About Us
Hello from the Kentucky Chapter of The American Chestnut Foundation!
We are an active group of Volunteers who work together to help the national effort to restore the American Chestnut back into its native forests. With our Partners, we manage several orchards of hybrid American Chestnuts and full American Chestnuts that facilitate breeding options.
Wild American Chestnuts are still found across Kentucky in their native range forests. While an extremely small number of wild American Chestnut trees survive the blight to grow large enough to produce flowers and burrs, there are many sprouts that grow from the roots of the original trees. Take a look at the original American Chestnut Range Map. American chestnuts like well drained, acidic sandstone soils. They do not like low acidic clay soils or soils and low areas that hold water.
We invite you to help search for wild Americans and to record them on the free ‘TreeSnap’ app. Or you can contact us via our Kentucky Chapter Facebook link to let us know their location and if you need help to ID that your trees are full American or a Chinese or Japanese Chestnut, or a hybrid with mixed parentage. You can see general locations of wild American Chestnuts found and mapped to date on the TreeSnap website: https://treesnap.org/ Choose “MAP” from the menu to see general tree locations, with the knowledge that the app moves the exact tree locations by about five miles each to protect the individual trees and the landowners. With the “OBSERVATION CATEGORY” filter box, select “American Chestnut” to remove the visual clutter of other species that are also entered into TreeSnap.
JOIN US. Become a Member. Become a Volunteer. Click on the BECOME A MEMBER button to the right to simultaneously join the national TACF organization, plus the Kentucky Chapter. You will enjoy working beside and developing friendships with many other conservation minded people who are taking a variety of actions to do our part, along with our sister Appalachian state chestnut chapters, to restore this iconic American tree.
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Kentucky Chapter Display at KY WOOD EXPO 2023, Masterson Station Park, Lexington, KY
Friday September 15th, Saturday September 16th
Thank you to our Volunteers who set up and crewed the Kentucky Chapter Display Booth: Ken Darnell, Patti Darnell, Keith Chasteen, Charlie Saunders, Amos Stone, Jimmy Sizemore, Ellen Crocker and "Bash", Rick Caldwell, Scott Freidhoff.
Thank you to KFIA (Kentucky Forest Industries) for organizing this event every two years with 5-6,000 visitors. This was their 35th Kentucky Wood Expo, with two days of many displays, competitions and demonstrations.
We enjoyed talking with fellow "Chestnutters", Partners, and Visitors to share Actions underway by TACF and by the KY Chapter. Several new contacts were made with Follow Up communications committed to them.
@Kentucky Division of Forestry, @The American Chestnut Foundation, @Kentucky Forestry Industries Association, @Cassie Stark, @Hannah Leeper, @U.S. Forest Service-Daniel Boone National Forest, @KWOA, @UK Forestry Extension
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Kentucky Division of Forestry, The American Chestnut Foundation,
KENTUCKY WOOD EXPO 2023
Friday September 15th & Saturday 16th
Masterson Station Park, Lexington, KY
The KY Chapter of The American Chestnut Foundation will have a Display Booth at Spaces 20 & 21. Come by to meet us and to hear the latest American Chestnut news. * * * *
This year marks the 35th Kentucky Wood Expo, which has been ranked as one of the top 10 events in Kentucky by the Tourism Council. We are celebrating 40 years of the Kentucky Wood Expo also known as the Kentucky Logging Show which began in 1983 in Morehead, KY. An expected 3,000-5,000 visitors from around the region will be on hand.
The Kentucky Wood Expo will feature over 75 inside and outside exhibits and demonstrations for everyone to enjoy. Sawmill, pallet, logging, secondary, and all types of wood processing machinery will be on display along with a wide range of support services. Inside and outside exhibit spaces will be filled. Educational displays will also be present, and a number of groups will be available to talk forest management and the promising future of the wood industry in Kentucky. Landowner and Logger education classes will be conducted during the show on both days which will provide plenty of advice on how to properly manage forests and the many benefits that they provide to everyone.
Along with the industry exhibits, a number of activities will be taking place for the entire family to enjoy. Activities will include chain saw carving demonstrations, collegiate lumberjack competitions, knuckle boom loader and log skidding contests, monster log weight guess, craft displays and a silent auction to benefit Log a Load for Kids and the Kentucky Children’s Hospital. An educational program open to all students will take place on Friday, September 15th and a woodworking class on both days will offer a chance for attendees to make their own free cutting board.
Show your support for the wood industry which is one of the largest manufacturing industries in Kentucky. The show offers something for everyone. Advanced tickets can be purchased for only $5 by calling the KFIA office at 502/695-3979. Parking is free and entry to the show costs only $7.00 at the gate and $5.00 for children age 6-12 (children under 6 are free). The grounds will be open from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. (Eastern Time) on Friday and from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. on Saturday.
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KY Chapter of The American Chestnut Foundation ANNUAL MEETING at Berea College Forestry Outreach Center
We were pleased to see 42 of our 47 RSVP's join us in Berea College Forest in our Annual Meeting, where we also celebrated TACF's 40th Anniversary. * * * * * *
Science updates were provided by Cassie Stark, Regional Science Coordinator for MD, WV, VA, KY, and Dr. Jared Westbrook, TACF Science Director. TACF Southern Outreach Coordinator Hannah Leeper presented the TACF Video "Clear Day Thunder". Other speakers provided brief updates. Colorful Displays were set up both sides of the meeting room.
We scheduled plenty of "Social Time" for our Members and Guests to chat in small groups.
The meeting was followed by an optional hike into Berea College Forest to see Forester Clint Patterson's (and also KY Board Member), large "in situ" wild American Chestnut Orchard.
The American Chestnut Foundation, Berea College Forestry Outreach Center, Kentucky Department of Agriculture,
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The American Chestnut Foundation Ken Darnell and the Kentucky Chapter put on a fabulous meeting in Berea this past weekend! We were so glad to be able to be there to celebrate the 40th anniversary and mingle with everyone 🙂
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Many Miles Completed in Search for wild, full American Chestnuts Across Kentucky
Our Kentucky Volunteers have driven and hiked many miles across the state searching wild full American Chestnuts and “Snapped” them into our data base using the free TreeSnap app. We estimate that we have observed close to 4,000 wild Americans, “Snapping” 1,543...