Indiana News
Indiana Chapter Annual Meeting
This year the Indiana Chapter of TACF will hold an in-person annual meeting. The date is January 14, 2023. The location is the Fitness Farm of Indianapolis. Our chapter science officer, Jim McKenna, has generously arranged for us to use a room at Fitness Farm at no...
Pure American chestnut harvest at Duke orchard
Duke orchard is a germplasm conservation orchard started with a generous contribution from Duke Energy Company. Many of the trees have produced nuts for a number of years. Some years pollen is applied in spring to produce controlled crosses. This year the trees were...
New germplasm conservation orchard (GCO) in Clinton county
This orchard was established three years ago to preserve the genetic material of the Indiana American chestnuts at the Duke orchard at Purdue. The Duke trees were all cloned from old existing chestnuts from all over Indiana. Unfortunately, the Duke chestnuts have all...
TACF Indiana Chapter President honored with Volunteer Service Award
The American Chestnut Foundation (TACF) Indiana Chapter President Glenn Kotnik, M.D. was honored with the American Chestnut Foundation’s Volunteer Service Award at the 2022 American Chestnut Symposium in Asheville, NC on Friday, Sept. 30. TCAF said: “Glenn has been...
Backcross American chestnut seedling planting
On May 31 Carroll Ritter and Glenn Kotnik planted backcross American chestnut seedlings in clearings in a mature forest in southeastern Indiana. The forest is about 80 acres in size and has been preserved from cutting and handed down through many generations of a...
Tree evaluation and sample collection at Jackson-Washington State Forest
On May 22, a group of volunteers assembles at Jackson-Washington State Forest. Sara Fitzsimmons, the chapter’s regional science coordinator and Steven Hoy, who manages the chestnut orchard at Penn State University in State College, Pennsylvania attended. Sara is also...
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National Facebook
We’re honored to be highlighted in this AVLtoday feature on the American chestnut’s story in Western North Carolina.
While the path to restoration is long, moments like this remind us how many people care about bringing this tree back to the landscape it once defined.
Thank you to everyone who continues to help this story grow.
Read the article: avltoday.6amcity.com/chestnut-tree-wnc
Photo curtsey of Audrey Snow Owen of PA/NJ TACF
#americanchestnut #explorepage #restoration #conservation #environment #nature #asheville #chestnuts
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Freedom seekers—enslaved Africans and African Americans who escaped slavery in pursuit of freedom—faced hunger, exposure, and unfamiliar terrain as they journeyed north.
Black History Month provides an important opportunity to honor the past while also recognizing how Black knowledge, leadership, and community continue to shape the present. From histories rooted in land and survival to modern platforms and outdoor spaces where connection and representation matter.
Throughout February, we will share a series of four stories that explore Black relationships to land, legacy, and community, looking at both historical foundations and contemporary expressions.
Read more about Freedom Seekers: tacf.org/black-history-and-the-american-chestnut/
#BlackHistoryMonth #americanchestnut #explorepage #chestnuts #BlackHistoryMonth2026 #restoration #conservation #history
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Hopefully they will be developing a mold resistant tree.
That's a really interesting perspective. I think a lot of woodcraft and other types of knowledge about the natural world, like astronomy, had to be shared. Also, marine skills.
Chestnuts?
January might feel like the quiet season, but at our research farms it’s already time to get growing. This month, we’re sowing chestnut seeds that will be used in upcoming research and breeding efforts. Starting seeds in January gives us a valuable head start on the growing season, allowing seedlings to establish early and be ready for genotyping in the spring and summer. Each seed represents an important step forward in our research, helping us better understand growth, resistance, and performance across chestnut species and hybrids. #AmericanChestnut #RestorationInProgress
#ChestnutResearch #ForestRestoration #MeadowviewResearchFarms #ChestnutSeedlings
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Does everyone's staff retreat include fungus, tree bark, and chestnut beer... or just ours?
#americanchestnut #explorepage #restoration #conservation #chestnuts #worktrip #staffretreat
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Does everyone's staff retreat include fungus, tree bark, and chestnut beer... or just ours?
#americanchestnut #explorepage #restoration #conservation #chestnuts #worktrip #staffretreat
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how do we get american chestnut seedlings to plant?
Great video!!!