Leaf
Liliane Roubaudi, Tela Botanica · CC BY-SA 2.0
Horse chestnut
Aesculus hippocastanum L.
Also known as: Common horse chestnut, Conker tree
Family: Sapindaceae
20 to 30 m tall
Widely planted in towns, parks and avenues
Flowering: April – May
Part shade
Full sun
-30°C
❓ How do you recognise this plant?
Its flowers in large upright candles are visible from afar from spring. A very common confusion, because both fruits are often just called "chestnuts". The sweet chestnut (edible) is enclosed in a husk bristling with long, fine spines and several fruits are grouped per husk; the horse chestnut conker (toxic, not to be eaten) has a husk with short, widely spaced spines and contains only a single large shiny fruit.
🍃 Leaves
Palmately compound, 5 to 7 large leaflets in a fan
🌸 Flowers
Large upright white panicles marked with pink or yellow
🍎 Fruits
Large green capsule covered in spikes, containing the conker
🪵 Bark
Grey-brown, peeling in irregular plates
🗺️ Distribution
Native to the Balkans, widely planted in Europe; very common in France in urban avenues and parks
🐝 Value for pollinators
Large upright inflorescences very rich in nectar in spring, abundant nectar for bees and bumblebees
✂️ Horticultural uses
Very widely planted in avenues and parks for its shade and spectacular flowering
⚠️ Possible toxicity
Seeds (conkers) toxic if eaten raw (saponins), causing digestive upset; not edible, unlike sweet chestnuts
⚠️ Look-alike species
Horse chestnut
Aesculus hippocastanum
Sweet chestnut
Castanea sativa
A very common confusion, because both fruits are often just called "chestnuts". The sweet chestnut (edible) is enclosed in a husk bristling with long, fine spines and several fruits are grouped per husk; the horse chestnut conker (toxic, not to be eaten) has a husk with short, widely spaced spines and contains only a single large shiny fruit.
🌿 Other Sapindaceae to discover
ℹ️ Educational profile — do not use it to judge whether a plant is edible or safe.
🌱 This database is constantly evolving — species and information are added and corrected regularly. Spotted a mistake? Report it below.
© Floraneo — profile content is protected; reproduction without permission is prohibited. Photos remain under their own licence (see the credit shown on each photo).