Ana Metaxas

Chestnut Cultivar Evaluation for Commercial Chestnut Production in Tn Ana Metaxas

The aim of this work was to evaluate chestnut cultivars in Hamilton County, TN; but the broader research goal was to answer the questions, "Is it possible to make money growing chestnuts in Tennessee? If so, which ones should one grow?" The results suggest that there is a lot of potential for making money growing chestnuts in this area. However, as with most agricultural enterprises the time of net profit after initial investment may take over a decade. This location also has drawbacks to growing this crop, yet demand for chestnuts is continuing to increase in the United States. Chestnuts are a relatively untapped market in the US. Also, there is relatively little or no competition in most places.