{{short description|Species of tree in the lychee family Sapindaceae}}{{Redirect|Horse-chestnut||Horse chestnut (disambiguation)}}{{Speciesbox|image=Illustration_Aesculus_hippocastanum0_clean.jpg|image_caption=Botanical illustration (1885)|status=VU|status_system=IUCN3.1

IUCN

FIRST1=D.J.

FIRST2=S.

TITLE=HORSE CHESTNUT, AESCULUS HIPPOCASTANUM

PAGE=E.T202914A122961065

ACCESS-DATE=27 SEPTEMBER 2019, |genus=Aesculus|species=hippocastanum

Carl Linnaeus>L.}}Aesculus hippocastanum, the horse chestnut,{{r|IUCN|usda|vascan}} is a species of flowering plant in the maple, soapberry and lychee family Sapindaceae. It is a large, deciduous, synoecious (hermaphroditic-flowered) tree.WEB,bioweb.uwlax.edu/bio203/s2013/phillips_reb2/reproduction.htm,web.archive.org/web/20150130212408/https://bioweb.uwlax.edu/bio203/s2013/phillips_reb2/reproduction.htm, Aesculus hippocastanum: Reproduction, 2015-01-30, It is also called horse-chestnut,{{BSBI 2007 |access-date=2014-10-17}} European horsechestnut,{{r|ncsu}} buckeye,{{r|nccih}} and conker tree.{{r|coles2015}} It is not to be confused with the sweet chestnut or Spanish chestnut, Castanea sativa, which is a tree in another family, Fagaceae.BOOK, Stace, C. A., Stace, C. A., 2010, New Flora of the British Isles, Third, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, U.K., 9780521707725, {{rp|371}}

Description

Aesculus hippocastanum is a large tree, growing to about {{convert|39|m|ft}} tall with a domed crown of stout branches. On old trees, the outer branches are often pendulous with curled-up tips. The leaves are opposite and palmately compound, with 5â€“7 leaflets {{convert|13|â€“|30|cm|in|frac=2|abbr=on}} long, making the whole leaf up to {{convert|60|cm|in|0|abbr=on}} across, with a {{convert|7|â€“|20|cm|in|frac=2|abbr=on}} petiole. The leaf scars left on twigs after the leaves have fallen have a distinctive horseshoe shape, complete with seven “nails”. The flowers are usually white with a yellow to pink blotch at the base of the petals; they are produced in spring in erect panicles {{convert|10-30|cm|in|0|abbr=on}} tall with about 20â€“50 flowers on each panicle. Its pollen is not poisonous for honey bees.WEB,beespoke.info/2014/02/10/bee-trees-horse-chestnut/, Bee Trees - Horse Chestnut | Beespoke Info, beespoke.info, Usually only 1â€“5 fruits develop on each panicle. The shell is a green, spiky capsule containing one (rarely two or three) nut-like seeds called conkers or horse-chestnuts. Each conker is {{convert|2|â€“|4|cm|in|frac=4|abbr=on}} in diameter, glossy nut-brown with a whitish scar at the base.Rushforth, K. (1999). Trees of Britain and Europe. Collins {{ISBN|0-00-220013-9}}.(File:Horse chestnut flowers in Brodalen 4.jpg|thumb|Inflorescence)File:Aesculus hippocastanum floral diagram colored.svg|thumb|229x229px|Floral diagram of A. hippocastanum. The light green structure denotes nectary. (Floral formula]]: â†˜ K5 C2:2 A5+2 G(3).)

Etymology

The common name horse chestnut originates from the similarity of the leaves and fruits to sweet chestnuts, Castanea sativa (a tree in a different family, the Fagaceae), together with the alleged observation that the fruit or seeds could help panting or coughing horses.JOURNAL, Lack, H. Walter, The Discovery and Rediscovery of the Horse Chestnut, Arnoldia, 61, 4,arnoldia.arboretum.harvard.edu/pdf/articles/628.pdf,arnoldia.arboretum.harvard.edu/pdf/articles/628.pdf," title="web.archive.org/web/20100727173454arnoldia.arboretum.harvard.edu/pdf/articles/628.pdf,">web.archive.org/web/20100727173454arnoldia.arboretum.harvard.edu/pdf/articles/628.pdf, 2010-07-27, BOOK, Little, Elbert L., The Audubon Society Field Guide to North American Trees: Western Region, 1994, 1980, Knopf, 0394507614, Chanticleer Press, 541, Although it is sometimes known as buckeye,{{r|nccih}} for the resemblance of the seed to a deer’s eye, the term buckeye is more commonly used for New World members of the genus Aesculus.{{r|wott2018}}

