Some companies that sell apple trees and oaks to be planted to attract deer are now selling chinese chestnut trees also and claiming the deer like the chestnuts as well as apples. Does anyone have any experience with this. Do the deer seem to like the chestnuts. Do you think chestnut trees would worthwhile to plant as deer attractant in the future. Thanks

I have several around that granddad planed 50 years ago and have never seen a deer around any of them. The squirrels eat them when they fall off. They are pretty good to eat but seem to get worms in them in only a few hours after they hit the ground here.

Deer love them and they are a very reliable producer-a good crop nearly every year.

I would not plant them close to the house. The husks in the yard make going bare foot or even wearing flip-flop painful. And the bloosoms stink when the tree is in bloom.

I got several small CC here, mine are like a large shrub as opposed to an actual tree. I got them for wildlife benefit....this is the first year they produced. I replanted all the nuts to produce more. My intention is to seed bomb some of my hunting areas.

cant speak for chinese chesnuts but the american chesnut used to be the most common mass crop tree in the US. I'd have to bet deer ate them.

There was a house by the elementary school I went to that had one of those trees in the yard.

Once they got hard and real pokey, we'd have a blast throwing them at each other.

Deer eat chestnuts like crazy. Grandparents would have 17 deer in the yard at once all crowded under two trees

I can NOT keep them away from our 2 trees to save my life

Chestnuts are supposedly the best nut bearing tree for deer. It's said deer will walk past acorns and etc to get to chestnuts. I've seen deer eating chestnuts, and plan on getting some and planting them myself this spring. Along with some other fruit bearing trees

The ground under our chestnuts looks like it's been plowed, from all the deer activity. They love them.

Remember, the blossoms stink. Or, maybe I'm the only one that hates their smell.
It would be one of the first trees I'd plant for deer feed if away from the house. We have two in our yard at our camp that are about 25 feet tall and everything loves the nuts.

If I were wanting to attract
deer I would plant apple , and pear trees and also white oaks !!!

If your gonna plant Chestnut trees you should check out Chestnut Hill Outdoors. Heres the link, hope this helps.

http://www.chestnuthilloutdoors.com/store/pg/9-The-Best-Food-Plot-Tree.aspx

there is 2 at work, the deer visit every night
RR

American chestnuts are sweeter than Chinese. I only about the American ones and they attract deer.

I have 3 chestnut trees and many more apple trees in my yard. The deer go to the chestnut trees first.

ok changing topic...do deer eat buckeyes? had a tree in my yard that I'd never seen before, thing started dropping buckeyes last week...they are related to chestnut arent they?

Around here the American chestnut was the main mast source at the turn of the century. Then the blight wiped them out. There are still a lot of American chestnuts still alive (root systems) they will sprout up and the blight will knock them out. Every now and then we will find a good nut or two. They are not near as big as a Chinese nut. It is a very strong wood and you would've believe how light it is when dried. I try to find the dead sapling and make walking sticks.

I had a friend of mine once mention that chestnut bloom smells just like semen. Have never been able to get that out of my head every late spring when our chestnuts are in bloom. AND NOW NEITHER WILL YOU! HAR HAR!!!!!!

No. I'm not sure anything eats them to be honest.

I think a lot of folks here may be confusing American chestnuts with Chinese chestnuts. While deer will eat chinese chestnuts, they aren't all that attractive, at least when compared to apples, pears, acorns, etc.... Squirrels and chipmunks love them.