Chinkapin
(Castanea
pumila Mill)
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Chinkapin
usually grows on rich in organic matter. It can be found from
sand ridges and swamp margins of the coast to 4500 feet elevations
in the mountains. Although it is a member of the same family as
the American chestnut, Chinkapin is highly resistant to the blight
that destroyed the great stands of American chestnut.
Chinkapin leaves are 3 to 5 inches long and 11/2 to 2 inches wide.
They are bright yellow-green on the upper surface and silvery
on the lower surface. The fruit is a small burr, 1 to 11/2 inches
in diameter, containing a single, dark chestnut-brown, shiny kernel
that is sweet and edible.
The bark is 1/2 to 1 inch thick, light brown tinged with red.
It is slightly furrowed and broken on the surface into loose,
plate-like scales.
Chinkapin trees usually are small. They grow sometimes 15 to 30
feet in height with a trunk diameter of up to 1 1/2 feet. The
wood is light, hard, strong, coarse-grained and dark brown. It
is used for fence posts, rails and railway ties. The sweet nuts
are a valuable source of food for a wide variety of wildlife.
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