Red Horse-chestnut

Red candles in spring

In 1858 the Frenchman, Pierre Briot, noticed a horse chestnut growing in a garden that was producing much redder flowers than usual. By grafting twigs of this newly discovered tree on to rootstocks of other horse chestnuts, this red horse chestnut could then be distributed to other locations and since then has borne the name of its discoverer. The red horse chestnut is in itself quite special since it is a hybrid - it is part European and part American. The tree originated in Europe as a spontaneous cross between two distinct species: the European horse chestnut (Aesculus hippocastanum) and the red buckeye (Aesculus pavia) from North America. Normally such hybrids are infertile and thus cannot be propagated by seed, hence grafting is the only way of reproducing them. However, the red horse chestnut is an exception, the seed turned out to be viable and true to form, producing another red flowering chestnut plant.

Aesculus x carnea 'Briottii’. The species name, carnea, means flesh-coloured (deep pink). In 1858, the French horticulturist Pierre L. Briot (1804-1888) found this hybrid, A. x carnea, growing in a garden near Paris. It is a tree of up to 15 m high with a broad conical crown and an indeterminate apex. Leaves are dark green, somewhat pleated, typically with red-tinted bases to the main veins. Flowers are deep pink red and relatively plump, and as such the number of fruits is reduced. The tree grows quite slowly and for this reason there are ‘false Briottiis’ now in circulation.