What is the game of conkers?
This has been a playground favourite game in the UK for as long as there have been playgrounds and horse chestnut trees, they were introduced into Britain in the 1600’s. The first recorded game of conkers dates back to 1848 on the Isle of Wight. Conkers are hard brown nuts found in a prickly case that fall from the tree when ripe. The origin of the name ‘conker’ is unclear but it’s believed that it comes from the French word ‘cogner’ meaning to hit. In years past, there has been an abundance of conkers littering the ground underneath horse chestnut trees. However, recently in the UK you may have noticed that the leaves on the horse chestnuts were looking brown and wrinkled at the end of August. Apparently in the Midlands, South East and East Anglia, trees have been weakened by a disease called ‘horse chestnut bleeding canker’ and attacked by a moth called the ‘horse chestnut leaf miner’. There are many schools of thought on the best method to prepare the conker to remain intact under e
