Monkey chestnut, Hook chestnut
Castanopsis tibetana

Family: Fagaceae

What it is like

A tree. The young shoots are black to dark brown when dry. The leaf stalk is 1.5-3 cm long. The leaf blade is oval or oblong. It is 15-30 cm long by 5-10 cm wide. It can be wider. Leaves are leathery and dark purple-brown when young. Underneath they are covered with reddish-brown scale like structures. The base is round or heart shaped and can be equal or unequal. The leaf tapers to the tip. The mid vein is sunken on the upper surface. There are 15-18 side veins on each side of the midrib. The female flowering stalk is 5-25 cm long. The cup is round and 6-8 cm across. It splits into 4 or 5 regular segments. It is covered with spine like bracts. It is 1.5-2.5 cm across. There is 1 nut per cup. The nut is cone shaped and 1.5-1.8 cm long by 2-2.8 cm wide. It is hairy.

There are about 120 Castanopsis species. Many have edible nuts.

Where it is found

It is a temperate plant. It grows in broad leafed evergreen forest below 1500 m altitude in China.

Countries/locations it is found in

Asia, China, Tibet

How it is used for food

The nuts are eaten raw.

Edible parts

Nuts, seeds

How it is grown

Its other names

Local names

Gou zhui

Synonyms

Castanopsis chengfengensis Hu; Quercus franchetiana H. Leveille ex A.Camus;