Maybe it can't be stopped,but on the whole,the trees don't appear to die. Conker trees of my collecting days are still there and producing,so perhaps it's a kind of ' conker flu '??
Not sure if that's disease or drought. I've noticed that chestnuts seem to struggle because their leaves are so big. Wildlife trust will tell you tho😊
I looked it up a few years ago - when I first started noticing that horse chestnut tree leaves always go brown and wither - and it said that it's a particular type of rot: leaf blotch. Which is horribly sad... how on earth can that be stopped?!
Where did all the Red Setters go? They should come back, definitely! We don't have horse chesnuts where I live, however, being bonkers for conkers really points to the universal hunter gathering instinct, I think. Gathering nuts is a primal human need that goes way back. So it's really not bonkers if you go back far enough, be it conkers, acorns or hickory nuts. And they put them in wooden bowls too for storage. (I can attest to this because I recently saw a display of hickory nuts in a wooden bowl in living history museum.) Undoubtedly, walking around and picking up nuts and bringing them home and putting them in wooden bowls was the most natural thing to do. What a nice thought. Now I would really love to see and pet a Red Setter!
My husband reminded me about red setters, Liz - I honestly can't remember the last time I ever saw one, English setters too (and what a shame)!
I love the fact that I'm tapping into my inner hunter gatherer... it means I can totally justify my crazy conker obsession to him indoors: "I can't help it, it's my hunter gathering instinct!" 😂​😂​
Loved reading this 😄 We (myself & the husband) went for a local walk recently and one particular road is fantastic for conkers....we used to take the kids (who are all grown up ahd flown the nest). We obviously ended up coming home with some lovely shiny conkers which are now sitting proudly in the kitchen 😀
My mum used to varnish them - didn't work,but now I see where my own obsession comes from! I do the same with acorns, and once left some in a bag - imagine my joy when in spring,most had sprouted😀 maybe that's the way to go - plant them when they crinkle up and have spring happiness too!
Tresi I have actually considered doing that, but I thought it won't stop the wrinkling!
But guess what: I too left some (unintentionally) in a carrier bag in the shed last autumn - again because I couldn't bear to throw them away - and mine sprouted too! I now have three little horse chestnut trees growing in pots in the garden, but I have the added dilemma of what to do with *them* now, what's wrong with me 😂​
That’s a good idea, I wouldn’t have thought of that! Only problem is that all the conker trees in our area have some sort of disease whereby the leaves go brown and shrivel by July, it’s really sad. Our new saplings did the same so we didn’t know if it was worth them being planted if they’d only go and do the same thing 😢
This has made me laugh.......oh, dear this is totally me ! But a couple of years ago I read that they act to stop spiders ( possibly moths - don't quote me !) so after leaving them around the house to admire for a few days I pop them into my draws and a few in the bottom of my wardrobe ! xx
Hehe Karen I'm so glad I'm not the only one!! I've always known about the conkers/spiders thing, but I Googled it to see if maybe they should be cracked open or something to be even more effective... the general consensus was that they have no effect, and neither does the minty spray stuff (which I also use). It won't stop me trying either though - anything to keep those eight-legged arseholes away is worth a try!!!! Thanks so much for commenting x
Maybe it can't be stopped,but on the whole,the trees don't appear to die. Conker trees of my collecting days are still there and producing,so perhaps it's a kind of ' conker flu '??
That's definitely a good way of describing it! They're sick but they don't die. Poor trees though 😢​
Not sure if that's disease or drought. I've noticed that chestnuts seem to struggle because their leaves are so big. Wildlife trust will tell you tho😊
I looked it up a few years ago - when I first started noticing that horse chestnut tree leaves always go brown and wither - and it said that it's a particular type of rot: leaf blotch. Which is horribly sad... how on earth can that be stopped?!
Where did all the Red Setters go? They should come back, definitely! We don't have horse chesnuts where I live, however, being bonkers for conkers really points to the universal hunter gathering instinct, I think. Gathering nuts is a primal human need that goes way back. So it's really not bonkers if you go back far enough, be it conkers, acorns or hickory nuts. And they put them in wooden bowls too for storage. (I can attest to this because I recently saw a display of hickory nuts in a wooden bowl in living history museum.) Undoubtedly, walking around and picking up nuts and bringing them home and putting them in wooden bowls was the most natural thing to do. What a nice thought. Now I would really love to see and pet a Red Setter!
My husband reminded me about red setters, Liz - I honestly can't remember the last time I ever saw one, English setters too (and what a shame)!
I love the fact that I'm tapping into my inner hunter gatherer... it means I can totally justify my crazy conker obsession to him indoors: "I can't help it, it's my hunter gathering instinct!" 😂​😂​
xoxo
Loved reading this 😄 We (myself & the husband) went for a local walk recently and one particular road is fantastic for conkers....we used to take the kids (who are all grown up ahd flown the nest). We obviously ended up coming home with some lovely shiny conkers which are now sitting proudly in the kitchen 😀
So nice to know it's not just me, Kareema! 😉 and thank you x
My mum used to varnish them - didn't work,but now I see where my own obsession comes from! I do the same with acorns, and once left some in a bag - imagine my joy when in spring,most had sprouted😀 maybe that's the way to go - plant them when they crinkle up and have spring happiness too!
Tresi I have actually considered doing that, but I thought it won't stop the wrinkling!
But guess what: I too left some (unintentionally) in a carrier bag in the shed last autumn - again because I couldn't bear to throw them away - and mine sprouted too! I now have three little horse chestnut trees growing in pots in the garden, but I have the added dilemma of what to do with *them* now, what's wrong with me 😂​
Get in touch with your local wildlife trust - they know where to plant them and that's just More Conkers😀
That’s a good idea, I wouldn’t have thought of that! Only problem is that all the conker trees in our area have some sort of disease whereby the leaves go brown and shrivel by July, it’s really sad. Our new saplings did the same so we didn’t know if it was worth them being planted if they’d only go and do the same thing 😢
This has made me laugh.......oh, dear this is totally me ! But a couple of years ago I read that they act to stop spiders ( possibly moths - don't quote me !) so after leaving them around the house to admire for a few days I pop them into my draws and a few in the bottom of my wardrobe ! xx
Hehe Karen I'm so glad I'm not the only one!! I've always known about the conkers/spiders thing, but I Googled it to see if maybe they should be cracked open or something to be even more effective... the general consensus was that they have no effect, and neither does the minty spray stuff (which I also use). It won't stop me trying either though - anything to keep those eight-legged arseholes away is worth a try!!!! Thanks so much for commenting x