Chestnut tree is replaced in Ballydehob

IN a less complicated times, a much-cherished landmark in the village of Ballydehob was the chestnut tree that grew beside the local bank.  Greatly treasured by the children for its conkers in the autumn, even one of the bars across the street adopted its name and it was idealised in song and story. The original eventually died of disease in old age and, more recently, its replacement suffered an unexpected fate being mortally damaged when the garden wall was being removed.

Last Saturday morning marked a new beginning when the Community Council took delivery for planting of a ‘Aesculus x Carnea Briotii,’ in common parlance, a red chestnut tree. The council is indebted to Nikki Keeling who researched the tree most suitable for the site and sourced it from the Irish Tree Centre in Mallow; Kieran Hurley of South Coast Plant Hire Ltd, who prepared the site, and Grant Jenkins of the Tree Company, Ballydehob, who supervised the planting and staking of the tree.  The new red chestnut will add aesthetically to the seating area beside Bank House completed earlier this year and hopefully in time will become as treasured by the community and visitors as the original.