Distribution and habitat

The native distribution of Aesculus hippocastanum given by different sources varies. {{As of|2023|March}}, Plants of the World Online considered it to be native to the Balkans (Albania, Bulgaria, Greece and former Yugoslavia), but also to Turkey and Turkmenistan.WEB, Aesculus hippocastanum L.., Plants of the World Online, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew,powo.science.kew.org/taxon/urn:lsid:ipni.org:names:781594-1, 2023-03-28, A 2017 assessment for the IUCN Red List restricted the native distribution to the Balkan area: Albania, Bulgaria, mainland Greece and North Macedonia. It has been introduced and planted around the world. It can be found in many parts of Europe as far north as Harstad north of the Arctic Circle in Norway,WEB,planteportalen.no/lovtraer/parkhestekastanje/, Hestekastanje, and GÃ¤strikland in Sweden as well as in many parks and cities around the northern United States and Canada such as Edmonton in Canada.WEB,www.edmontonmapsheritage.ca/location/holowach-tree/, Holowach Tree, The compact native population of horse chestnut in Bulgaria is distinct from the horse chestnut forests of northern Greece, western North Macedonia and Albania. It is limited to an area of 9 ha in the Preslav Mountain north of the Balkan Mountains, in the valleys of the Dervishka and Lazarska rivers. Bulgaria’s relict horse chestnut forests are critically endangered at the national level and protected as part of the Dervisha Managed Nature Reserve.WEB, Forests of Horse chestnut (Aesculus hippocastanum) :: Red Data Book of Bulgaria,e-ecodb.bas.bg/rdb/en/vol3/29G1.html, 2023-02-10, e-ecodb.bas.bg,

Uses

It is widely cultivated in streets and parks throughout the temperate world, and has been particularly successful in places like Ireland, Great Britain and New Zealand, where they are commonly found in parks, streets and avenues. Cultivation for its spectacular spring flowers is successful in a wide range of temperate climatic conditions provided summers are not too hot, with trees being grown as far north as Edmonton, Alberta, Canada,Edmonton the Faroe Islands,HÃ¸jgaard, A., JÃ³hansen, J., & Ã˜dum, S. (1989). A century of tree planting on the Faroe Islands. Ann. Soc. Sci. Faeroensis Supplementum 14. ReykjavÃk, Iceland and Harstad, Norway.In Britain and Ireland, the seeds are used for the popular children’s game conkers. During the First World War, there was a campaign to ask for everyone (including children) to collect the seeds and donate them to the government. The conkers were used as a source of starch for fermentation using the Clostridium acetobutylicum method devised by Chaim Weizmann to produce acetone for use as a solvent for the production of cordite, which was then used in military armaments. Weizmann’s process could use any source of starch, but the government chose to ask for conkers to avoid causing starvation by depleting food sources. But conkers were found to be a poor source, and the factory only produced acetone for three months; however, they were collected again in the Second World War for the same reason.WEB,www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/history/making_history/makhist10_prog3d.shtml, Conkers - collected for use in two world wars, Making history, BBC, 27 September 2014, In the US state of Ohio, the seeds of the related Aesculus glabra are called ‘buckeyes’ and give rise to one of the state’s symbols and nicknames, the Buckeye State.WEB, Ohio State Nickname {{!, The Buckeye State |url=https://statesymbolsusa.org/symbol-official-item/ohio/state-nickname/buckeye-state |access-date=2021-09-08 |website=statesymbolsusa.org|date=5 September 2014 }}

