Golden Chestnut

Golden Chestnut (Castanopsis Chrysophylla) - A beautiful evergreen tree of the Pacific Coast of N.America, coming between the Oaks and the Chestnuts. In moist valleys near the sea the finest trees reach a height of 150 feet, but it is often only a low shrub on the mountain sides. At a little distance these low densely-branched little trees look like a Bay or a Holly Oak, only the leaf is smaller and narrower, with a powdery golden under-surface of beautiful effect when stirred by wind. It blooms in September and ripens its fruits, like tiny sweet Chestnuts, in the succeeding autumn. Though borne freely upon little plants only 2 feet high, they seldom reach perfection in this country. The plant is hardy even in the north of Scotland, and does well about Edinburgh and in sheltered parts of the west country, thriving in good heavy soil, but growing very slowly, so that it must never be put near greedy shrubs that would outgrow and smother it. Being very averse to removal, it is mostly planted from pots. The hardiest form of all is minor, from the mountain tops of California—a pretty little shrub for raised banks.