Pavia, or 
Buckeyes. 
The cultivation of the Horse Chestnuts 
aresents no diflSculties. The trees, even when 
a fair size, transplant vsucccssfully. All are 
perfectly hardy, with the possible excM'ption 
of the Asiatic species, which, though they 
919 
californica. 
Commonly referred to as the CaJiforniaJi 
Buck-eye, this spe^'ies grows wild on the 
banks of the I pjHM* Sacramento Hiver, 
California, and the wosl4wn .slo|»es of the 
Sierra Nevada mountains. Though first 
introduced as long ago as 1855 by the 
Messrs. VeiUdi, of Exeter, where it first 
floweixyl three years later, the Californian 
Buckeye is but very little known. It 
forms a large shrub or very spreading tree, 
the dianu'ter of the branches Ixung almost 
invariably greaU»r than the height. A tree 
at Kew is 15ft. high, and 20ft. through. 
The talh»6t specimen rt»corded in this coun. 
try is in the Me of Wight, where it is said 
to l>e 20ft. high. 
The leav<« are noteworthy as lM*ing the 
smallest of tlie family, 3in. to Sin. long, 
generally in fivers. The fltiwers are white, 
Jin. in diameter, closely di8p<»w*d on a <*om. 
juK-t raceme some Oiii" to 7in. long, with 
consiucuous orangecoloimHl anthers.’ Th<* 
1, .^sculus Pavia; 2, JE. carnca; 3, 
[Photo; C. P. Raffil. 
HORSE CHESTNUT FRUITS. 
M. californica; 4, M. flava; 5, 2E. glabra; 6, indica; 7, Spineless hybrid from 
Je' Hippocastanum; 8, M. Hippocastanum. 
growing in our pleasure grounds and parks 
first place must be given to the Common 
Horse Chestnut. As a specimen tree, 
several trees planted to form an imposing 
and as an avenue tree, when in 
flower the Common Horse Chestnut is un- 
rqualled. While the omamental character 
of the tree is such a strong point, quite the 
opposite is the case if it is considered for 
close woodland and coppice planting. The 
distinct, wide-spreading habit of the 
branches renders the tree worthless for close 
planting. The timber is not of much com- 
^ercial value, while for firewood its wortk 
perhaps, explained by saying that ouj 
o^en here seldom carry it home, preferring 
^oy other wood of the larger timber trees, 
oxcept that of the Sweet Chestnut. 
V ^on species of sesculus are in cultivation, 
half of which are natives of Noi’th America, 
^»ur natives of Asia, and one a European 
species. As well shown in the illustration, 
species have spiny fniits, while those 
occur at fairly high elevations in a wild 
state, should, except in the south and west, 
be planted in fairly sheltered positions. 
Seeds form the best and a ready means of 
increasing stock. These should be sown as 
soon as ripe, or, at any rate, be kept dur¬ 
ing the winter in damp sand, for if kept 
dry they soon lose their vitality. The 
hybrids and the double variety are in¬ 
creased by grafting or budding, the Horse 
Chestnuts on stocks of .^Esculus Hippocas- 
tanum and the Pavias on JE. flava or 
.15. glabra. It is important when grafting 
or budding to use the wood at the base of 
the young shoots where the eyes or buds 
are small. 
With regard to soil, a rich loam, moist 
rather than dry, is the most suitable, but 
it must be a veiy bad soil if the Common 
Horse Chestnut fails in it. On the other 
hand, if available, as the trees are gross 
feeders, mulches of manure prove very 
beneficial, particularly on light soils. 
flowers are fragrant. The fruits, as shown 
in the illustration, are spineless, brown in 
colour, in shape resembling a small pear, 
2i.n. to 3in. long. A most iin|>ortant trait 
in the character of this buck-eye is the fact 
that the flowering season lasts for tw'o 
montlis, a succession of flowers opening 
from June to August. ^tCscuIus californicji 
is useful to plant as a lawn spwimen and 
in the shriiblx>ry. Its value for the for¬ 
mer purpose may be seen at a glance on 
referring to the illustration of a tr^H', grow¬ 
ing at Kew, in the Gardenerh Magazine 
of 1912, page 577. 
The fact that most of the trees of A. cali. 
fornica in this country are growing in gar¬ 
dens of the south and west suggests that 
in other parts of the country the most 
sheltered positions available should be 
chosen. 
carnea. 
The red or scarlet Hoi*se Chestnut is re¬ 
puted to be a hybrid between the Common 
