Sweet Chestnut

Sweet Chestnut (Castanea sativa)

Common Name(s): Sweet Chestnut, Spanish Chestnut, European Chestnut Scientific Name: Castanea sativa Distribution: Europe and Asia Minor Tree Size: 100-120 ft (30-37 m) tall, 5-7 ft (1.5-2.0 m) trunk diameter Average Dried Weight: 34 lbs/ft3 (540 kg/m3) Basic Specific Gravity: .43 Hardness: 680 lbf (3,010 N) Rupture Strength: 10,360 lbf/in2 (71,410 kPa) Elastic Strength: 1,248,000 lbf/in2 (8,610 MPa) Crushing Strength: 6,360 lbf/in2 (43.8 MPa) Shrinkage: Radial: 4.2%, Tangential: 6.9%, Volumetric: 11.1%, T/R Ratio: 1.6

Color/Appearance: No data available.

Grain/Pore: No data available.

Endgrain: Ring-porous; 2-4 rows of large, exclusively solitary earlywood pores, numerous small latewood pores in dendritic arrangement; tyloses common; growth rings distinct; rays not visible without lens; apotracheal parenchyma diffuse-in-aggregates (short lines between rays).

Durability: No data available.

Workability: No data available.

Scent: There is no characteristic odor associated with this wood species.

Safety: Although severe reactions are quite uncommon, Sweet Chestnut has been reported as a sensitizer, causing skin irritation. See the articles Wood Allergies and Toxicity and Wood Dust Safety for more information.

Price/Availability: No data available.

Comments: None available.

Related Species:

• American Chestnut (Castanea dentata)
• Wormy Chestnut

Related Articles:

None available.

Scans/Pictures: A special thanks to Steve Earis for providing the veneer sample of this wood species.

Sweet Chestnut (sanded)	Sweet Chestnut (sealed)