PA Mountain Man. Not only have I been to Fowlers Hollow, I lived a mile away from it for 15 years in the state house in the Back Hollow. Currently live beside Little Buffalo State Park. Where are you at?
I've been passing by this tree in my town since I was a newborn and it wasn't until today that it dawned on me what it was. (I believe) it's a very large Horse Chestnut. Something you don't see too often, at least in my area. Beautiful to look at this time of year. I should've taken a picture today, but this Google image from 2019 will have to suffice. Google Maps The search for a rogue American Chestnut in my neck of the woods continues.
I've looked at those leaves, and looked and looked some more. I'm reasonably confident that's European AKA Sweet Chestnut, Castanea Sativa. The form and stature of the tree doesn't fit the shorter Japanese or Chinese trees. European chestnut leaves are the most similar to American, but the base of the leaf where it meets the petiole is wider rather than tapering down. The apex of the leaf on American is long and drawn out, where European leaves terminate more bluntly. Funny thing is, even the European trees are susceptible to the various strains of chestnut blight we have here in the U.S. so finding even a mature C. Sativa is noteworthy.
