Many admirers of trees place the Chestnut before the oak because it is a
taller tree with a proportional spread and denser foliage. A remarkable
peculiarity in the style of its foliage is its radiated tufts, giving it
a similar appearance to that which is so apparent in the horse-chestnut.
But we observe an important difference between the two,—while the
radiated tufts of the horse-chestnut are distinctly separated by spaces,
those of the Chestnut seem to be involved in a general and more
indistinct mass of foliage. A notion prevails in some parts of Europe,
that this tree should not be planted near dwelling-houses, “because the
flowers emit a powerful and disagreeable odor, which is offensive to
most people.” I have not observed any such odor from the American
Chestnut.
In general form and proportions there seems to be no specific difference
between the English and the American chestnuts. On this continent it is
a majestic tree, remarkable for the breadth and depth of its shade; but
it is seldom cultivated by roadsides. It displays many of the
superficial characters of the red oak, so that in winter we cannot
readily distinguish them. The foliage bears some resemblance to that of
the beech, but displays more variety. The leaves are long, lengthened to
a tapering point, and of a bright and nearly pure green. Though arranged
alternately, like those of the beech, on the recent branches, they are
clustered in stars, containing from five to seven leaves, on the
fruitful branches, that grow out from the perfected wood. When the tree
is viewed from a moderate distance, the whole mass seems to consist of
tufts, each containing several long pointed leaves, drooping divergently
from a common centre. From this centre the aments of the male flowers
come out in a similar way; and their bright silvery green, glistening
upon a mass of darker foliage, always attracts attention at the time of
flowering.
The Chestnut is ranked among the largest of our forest trees, sometimes
in favorable situations attaining a height of nearly eighty feet. When
growing isolated on a plain, its diameter is sometimes equal to its
height. The Chestnut has a rather loose ramification, being in this
respect inferior to the red oak, which it resembles. Its larger branches
are numerous, but the spray is coarse, the terminal branches being fewer
and more straggling than those of the oak. This tree is therefore not
comparable in beauty with the oak when divested of its leaves. The
Chestnut is a classical tree, being mentioned very frequently in the
works of the Greek and Roman poets, who were familiar with it.