Aesculus hippocastanum
The tree is to be distinguished from the horse chestnut "Aesculus hippocastanum", to which it is only distantly related. The horse chestnut bears similar looking seeds (conkers) in a similar seed case, which are not palatable to humans. Other common names include "Spanish chestnut", or "marron" (French for "chestnut"). The Latin "sativa" means "cultivated by humans". Some selected varieties are smaller and more compact in growth yielding earlier in life with different ripening time: the Marigoule, the Marisol and the Maraval.