missing image!
- Aesculus hippocastanum fruit.jpg -
A selection of fresh conkers

The seeds, especially those that are young and fresh, are slightly poisonous, containing alkaloid saponins and glucosides. Although not dangerous to touch, they cause sickness when eaten; consumed by horses, they can cause tremors and lack of coordination.BOOK, Feeding and care of the horse, Lon D., Lewis, Wiley-Blackwell, 1995,books.google.com/books?id=m4VM9__SKJMC&pg=PA303, 2011-10-21, 9780683049671, The horse-chestnut is a favourite subject for bonsai.WEB, Mark, D’Cruz, Ma-Ke Bonsai Care Guide for Aesculus hippocastanum, Ma-Ke Bonsai,makebonsai.com/guide/bonsailink.asp?quicklink=5082&name=Aesculus_hippocastanum, 2011-07-05,makebonsai.com/guide/bonsailink.asp?quicklink=5082&name=Aesculus_hippocastanum," title="web.archive.org/web/20120315170441makebonsai.com/guide/bonsailink.asp?quicklink=5082&name=Aesculus_hippocastanum,">web.archive.org/web/20120315170441makebonsai.com/guide/bonsailink.asp?quicklink=5082&name=Aesculus_hippocastanum, 2012-03-15, dead, Though the seeds are said to repel spiders there is little evidence to support these claims. The presence of saponin may repel insects but it is not clear whether this is effective on spiders.WEB,www.thereaction.net/news/y2010/m10/spiders_versus_conkers_definitive_guide.aspx, Spiders vs conkers: the definitive guide, 2013-09-09, Edwards, Jon, 2010, Royal Society of Chemistry,www.thereaction.net/news/y2010/m10/spiders_versus_conkers_definitive_guide.aspx," title="web.archive.org/web/20130906155709www.thereaction.net/news/y2010/m10/spiders_versus_conkers_definitive_guide.aspx,">web.archive.org/web/20130906155709www.thereaction.net/news/y2010/m10/spiders_versus_conkers_definitive_guide.aspx, 2013-09-06, dead, Aesculus hippocastanum is affected by the leaf-mining moth Cameraria ohridella, whose larvae feed on horse chestnut leaves. The moth was described from North Macedonia where the species was discovered in 1984 but took 18 years to reach Britain.Lees, D.C.; Lopez-Vaamonde, C.; Augustin, S. 2009. Taxon page for Cameraria ohridella Deschka & Dimic 1986. In: EOLspecies,www.eol.org/pages/306084. First Created: 2009-06-22T13:47:37Z. Last Updated: 2009-08-10T12:57:23Z.In Germany, they are commonly planted in beer gardens, particularly in Bavaria. Prior to the advent of mechanical refrigeration, brewers would dig cellars for lagering. To further protect the cellars from the summer heat, they would plant horse chestnut trees, which have spreading, dense canopies but shallow roots which would not intrude on the caverns. The practice of serving beer at these sites evolved into the modern beer garden.NEWS, SchÃ¤ffer, Albert, 2012-05-21, 120 Minuten sind nicht genug, 120 minutes aren’t enough,www.faz.net/aktuell/gesellschaft/biergaerten-120-minuten-sind-nicht-genug-11759037.html, de, Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, 2016-10-11, An inexpensive detergent for washing clothes can be made at home from conkers, and this is said to be an environmentally benign (’eco-friendly’) detergent.WEB,www.instructables.com/How-to-Make-Laundry-Detergent-From-Conkers-Horse-C/, How to Make Laundry Detergent from Conkers (Horse Chestnuts),

Traditional medicine

File:Beta-Aescin.svg|thumb|right|Aescin AescinThe seed extract standardized to around 20 percent aescin (escin) is possibly useful in traditional medicine for its effect on venous tone.JOURNAL, 8569363, 1996, Diehm, C., Comparison of leg compression stocking and oral horse-chestnut seed extract therapy in patients with chronic venous insufficiency, Lancet, 347, 8997, 292â€“4, Trampisch, H. J., Lange, S., Schmidt, C., 10.1016/s0140-6736(96)90467-5, 20408233, free, WEB,nccih.nih.gov/health/horsechestnut, Horse chestnut, National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health, 27 October 2022, 1 October 2020, A Cochrane Review suggested that horse chestnut seed extract may be an efficacious and safe short-term treatment for chronic venous insufficiency, but definitive randomized controlled trials had not been conducted to confirm the efficacy.JOURNAL, Cochrane Database Syst Rev, 2012, 11, CD003230, 10.1002/14651858.CD003230.pub4, Horse chestnut seed extract for chronic venous insufficiency, Pittler MH, Ernst E., 11, 23152216, 7144685,

