25 replies to this topic

[Caramia]

As children we were warned that they were poison. However we certainly gathered them. Growing up in Cook Street Village is ALL about the conker wars!
http://www.woodlands...ms/conkers.html

[Nparker]

The Horse Chestnut (according to Wikipedia)

Aesculus hippocastanum is a large deciduous tree, commonly known as Horse-chestnut or Conker tree. It is native to a small area in the mountains of the Balkans in southeast Europe, in small areas in northern Greece, Albania, the Republic of Macedonia, Serbia, and Bulgaria (Pindus Mountains mixed forests and Balkan mixed forests).[1] It is widely cultivated throughout the temperate world.

It grows to 36 m tall, with a domed crown of stout branches, on old trees the outer branches often pendulous with curled-up tips. The leaves are opposite and palmately compound, with 5-7 leaflets; each leaflet is 13-30 cm long, making the whole leaf up to 60 cm across, with a 7-20 cm petiole. The flowers are usually white with a small red spot; they are produced in spring in erect panicles 10-30 cm tall with about 20-50 flowers on each panicle. Usually only 1-5 fruit develop on each panicle; the fruit is a green, softly spiky capsule containing one (rarely two or three) nut-like seeds called conkers or horse-chestnuts. Each conker is 2-4 cm diameter, glossy nut-brown with a whitish scar at the base.[2]

The name is very often given as just 'Horse-chestnut' or 'Horse Chestnut'; the addition of 'Common' to the name helps distinguish it from other species of horse-chestnut. Despite its common name, the Horse-chestnut is not related to the Chestnuts (Castanea), which are members of the Beech faimily (Fagaceae). The Horse-chestnut is in the Buckeye family (Hippocastanaceae) and is in the same genus as other buckeyes, Aesculus. The Horse-chestnut has its common name due to the husks of the conkers being spiny and the conkers themselves shiny brown like the Chestnuts.[3] It is also claimed that the name is derived from the horse-shoe mark left on the twig after the leaf drops in Autumn.

The nuts, especially those that are young and fresh, are slightly poisonous, containing alkaloidsaponins and glucosides. Although not dangerous to touch, they cause sickness when eaten. Some mammals, notably deer, are able to break down the toxins and eat them safely. They are reputed to be good for horses with wind, but this is unproven and feeding them to horses is not advisable. The saponin aescin, however, has been used for health purposes (such as varicose veins, edema, sprains) and is available in food supplements, as is a related glucosideaesculin.[6]


Horse-chestnuts can be used to make jewelry using the conkers as beads.

[gumgum]

More about the horse chestnut tree...

This tall tree is indigenous to the Balkans and not India as its French name might suggest. It was brought from Constantinople and introduced into France in 1615. The name Horse Chestnut came about as the Turks used to feed chestnuts to their horses. Its bark is extremely useful in phytotherapy, as it is highly effective in treating blood circulation disorders. For a long time now, Horse Chestnut flour has been utilized cosmetically to give the skin extra radiance. The pulp is also used for making soap. Horse Chestnut extract is one of the ingredients in Clarins exclusive "Anti-Pollution" Complex.

(Edit ^simulposting)

[Jacques Cadé]

This intersection flooded this morning: https://instagram.com/p/9gq7VAOofL/

Edited by Jacques Cadé, 31 October 2015 - 11:38 AM.

[VicHockeyFan]

Yup, video coming up.

[VicHockeyFan]

Yup, video coming up.

 

Facebook video.