<Li> A solitary tree exists in the New York County of Orange, within the Town of Wawayanda . This was planted in the early 1990s as part of a local soil and water conservation district program to identify blight / resistant specimens . It has borne fruit since 2005 . </Li> <Li> The great majority of chestnut trees in the United States are derived from Dunstan chestnuts, developed in Greensboro, N.C. in the 1960s . </Li> <P> The nuts were once an important economic resource in North America, being sold on the streets of towns and cities, as they sometimes still are during the Christmas season (usually said to be "roasting on an open fire" because their smell is readily identifiable many blocks away). Chestnuts are edible raw or roasted, though typically preferred roasted . Nuts of the European sweet chestnut are now sold instead in many stores . One must peel the brown skin to access the yellowish - white edible portion . The unrelated horse - chestnut's seeds are poisonous without extensive preparation . Native Americans used various parts of the American chestnut to treat ailments such as whooping cough, heart conditions and chafed skin . </P> <P> The January 1888 issue of Orchard and Garden mentions the American chestnut as being "superior in quality to any found in Europe ." The wood is straight - grained, strong, and easy to saw and split, and it lacks the radial end grain found on most other hardwoods . The tree was particularly valuable commercially since it grew at a faster rate than oaks . Being rich in tannins, the wood was highly resistant to decay and therefore used for a variety of purposes, including furniture, split - rail fences, shingles, home construction, flooring, piers, plywood, paper pulp, and telephone poles . Tannins were also extracted from the bark for tanning leather . Although larger trees are no longer available for milling, much chestnut wood has been reclaimed from historic barns to be refashioned into furniture and other items . </P>

Where do chestnuts grow in the united states