TX-Aggie
Active Member
From testing completed by the Ozark Chinqaupin Foundation, they are finding the Ozark Chinquapins have similar blight resistance as the Chinese Chestnuts (more information on the testing at their website). They can still get the blight, and you can lose trees. After completing the testing, the foundation "culls" the trees who did not show blight resistance comparable to Chinese Chestnuts. Much of the nuts they are sending out now are from the grow plots from the higher resistant groups. In addition, they are manually cross-pollinating the highest resistant trees with each other to see if that will improve the resistance.
I know our farm back in the 60s had a few of the trees left after the blight rolled through. My dad remembers eating nuts from a couple of "scrub brush/bush-like trees" that had what they referred to as hazelnuts growing. After he saw the Ozark Chinquapin Foundation nuts, he realized that the "hazelnuts" were actually Ozark Chinquapins. He showed my uncle the nuts, and now they are both super on board with propagating on our farm. My uncle even goes around during the dry periods, and waters the trees with the side x side.
I know our farm back in the 60s had a few of the trees left after the blight rolled through. My dad remembers eating nuts from a couple of "scrub brush/bush-like trees" that had what they referred to as hazelnuts growing. After he saw the Ozark Chinquapin Foundation nuts, he realized that the "hazelnuts" were actually Ozark Chinquapins. He showed my uncle the nuts, and now they are both super on board with propagating on our farm. My uncle even goes around during the dry periods, and waters the trees with the side x side.