Safety

(File:Horse chestnut flower spikes found on the ground - Utrecht, the Netherlands - October 2021 - 2.jpg|thumb|Remainders of horse chestnut flower spikes found on the ground below. The chestnuts themselves have separated with their burs from the small branches shown.)(File:Horse chestnut flower spikes with chestnuts found on the ground - Utrecht, the Netherlands - November 2021 - 2.jpg|thumb|Remainders of two horse chestnut flower spikes - one 27 cm long - with two chestnuts found on the ground under the tree. The chestnuts themselves have separated with their burs from the small branches shown.)There is risk of acute kidney injury, “when patients, who had undergone cardiac surgery were given high doses of horse chestnut extract i.v. for postoperative oedema. The phenomenon was dose dependent as no alteration in kidney function was recorded with 340 Î¼g/kg, mild kidney function impairment developed with 360 Î¼g/kg and acute kidney injury with 510 Î¼g/kg”.BOOK, 085369429X, 1543â€“4, Martindale: The complete drug reference.: Das komplette Arzneimittelverzeichnis, Parfitt, Kathleen, 1999,archive.org/details/martindale00kath/page/1543, Raw horse chestnut seed, leaf, bark and flower are toxic due to the presence of aesculin and should not be ingested. Horse chestnut seed is classified by the FDA as an unsafe herb.WEB,wWw.mskcc.org/cancer-care/herb/horse-chestnut, Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, Horse chestnut, 29 March 2022, 27 October 2022, The glycoside and saponin constituents are considered toxic.

Other chemicals

Quercetin 3,4’-diglucoside, a flavonol glycoside can also be found in horse chestnut seeds.JOURNAL, 10.1007/BF00603428, Quercetin-3,4?-diglukosid, ein Flavonolglykosid des RoÃŸkastaniensamens, Die Naturwissenschaften, 48, 2, 54, 1961, Wagner, J., 1961NW.....48Q..54W, 29060667, Leucocyanidin, leucodelphinidin and procyanidin A2 can also be found in horse chestnut.

Anne Frank tree

A fine specimen of the horse-chestnut was the Anne Frank tree in the centre of Amsterdam, which she mentioned in her diary and which survived until August 2010, when a heavy wind blew it over.NEWS, Anne Frank’s ‘beautiful’ tree felled by Amsterdam storm, Toby, Sterling, The Scotsman, 24 August 2010, 24 August 2010,news.scotsman.com/news/Anne-Frank39s-39beautiful39-tree-felled.6490345.jp, NEWS, Anne Frank tree falls over in heavy wind, rain, Aaron, Gray-Block, Reuters, 24 August 2010, 23 August 2010,www.reuters.com/article/idUSLDE67M1DH,web.archive.org/web/20100824073648/https://www.reuters.com/article/idUSLDE67M1DH, 24 August 2010, live, Eleven young specimens, sprouted from seeds from this tree, were transported to the United States. After a long quarantine in Indianapolis, each tree was shipped off to a new home at a notable museum or institution in the United States, such as the 9/11 Memorial Park, Central H.S. in Little Rock, and two Holocaust Centers. One of them was planted outdoors in March 2013 in front of the Children’s Museum of Indianapolis, where they were originally quarantined.WEB,www.yahoo.com/news/saplings-anne-franks-tree-root-us-163048542.html, Saplings from Anne Frank’s tree take root in US, Yahoo News, Pamela Engel, 24 March 2013, 26 July 2018,

Symbol of Kyiv

The horse chestnut tree is one of the symbols of Kyiv, the capital of Ukraine.“Thujoy Khreshchatyk”. Why Kyivans miss chestnuts and how they became a symbol of the capital, Ukrayinska Pravda (29 May 2019) {{in lang|uk}}

Diseases

File:10 Pest damage - horse-chestnut leaf miner (Cameraria ohridella) in Parma, Italy.jpg|thumb|Horse-chestnut leaf miner (Cameraria ohridella Cameraria ohridella

Bleeding canker. Half of all horse-chestnuts in Great Britain are now showing symptoms to some degree of this potentially lethal bacterial infection.WEB, Extent of the bleeding canker of horse chestnut problem,www.forestresearch.gov.uk/website/forestresearch.nsf/ByUnique/INFD-6KYBN2, UK Forestry Commission, 2010-01-09,www.forestresearch.gov.uk/website/forestresearch.nsf/ByUnique/INFD-6KYBN2" title="web.archive.org/web/20091209155126www.forestresearch.gov.uk/website/forestresearch.nsf/ByUnique/INFD-6KYBN2">web.archive.org/web/20091209155126www.forestresearch.gov.uk/website/forestresearch.nsf/ByUnique/INFD-6KYBN2

url-status=dead, HTTP://WWW.SUFFOLKCOASTAL.GOV.UK/YOURDISTRICT/TREES/CHESTNUTS/DEFAULT.HTM >TITLE=HORSE CHESTNUT PEST AND DISEASE PROBLEMS

