Rescuing the
American Chestnut
Our mission is to return the iconic American chestnut to its native range.
Our vision is a robust eastern forest returned to its splendor.
Harnessing the Power of Genomics
The American Chestnut Foundation is using an advanced breeding method called recurrent genomic selection (RGS) to save the American chestnut. Learn more about this exciting technique by watching this introductory video, or take a deep dive into RGS on our breeding page.
Merch of the Month
Leaf Logo T-Shirt
$27
Summer is in full swing! Get outside with August’s featured item: the Leaf Logo t-shirt. This heavyweight 100% cotton tee is available in two cool colors. It’s soft, breathable, and best of all, it shows your support for the restoration of the American chestnut.
- Available in Vinatage Denim or Natural
- Unisex fit
- Small leaf logo on the breast, large TACF stacked logo on the back
Our models, Christine (5’4″) and Jules (5’5″), are wearing a size small.
did you know?
TACF is the steward of the most blight-resistant and most genetically diverse majority-American chestnut population in the world. (Meet the trees!)
This population is the foundation of our advanced RGS breeding program!
2025 American Chestnut Photo Contest
Grab your camera and hit the trails—the American Chestnut Photo Contest is back! We’re looking for striking, creative, and unique images of American chestnut trees and hybrids.
The first-place winner will have their photo featured on the cover of a future issue of Chestnut magazine and receive a one-year TACF membership, along with a T-shirt and hat. Open until December 31, 2025
2024 Winner: Blue-gray gnatcatcher chicks in an American chestnut backcross tree, by Anna Rose at Berry College, GA
Inspiring!
CLEAR DAY THUNDER: Rescuing the American Chestnut is now available! For just $10, you will receive unlimited views and the ability to download and watch on multiple devices.
All proceeds support The American Chestnut Foundation’s mission to return the iconic American chestnut to its native range.
Science Strategies
Breeding, Biotechnology, and Biodiversity
United for Restoration
The American Chestnut Foundation takes a holistic approach toward chestnut restoration, utilizing a three-pronged research strategy known as 3BUR (Breeding, Biotechnology, and Biodiversity, United for Restoration). These research tracks are implemented through mutually beneficial collaborations, so we can explore all avenues to reach the common goal of saving and restoring this species as quickly as possible.
Support Our Research
Found a tree?
Learn how to identify American chestnuts and send us a sample for identification.
Support The Restoration
Want a tree?
Learn how to get American chestnut seeds from TACF.
Latest News
End of an Era: Honoring Sara Fitzsimmons’ Remarkable Journey with TACF
Thank You, Sara: Celebrating Over 20 Years of Passion and LeadershipAfter more than two decades with The American Chestnut Foundation (TACF), Chief Conservation Officer Sara Fern Fitzsimmons has accepted a new role as Technologies for Agriculture and Living Systems...
A New Beginning: Fresh Leadership for TACF’s New York Chapter
The Executive Committee of The American Chestnut Foundation’s (TACF) Board of Directors voted in May 2025 to establish a newly restructured, unincorporated New York (NY) Chapter. We warmly welcome a dynamic new leadership team: President Dazzle Ekblad, Treasurer Kurt...
Rolling Out a Unified Look: TACF Chapter Logos Now Live Across All State Chapters
The American Chestnut Foundation (TACF) is excited to announce the official rollout of newly designed logos for all state chapters. This initiative is part of a larger strategy to create a cohesive and professional visual identity across the entire organization,...
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Lucinda’s got a tree to introduce you to 🌳👋
Meet even more trees at tacf.org/meet-the-trees/
8 CommentsComment on Facebook
This is D2-19-136 if you'd like to view it on our webpage!
Great video, keep them coming.
Great job guys!
Reminder! TACF's 2025 American Chestnut Photo Contest is going on now, with a new, extended deadline!
The first-place winner will have their photo featured on the cover of a future issue of Chestnut magazine and receive a one-year TACF membership, along with a T-shirt and hat. The second-place winner will receive a T-shirt and sticker, and the third-place winner will receive a sticker. All winners will be recognized in a future issue of Chestnut.
Visit tacf.org/2025-photo-contest/ for all the details.
1 CommentComment on Facebook
who has chestnut seeds? i want to grow some.
Celebrate the legacy of Rex Mann—forester, storyteller, and passionate champion for the American chestnut—with this limited edition Leave Tracks t-shirt.
Rex devoted his life to restoring forests and inspiring others to care for the land. Now, you can honor his memory and help carry his mission forward.
🌳 100% of the proceeds from every shirt go to The American Chestnut Foundation (THANK YOU!), supporting the work Rex believed in so deeply.
👉 Pre-order now through August 2: scottmann.com/store/Leave-Tracks-In-Honor-of-Rex-Mann-PREORDER-p768130686
Let’s keep walking the trail Rex helped blaze.
0 CommentsComment on Facebook
We’re excited to share a new animated video explaining TACF’s RGS program!
1 CommentComment on Facebook
Transgenic American Chestnuts are still a much better option. The product of this method will always be a hybrid and that should not be the goal.
One of the greatest ecological disasters the US has ever seen. Chestnut blight wiped out the American chestnut tree in less than 50 years.
A tree that once made up nearly 25% of the eastern forests was reduced to a functionally extinct species.
The Asian fungus Cryphonectria parasitica was accidentally introduced into the United States in the late 1800s. While a few diseased chestnuts were noted in the 1880s and 90s, it wasn't until 1904 that the pathogen was identified in New York City. From that point, the blight spread rapidly. By 1950 the entire range had been consumed.
The fungus causes cankers that spread around the trunk of the tree, girdling it and killing everything above ground. Many root systems still survive today and continue to send up shoots, but these also eventually succumb to blight. Because American chestnuts rarely survive long enough to reproduce, the species is considered functionally extinct.
The American Chestnut Foundation is working to develop blight-resistant American chestnuts that can be used to restore this iconic tree to its native range. Learn more at tacf.org/about-us (link in bio)
145 CommentsComment on Facebook
I think I may have found an American Chestnut tucked away in a backyard
Incredibly important work…it was such a travesty for our forests!
The trees seem to still be intact outside their range in isolated areas. Theres a few large ones here in central Michigan on a peninsula and again on the Leelenau peninsula in the nw lower peninsula. I keep seeing people chime in about adult trees here and there. Seems like there's hope!
Upcoming Events
We will be holding our Fall Board Meeting at the Griswold CAES Research Center at 7:00 PM. We will have an Open House to show our new office location prior […]