The American Chestnut Audiobook Libro.fm

Description

Before 1910 the American chestnut was one of the most common trees in the eastern United States An important natural resource chestnut wood was preferred for woodworking fencing and building construction as it was rot resistant and straight grained The hearty and delicious nuts also fed wildlife people and livestock

Ironically the tree that most piqued the emotions of nineteenth and early twentiethcentury Americans has virtually disappeared from the eastern United States After a blight fungus was introduced into the United States during the late nineteenth century the American chestnut became functionally extinct Although the virtual eradication of the species caused one of the greatest ecological catastrophes since the last ice age considerable folklore about the American chestnut remains

The American Chestnut tells the story of the American chestnut from Native American prehistory through the Civil War and the Great Depression Davis documents the trees impact on nineteenthand early twentiethcentury American life including the decorative and culinary arts The author also evaluates efforts to restore the American chestnut to its former place in the eastern deciduous forest including modern attempts to genetically modify the species