THE schoolboys may be knocking the last of the conkers from the trees, and lazily kicking the leaves underneath in the hope of finding one or two unclaimed, but for seasonal foodies the real treat lies not in the horse chestnuts, but in their sweeter, edible cousins.

For, while conkers are inedible, sweet chestnuts are a gourmet autumn treat. The French devour marron glacé, and in London, street sellers roast them in open braziers and sell them in paper bags.

But for a real treat, try harvesting your own, and baking them in a hot oven, or in the embers of an open fire.

Late October is a great time to go on the hunt as the chestnuts are at their ripest, but make sure you take thick gloves – the shells are pricklier than conkers and will puncture even the toughest of hands.

They are usually slightly smaller than those brought from the Continent into the supermarkets. They can be stored for Christmas and, best of all, won’t cost you a penny.

Indeed, their use as a food source is why they dot our landscape: the Romans brought the sweet chestnut to Britain to provide a ready supply of chestnut flour, which was a staple of the legionaries’ diet.

Be careful not to confuse the nuts with conkers. Sweet chestnuts are in a hairy-looking pod, covered in needle-like spikes, whereas inedible conkers have a thick, smooth shell with shorter, rounder spikes.

While you’re out, the Woodland Trust in Merseyside is appealing for the public to help them find the county’s oldest trees, so it can lobby for greater protection and monitor current threats.

So far, two sweet chestnut trees have been recorded in Merseyside, with the largest – having a girth of six metres – found in Calderstones Park, Allerton. Edward Parker, the Ancient Tree Hunt project manager at the Woodland Trust, says: “We know there will be many more out there, so are urging people to help us gain more data. Ancient sweet chestnuts have distinctively twisted, spiral-like trunks when they grow old, so they are easily recognisable to the public, especially at this time of the year while the nuts are available. It’s also a great way of stocking up on free food for traditional autumn or Christmas dishes with the family.”

Debra Williams, Woodland Trust volunteer from Liverpool, adds: “Foraging is fantastic fun and would make a great day’s activity over half- term; and you’ll be doing a very worthwhile job if you can find some ancient sweet chestnut trees at the same time. It’s a huge task to find all the UK’s ancient trees, but until we know where they are it’s difficult for the Woodland Trust to protect them.”

TO FIND out how to spot an ancient tree and to register it on the Ancient Tree Hunt website, please visit www.ancient treehunt.org.uk

by JADE WRIGHT