Pollination Day at the Chestnut Return Farm, Seneca, SC, June 12, 2025

Pollination of chestnut trees at the Chestnut Return Farm.

Participants included TACF’s Jamie Van Clief, Clemson University Professor Dr. Haiying Liang and four of her PhD students Sky, Jay, Roger and Amanda, plus Jamie’s summer intern, Mateo Craven, a student from Warren Wilson College.
What was the purpose of the pollinations at the Chestnut Return Farm? Jamie said, “We were making crosses on genomic selected trees for the first generation of the Recurrent Genomic Selection for both PRR and blight resistance!”

Intern Mateo Craven inspects chestnut branches.

Jamie Van Clief giving instructions for pollinations of mature female flowers.

Jamie Van Clief giving instructions for pollination of mature female flowers.

Students actively pollinating female chestnut flowers at the Chestnut Return Orchard.

Students actively pollinating female chestnut flowers in the Chestnut Return Orchard.

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The American Chestnut Foundation

2 days ago

I highly recommend checking out this article by Robert Foster, in which he reminisces about the time he helped save a large, standing American chestnut tree. He also shares an older article that tells the full story of the tree and the effort to preserve it. The original piece, published in American Forests magazine, is titled “Saving Something of Value” by Herbert E. McLean and is copied below his introduction.

Click the following link to check it out: rfoster.substack.com/p/one-big-tree

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The American Chestnut Foundation

4 days ago

Meadowview Research Farms is a huge part of our organization. As you can see, a lot happens here. Two of our barns are in serious need of repairs, as they can't be insured and aren't fit to hold our materials and gear.

Help us raise the barn and donate to our Spring Appeal!

Visit the link in our bio to donate!

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Will we ever see an American Chestnut again?

The American Chestnut Foundation

1 week ago

Check out this interview by World Teen where ME Chapter Vice President, Eva Butler, and our Director of Science Implementation, Cassie Stark, discuss the American chestnut and the role recurrent genomic selection has in saving it.

Watch the full video here: teen.gwnews.com/articles/genetic-research-may-save-the-american-chestnut

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And as you continue to study these trees you come to realize that some of these sprouts do live long enough to produce nuts. Then you realize that even in their native range there are a few trees that have survived with blight for many many decades and grow quite large. Then you come to learn that there are in fact many large trees that have been living with blight for many years and continue to grow and produce nuts. I’m sure this group will eventually crack this nut.

Would be nice if more people learn those facts. There is a lot of propaganda out there that tries to mute and downplay what you have discovered. Lately it looks like this group has cracked the nut with the RGS approach and "Best of Best" breeding concepts.

The American Chestnut Foundation

2 weeks ago

May Events! Field season is starting, so get out and help plant some chestnuts!

Visit the following link to register for an event: tacf.org/events/category/tacf/

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