HUGE DAY at TACF/EKU Regional Hybrid Orchard June 5, 2026 Thank you to our 18 VOLUNTEERS ... and ... PARTNERS !!!!!
Ken Darnell, KY Chapter, Robert Griffin, KY Chapter, Charlie Saunders, KDF, Dr. Jennifer Koslow, EKU Biology, Clint Patterson, Berea College Forester, Elijah Rosenbaum, Bernheim Forest, Hannah Hunt, Bernheim Forest, Rachel Hartline, USFS DBNF, Eric Sizemore, USFS DBNF, Mark Neikirk, who is writing a book on The Sheltowee Trail, including a Chapter on American Chestnuts, Jess Slade, Conservation Manager at the Kentucky Natural Lands Trust (KNLT), Logan Ashley, Supervisor EKU Natural Areas, and his EKU Team: Ira Hager, Savannah Stayton, Alyssa Cline, Isaac Mallory. ... and Thank You EKU Mowing Crew for keeping the grass low and smooth before our Action Events 😃
.... and as always, thank you to Patti Darnell for behind the scenes supporting the planning details.
....and THANK YOU to the HUNDREDS OF VOLUNTEERS over the last 11 year years who helped plant and maintain this orchard 🏅🏅🏅🏅🏅🏅🏅🏅🏅🏅🏅🏅🏅🏅
Tasks completed:
1. EKU Team freshly mowed the planted half of Orchard. Makes it so much easier to work across that 1.25 acres of the Orchard's total 2.5 acres *********
2. Pre Bagged three prior selected trees, based on their blight resistance score from last year's genomic leaf sampling, tree height, number of green catkins, etc., Robert Griffin picked up the rental lift in Richmond, and volunteered his pickup to maneuver between the trees. A TOUGH ASSIGNMENT !!!!
3. Updated/Educated all on the latest science and value of Recurrent Genomic Selection (RGS).... and the good news that 77 or 2.1%, (out of 3,550 trees planted) scored 50% or higher Blight Resistance and, even better, that 35 or 1.0%, of those trees scored 60% or higher blight resistance via genomic testing. We encouraged all Partners to SHARE that good news when they get back to their "day jobs" 😊
4. EKU Natural Areas Team worked like a platoon of hungry beavers to cut out ALL sprouts, corner to corner of the orchard and pile into windrows over the stumps as mulch to slow down next round of sprouts. These sprouts are from previous culled trees that cannot be allowed to re-grow.
5. Ran weedeaters in several areas
6. Repaired broken entrance gate post
7. Watered the five surviving full American "Nut Grafted" seedlings planted three years ago.
8. Photos were taken by Ken Darnell, with overhead drone photos taken by Robert Griffin. SEE ATTACHED
NEXT WORKDAY IS TUESDAY JUNE 16TH TO CONTROL POLLINATE THE 260 FEMALE FLOWERS prepared ...... COVERED BY 85 BAGS
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We Invite You to JOIN US
Membership in the Kentucky Chapter of The American Chestnut Foundation:
support.tacf.org/membership
16 State Chapters are working together under the umbrella of The American Chestnut Foundation, headquartered in Asheville, NC. TACF has been working for 43 years to develop blight resistant American Chestnuts. With the latest science in Genomic Testing, the ability to measure which of our hybrid American Chestnuts (with some amount of Chinese Chestnut genes via our breeding programs) have the highest degrees of blight resistance to date, progress toward that goal is speeding up.
tacf.org/tree-breeding/ 4:34 minute video that explains "Recurrent Genomic Selection"
...and we promise that you will enjoy the "Chestnutters" who you meet along the way 😃🐸🌳🌳🌳🌳
We encourage you to SHARE this INVITATION from the Kentucky Chapter * * * * *
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KY Chapter of The American Chestnut Foundation celebrated Earth Day 2026 at our long time Partner (led by Green River Supervisor Larry Lemmon), Army Corps of Engineers' Green River Lake. * * * *
Thank you A.C.E. Ranger Andrea Davis and Ranger Josh Bratcher for assisting Ken Darnell, KY Chapter President and long time regular KY Chapter Volunteer Harry Pelle in the planting of four hybrid seedlings from three different "BEST" trees at TACF/EKU Orchard, Richmond, KY. We planted just below the Visitor's Center, near a 15 year old plus surviving hybrid previously donated by KY Chapter
The photos tell the story. Note in first photo that Ken and Harry gift the four seedlings to Andrea and Josh, plus a copy of TACF's "Chestnut Magazine". Third photo shows the hardness of soil about 8 inches deep. Fortunately Josh had a heavy duty claw hammer that helped us to widen and deepen the four planting holes.
The Kentucky Chapter also partners with A.C.E. Green River to maintain a nearby full American Germplasm Conservation Orchard to preserve Kentucky DNA for future breeding purposes.
This planting concludes the gifting of hybrid seedlings over Earth Day Week for Public Education Plantings to:
UK Arboretum, six seedlings, (via Megan Buland), five seedlings to A.C.E. Buckhorn Lake (via Ranger Lucas Amis), these four seedlings to A.C.E. Green River Lake, five seedlings to USFS Daniel Boone National Forest's London District Office (via Jake Royse), six seedlings to KY FWS Frankfort HQ Building (via Zank Danks, Director Grouse and Turkey KY FWS) and three seedlings to Owensboro Community College (via Dr. Phil Hurley).
Additionally, we provided seven full American Steve Hartman seedlings (grown from nuts that we purchased last fall from Steve) to KDF's Charlie Saunders to add to our KDF / KY TACF Partnership full American GCO Orchard at KDF Morgan County Tree Nursery in eastern Kentucky.
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