My Favourite Tree

To me, this beauty embodies the spirit of the dance, and is lovely whether in leaf and flower, or in the dead of winter when its form stands out even more.

 

Horse Chestnut (Aesculus hippocastanum) Cultivated for its spectacular spring flowers and successful in a wide range of temperate climatic conditions provided summers are not too hot.

 

I use the chestnuts (seeds) for my Stanley Park Christmas wreaths (see photos in comments, below)

 

The flower is the symbol of the city of Kiev, capital of Ukraine

 

In Germany, horse-chestnuts are often found in beer gardens, particularly in Bavaria. Prior to the advent of mechanical refrigeration, brewers would dig cellars for lagering. To further protect the cellars from the summer heat, they would plant chestnut trees, which have spreading, dense canopies but shallow roots which would not intrude on the caverns. The practice of serving beer at these sites evolved into the modern beer garden.

 

Raw Horse Chestnut seed, leaf, bark and flower are toxic due to the presence of esculin and should not be ingested. Horse chestnut seed is classified by the FDA as an unsafe herb. The glycoside and saponin constituents are considered toxic

Done