In this blog, we list some of our favorite chestnut recipes from across the native range of chestnuts, including foods we've consumed abroad and foods we've experimented with in our own kitchens. We also tackle roasting, and point you to some great options for purchasing chestnuts, including fresh nuts and value-added products.

American chestnuts make for a bipartisan hero’s journey, steeped in patriotism and nostalgia. Decades of research spark perennial intrigue. Everyone is waiting for the return. In the meantime, there’s a massive opportunity that intersects with the American chestnut, but just might be wholly more actionable.

Black locust lumber and fenceposts are timeless and rot-resistant. But prices and quality vary. Some buyers seek high-end decking, while others just need fence posts to do the job. Learn more about markets and pricing for this extremely useful tree species, native to much of the Eastern United States.

Funding agroforestry is a big topic. Should I pay out of pocket, or see if public funding is available? Long-term financial planning is vital, and astute farmers will look to bypass subsidies and just go for the goal. Here we dive into matching your ideal agroforestry system to sources of funding – including yourself.

Riparian buffers can be profitable farm enterprises if planned and managed well. Engineering these areas to generate income and grow asset value – rather than remain a management cost and liability – will increase their durability and generate economic value across rural America.

Forests yield clean water for those downstream, but can they sustain the rural economies that steward them? Can they feed and shelter us while providing ecosystem services? Agroforestry yields both conservation and production, and chestnuts are a growth market tree crop that feed people, regenerate the soil, and keep our waterways clean and cool for aquatic life and society.

Propagate is No. 475 on the 2025 Inc. 5000 list, the most prestigious ranking of the fastest-growing private companies in America. The list provides a data-driven snapshot of the most successful companies within the economy’s most dynamic segment—its independent, entrepreneurial businesses. Past honorees include companies such as Microsoft, Meta, Chobani, Under Armour, Timberland, Oracle, and Patagonia. This is the second year in a row Propagate has made the list, having ranked No. 723 in 2024.

If you’ve never planted a tree, the best thing you can do is to start. Choose easy, resilient species so you can begin learning by doing.

“People think they need perfect conditions to start, when in reality, starting is the perfect condition.” -Hormozi

CSR should fit with a company’s values, strategy, and brand. A carbon strategy is likely to gain momentum if it fits into each of these categories, and we’ve seen agroforestry provide value across the board in terms of CSR.

Planting trees on prime farmland? Corn and soy play a crucial role in feeding the world, and like pecans, chestnuts are a nutrient-dense staple food. Here we’ll take a look at how they stack up against grain, and what role trees can play in feeding the world.

Alley cropping is the practice of growing trees and crops on the same piece of land. “Agroforestry” allows a farmer to take advantage of the vertical space on their land, and it turns more sunlight into profit if done well. Alley cropping yields good financial returns, but how can we put it into practice? Link in first comment.

We marvel at the windbreaks, silvopasture, and native fruits of Patagonia. Argentina grows similar crops to The United States, their ecology a partial mirror of our own, but their economic climate is very different. Sometimes the grass is greener, but the region is not without its challenges. Extreme winds, drought, and fire blur the line between chaos and beauty, but persistent creativity permeates farms and society.

Agroforestry is gaining momentum. One of the simplest ways to get started? Integrating trees with hay in an alley-cropping system. By planting trees in wide rows with hay growing in between, farmers and landowners can maintain annual hay production while investing over the long-term.

7 takeaways for syntropic farming in higher latitudes. 

How can we adapt what we see in Brazil? Syntropic agroforestry achieves accelerated forest succession, while producing food, via the strategic and rapid accrual of biomass. The practice has become popular in the tropics, but syntro looks exceedingly different in cold climates.

Pruning chestnuts is critical to maintain tree health and productivity, but perspectives on best-practices vary. Dive into our outline of some basics, highlights on different approaches, and share some of our favorite resources to help you get started.

Agroforestry is the integration of trees and farming. The practice is currently regarded as somewhat avant-garde in the United States, and those interested in agroforestry are generally open-minded people with an above-average risk tolerance. Here we’ll look at which of the “Big 5” dimensions of personality seem to define the typical agroforester. 

$24.6 million RCPP investment from USDA-NRCS brings together leaders in agroforestry and sustainable agriculture to drive water quality improvements and biodiversity on working lands in 5 states on the Mississippi River Basin.

Cattle and sheep will browse the green leaves and twigs of small trees and shrubs. These plants can serve as value forage when the grass isn’t growing, and over the long run can be an important part of a farm’s bottom line.

Propagate recently contracted a third party to collect biodiversity data across 20 sample sites on 2 farms in Mason county, Kentucky. The sites were selected based on production crops and system age: chestnut-hay agroforestry systems at different maturity levels were benchmarked against a conventional soy baseline. These measurements will help us understand the impact of agroforestry practices on local ecology.