Do you remember how to play conkers

Kildare Wildlife Watch

While children growing up in Ireland today have access and enjoy many different electronic gaming systems, some things never change and that is the child’s autumn search for conkers.

The horse-chestnut tree (Crann cnó capaill as Gaeilge), which can grow to forty metres in height, is not actually a native tree, but was introduced to Ireland from England in the 1600’s.

Information from the University College Cork website shares that this tree is also an introduced species to England, originally believed to be from the Mediterranean region. The large leaves can be described as palmate, meaning they are divided into five to seven toothed leaflets and the bark is smooth and grey in colour.

The flowers, which are sometimes described as Christmas tree shaped, emerge in May and once pollinated, form into the fruit known as a conker. They are glossy brown in colour and protected in a spikey husk.

The wood of the horse-chestnut tree is described as soft and is not used commercially. This tree is valuable for wildlife with its flowers offering nectar, deer eat the conkers and the structure is home to nesting birds, squirrels and many invertebrates. Did you know there is a World Conker Championships held in Northampton, UK, with players from across the globe?

It is so long since I played a game of conkers I had to google the rules! Just in case you are like me and forgotten the rules, or are a new conker player, the Woodland Trust in the UK provides all the details you need. First you will need to thread your conkers onto string by carefully making a clean hole through the middle of each conker using a skewer or screwdriver.
Cut pieces of string about 50cm long and thread them through the holes. Tie a knot at both ends of the string so the conkers don’t fall off. Wrap the loose end of the string around your hand twice (there should be about 25cm of string between your hand and the conker).

After tossing a coin to see who goes first, one player dangles their conker at arm’s length, keeping it as still as possible. The striker holds the string of their own conker and takes a swing at their opponent’s conker to try and bash it. If the attacking player misses, they have two more chances before it’s their opponent’s turn to strike. The game continues until one of the conkers smashes and you have a winner! Will you search for conkers in your local area and have a game this week?

If you would like help identifying a wildlife observation in your community you can contact me on bogs@ipcc.ie.

- Nuala Madigan from the Bog of Allen Nature Centre, Lullymore