For generations, majestic American chestnut trees flourished and provided food and wood for people from Maine to Florida. These 100-foot “redwoods of the East” were called perfect trees. They grew fast and produced nutritious chestnuts for people and animals. And their straight-grained and rot-resistant wood was ideal for building houses and barns and crafting furniture.  read more Tan, colleagues plant American chestnuts to return ‘perfect tree’ to ecosystem