Castanea sativa Sweet Chestnut

A deciduous tree native to southern Europe where it can form dominant stands in some forests. It is widely planted in Britain and has been part of the British landscape for a long time, perhaps brought here by the Romans. Trees planted in the open can become very large with massive, fissured trunks and thick, spreading branches. It produces large ball-shaped fruits that are covered in spines and which fall to the ground when ripe and open to reveal the edible seeds (chestnuts). It rarely produces significant amounts of chestnuts in Britain except  in exceptionally good, warm summers. This might explain why naturalising saplings are not seen very often. Most of the Sweet Chestnut trees in West Glamorgan have been planted.

Archaeophyte  which is widely planted in Britain