Before the potato became a Western dietary staple, chestnuts were the staple in Europe. “In fact,” says Caren Campbell of Johnny Moo’s Chestnuts, “the legend is that the Greek army retreating from Asia Minor in 401 BC was sustained by chestnuts during their march. Chestnut trees were known as bread trees because ground, or crumbled chestnuts were used to make bread.”
Chestnuts are a nutritious high energy food which includes Vitamin C at levels equivalent to those found in oranges. They are gluten-free, cholesterol-free, and have virtually no fat (.81gms fat per 100gms, compared with most other nuts which contain approx. 50% ). The small amount of fat that is contained, is beneficial. Low in sodium (salt), chestnuts contain all the amino acids, and offer a protein-to-carbohydrate ratio of 1:20. This is high quality protein equivalent to an egg. Nutrient values include Vitamins E (7.5mg), B1, B2, B6, B5, and Niacin (1.47mg)
Chestnut Fruit – Johnny Moo Chestnuts, New Zealand
John Margetts, Caren’s partner says, “The Chinese are familiar with the health benefits of chestnuts. They are known to improve circulation and kidney function. That helps with arthritis, aches and pains. In Asia, they are particularly used coming into winter. They’re also beneficial for diabetics and research for medicinal purposes is currently being carried out.”
“In many other countries,” says John, “chestnut trees have been subject to a blight which, in America, decimated trees from 1902, including all the wild chestnuts. In Japan they have a whole raft of pests, so they need to spray with chemicals. New Zealand doesn’t have blight or major pests so we can grow chestnuts organically.”
Caren and John have always been organically oriented including farming their animals within an organic system. John says, “We both have concerns about chemicals and the long term effects on human and environmental health. Our property has a sizeable river frontage and we feel obliged to look after the river. Growing organically fits into that; makes everything sustainable.”
John Margetts and Caren Campbell, New Zealand Chestnut Orchardists
Johnny Moo’s chestnut orchard, which is certified organic by BioGro, is sited half way between Hamilton and New Plymouth at Mahoenui on the banks of the Awakino River, deep in the King Country.
“17 years ago we fell in love with this 46 hectare property for all the wrong financial reasons,” says Caren. “We needed to diversify to make it economically sustainable, since running sheep and cattle wasn’t going to be viable. We knew chestnuts would grow well since we’d seen a few specimens in the district, and it was a crop that matched our land – the soil types and drainage – and the climate. After a few field trips to chestnut growers, and seeing that there was promise in the industry with chestnuts being something of a darling crop, it looked like a good thing to put in, especially for the export market. The promise evapourated for various reasons, so there are a number of fallow orchards around, but the industry has started to rebuild.”
John believes that potential tonnage from existing NZ orchards is approximately 800 tonnes though many of those orchards are not being harvested. Johnny Moo’s harvested nine tonnes last year, the bulk of which was exported to Japan, as was about 90% of the crop over the previous two years. “There is big demand in Asia and Europe but in NZ people are not familiar with chestnuts and that represents a challenge.”
Johnny Moos grows European/Japanese hybrid chestnuts which do best in NZ conditions. They planted three varieties to ensure good pollination. “Orchardists give them numbers,” laughs John, “not imaginative names. We’ve planted cultivars 1005, 1015 1012.”
John and Caren planted small trees (twigs) which were about two metres high, at 10m spacings. The young trees were cut in half and allowed to branch up so they could be trained into suitable forms.
The orchard consists of 600 trees spread over six hectares, but they are not yet mature with an expected foliage circumference of 20m or more once fully grown. Now 7-8m high, the trees overlap and require pruning to allow more light in to increase the size of the fruit. Shade inhibits production and if pruning were not carried out, production would be restricted to the tops of the canopy. “With hindsight,” John says, “we‘d now look at 20m spacings. 10m seemed plenty but we didn’t forsee that 15 – 20 years later the trees would overlap. Chestnut trees are similar in size to Oak trees. You lose the odd tree too – maybe 15m would have been a good compromise.”
Chestnut Flowers – Johnny Moo Chestnut Orchard, New Zealand
Chestnut trees produce long, highly perfumed, very noticeable flowers in November. The strong scent can be overwhelming.
“Our first meaningful harvest wasn’t until five years because we pruned to get the branches and crop off the ground so we could graze sheep and keep a clear working area for mowing. That’s paid off because we have a good ground cover of pasture underneath. Part of our management means that all the debris we don’t pick up gets mulched back in. We treat it as a valuable resource. Sheep keep the orchard well maintained with short grass, and over the years our topsoil has built up with high organic matter content.”
During the six week harvest season from mid-March to the end of April a team of pickers from around the district works to glean the harvest from the ground into buckets. Each of the Johnny Moo varieties ripens at different times; the 1005 earliest, followed by 1015, and last, the 1002. Each variety has slightly different characteristics although there is no discernible difference in the eating.
Chestnuts are perishable. “The problem is,” says John, “you can’t tell what’s inside them. They’re good for five or six weeks in cool storage but if they develop black colouring or softness, then they’re developing rot. Because we have to get them to market quickly, we harvest daily to avoid picking up old nuts.”
The pickers grade the chestnuts as they’re harvested, then run them over a grading table in the orchard to check for split skins or rot. They are also graded for size – premium nuts being 16gms and over, with the largest recorded on the orchard at 42gms. Larger nuts are easier to peel but there is significant demand for smaller fruit which Asians tend to prefer. One regular picker, who was a chef from Cornwall, insisted that chestnuts were best after the first frost because the flavor was better.
Johnny Moo’s domestic harvest is couriered fresh to organic shops in Auckland, Hamilton and the Bay of Plenty straight from the orchard. If the chestnuts are not on shelves for sale immediately, they are kept chilled.
Caren Cambell, Chestnut Orchardist – Johnny Moo Chestnuts, New Zealand
“As well as selling them fresh, we process a percentage of our harvest into crumb and freeze it for sale out of season,” says Caren. “The crumb has many uses in stuffing, baking, and as a thickener for soups and stews. It’s natural, and healthier than using wheat flour. It can be used as a meat substitute, or made into a vege sausage, or pate, and it makes marvelous chocolate mousse when it’s pureed, and then of course, you have Maron Glace, the top of the range French sweet, revered the world over.”
Try doing all that with potatoes!
First published in Organic NZ – Mar/April 2014
https://organicnz.org.nz
©Theresa Sjoquist
Theresa Sjoquist
Bioforce
Daily Organics
Theresa Sjoquist