ACCESS-DATE=15 JANUARY 2022

ARCHIVE-DATE=23 SEPTEMBER 2011, dead,

Guignardia leaf blotch, caused by the fungus Guignardia aesculi
Wood rotting fungi, e.g. such as Armillaria and Ganoderma
Horse chestnut scale, caused by the insect Pulvinaria regalis
Horse-chestnut leaf miner, Cameraria ohridella, a leaf mining moth.WEB, Other common pest and disease problems of horse chestnut,www.forestresearch.gov.uk/website/forestresearch.nsf/ByUnique/INFD-6KYC5F, UK Forestry Commission, 2010-01-09,www.forestresearch.gov.uk/website/forestresearch.nsf/ByUnique/INFD-6KYC5F," title="web.archive.org/web/20091209155131www.forestresearch.gov.uk/website/forestresearch.nsf/ByUnique/INFD-6KYC5F,">web.archive.org/web/20091209155131www.forestresearch.gov.uk/website/forestresearch.nsf/ByUnique/INFD-6KYC5F, 2009-12-09, dead

, The larvae of this moth species bore through the leaves of the horse chestnut, causing premature colour changes and leaf loss.

Phytophthora bleeding canker, a fungal infection.WEB, Bleeding Canker,apps.rhs.org.uk/advicesearch/profile.aspx?PID=244, 11 November 2009, Royal Horticultural Society, 2010-01-09,apps.rhs.org.uk/advicesearch/Profile.aspx?pid=244," title="web.archive.org/web/20100116184135apps.rhs.org.uk/advicesearch/Profile.aspx?pid=244,">web.archive.org/web/20100116184135apps.rhs.org.uk/advicesearch/Profile.aspx?pid=244, 16 January 2010, live,

Gallery

File:Horse-chestnut 800.jpg|Planted as a feature tree in a parkFile:Aesculus hippocastanum-1.jpg|Leaves and trunkFile:KaÅ¡tan 1.jpg|Foliage and flowersFile:2010.05.09 Horse chestnut blossom, Kyiv, Ukraine 001c.jpg|Close-up of flowersFile:AesculusHippocastanumTrunk.jpg|TrunkFile:Aesculus hippocastanum Seed.jpg|Germination on lawn

Other sources

EB1911, Chestnut,
JOURNAL, Leach, M, 2001, Aesculus hippocastanum, Australian Journal of Medical Herbalism, 13, 4,
WEB, Castanea sativa (European chestnut, Spanish Chestnut, Sweet chestnut) {{!, North Carolina Extension Gardener Plant Toolbox |url=https://plants.ces.ncsu.edu/plants/castanea-sativa/ |website=plants.ces.ncsu.edu |access-date=24 March 2021}}
WEB, Horse Chestnut {{!, Winchester Hospital |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20210605051305www.winchesterhospital.org/health-library/article?id=21758 |website=www.winchesterhospital.org | url=https://www.winchesterhospital.org/health-library/article?id=21758 |access-date=24 March 2021| archive-date=2021-06-05 }}
WEB, Horse Chestnut {{!, Index of Herbs|url=https://indexofherbs.com/herb/horse-chestnut/ |website=indexofherbs.com |access-date=28 December 2023}}

References

{{PLANTS |id=AEHI |taxon=Aesculus hippocastanum |access-date=26 September 2020}}WEB, Brouillet L, Desmet P, Coursol F, Meades SJ, Favreau M, Anions M, BÃ©lisle P, Gendreau C, Shorthouse D, etal, Aesculus hippocastanum Linnaeus,data.canadensys.net/vascan/taxon/9219," title="web.archive.org/web/20180217141513data.canadensys.net/vascan/taxon/9219,">web.archive.org/web/20180217141513data.canadensys.net/vascan/taxon/9219, data.canadensys.net, Database of Vascular Plants of Canada (VASCAN),data.canadensys.net/vascan/taxon/9219, 26 September 2020, 2018-02-17, WEB, Wott, John A., The Many Faces of Aesculus,www.arboretumfoundation.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/wott-faces-of-aesculus.pdf, Washington Park Arboretum Bulletin, }}{{Taxonbar|from=Q26899}}{{Authority control}}

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