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Revenue Opportunities in Growing Perennials: The Long Story
When we ask, “Why grow chestnuts?” the answer usually starts with a sense of purpose. For many of us, the draw is environmental: soil-building, carbon sequestration, and a low-input alternative to the annual grain systems that currently deplete our landscapes. But as we look toward the future and the industry at large, we have to…
How to Prevent Ambrosia Beetle Damage on Young Chestnut Trees
If you’re establishing chestnut trees in the Southeast or lower Midwest, there’s a challenge you’ll likely face in the first three to four years after planting: ambrosia beetle damage. These rice-sized wood-boring insects are one of the most common threats during the establishment window—targeting trees between ½ and 4 inches in diameter, exactly when your…
Growing Pains: Scaling Your Chestnut Orchard
We spend years getting the trees into the ground, tending the soil, and waiting for the burs to open. But getting the nuts off the trees is just the starting line for revenue. We calculate yield per acre, project the harvest out a decade, and expect the math to guarantee a return. But the actual…
The 90-Day Flight Plan: A Grower’s Guide to the Drone Approval Process
I had the opportunity to speak at the Kentucky Fruit and Vegetable Conference earlier this year, which is always a joy. But I have to admit that one of the absolute highlights of the day for me was meeting Caleb Canter and finally getting a close-up look at agricultural drone technology. Even though I was…
How Drone Technology Is Transforming Chestnut Orchard Management
If you’ve ever stood at the bottom of a steep chestnut grove with a heavy sprayer on your back, you’ve probably looked up at the canopy and wondered if there was a better way. For years, drone technology in chestnut orchards felt like something reserved for hobbyists or big-budget films, but as I learned from my conversation…
Monetizing the Orchard Floor: Selling Chestnut Byproduct
If you grow trees, you know exactly what chestnut orchard waste looks like by the end of October. The sorting tables have run for weeks, the coolers are packed to the ceiling, and the trees are finally bare. But out back, or at the end of the processing line, the pile is growing. The cracked…
Taller Isn’t Better: Why Our Best Chestnut Seedlings Ship at Four Feet
In chestnut nurseries, tall trees get all the attention. Six‑ and eight‑foot first‑year trees look impressive in the nursery rows. But height alone doesn’t tell you how that tree will perform once it hits real soil. At EBB Farms, the farm lab for United Chestnuts, we’ve taken a different path: we intentionally standardize our shipped…
The Visibility Mandate: Why 2026 is the Year the U.S. Chestnut Finally Goes Digital
Last week, we talked about the “Commodity Trap” and how growers like Roger Smith are escaping it by becoming “price makers.” It was a story about economics, margins, and the future of farming. But today, I want to talk about something simpler. I want to talk about soup. Just two months ago, on a popular…
A Chestnut Blueprint: Why Specialty Crops Are Winning While Commodities Crash
In Merigold, Mississippi, a farmer named Jack Westerfield recently stood atop a mountain of 2.2 million pounds of unhusked rice, asking a question that is haunting rural America: “What am I supposed to do?” In a stark profile by The New York Times, Westerfield described the crushing reality of modern farming: despite a massive harvest,…
How to Cook With Chestnuts: Boston Butt with Chestnut Honey Glaze
From United Chestnuts Test Kitchen If you’re wondering how to cook with chestnuts, this recipe is a great place to start. Not with complicated techniques. Not by changing how you already cook. But by taking something familiar and adding one thoughtful layer that lets chestnuts shine without taking over. This dish starts as classic crockpot…
Momentum Is Building: A New Chapter for the Chestnut Growers of America
There’s a quiet but unmistakable shift happening in the chestnut industry. Across orchards, research institutions, conferences, and kitchen tables, the conversation is changing. Chestnuts are no longer just a nostalgic symbol or a specialty crop tucked into the margins. Instead, they are being recognized as a resilient, nutritious, and economically viable crop with a powerful…
How to Cook Chestnuts: Making Light, Healthy Dishes Feel Satisfying
When our kids were growing up, one of their favorite week night dinners was what we simply called lemon chicken. I’d fry up cubes of chicken and make a quick sauce using store-bought lemon curd and a splash of sherry. It was bright, comforting, and always disappeared fast. Years later, wanting to recreate that familiar…