For people living in the UK, conkers is a firm part of Autumn life. Here is our guide to everything you need to know about conkers, from the basics of how to play, to how to harden your conker and even the history of conkers. Enjoy!

What is the game of conkers?

Conkers is a game involving putting horse chestnuts (the proper name for conkers) on strings, and hitting two of them together, with the aim of smashing the opponents conker. The winner is the person whose conker doesn’t smash.

The game is usually played in Autumn in Britain (late September to mid October), and has historically been popular with school children - with children collecting ‘conkers’ from horse chestnut trees and using their shoe laces as strings.

What’s the history of conkers?

The earliest records of mentions of the game of conkers was in the early 19th century, with the first mention appearing in Robert Southey’s memoirs published in 1821. The game grew in popularity in the 1800’s across England.

The history of the name ‘conker’ is not 100% clear, however ideas of why a conker is called a conker include:

Coming from the dialect word ‘conker’ which means ‘knock out’
A link to the French word ‘conque’ which means ‘conch’ or ‘shell’ - referring to the shell of the horse chestnut, or perhaps another game involving snail shells
A derivation from the word ‘conquer’, referring to the battle-style nature of the game with each player hitting each other’s nut

Other names of the game referred to in recent history include ‘cheggers’, a Lancastrian name, and also ‘cobblers’ a reference made in DH Lawrence’s book Sons and Lovers.

Where is the game of conkers played?

The game of conkers is predominantly played in England, using Horse Chestnuts, however similar games are also played in other parts of the world - often called something different:

England: the game is known as ‘conkers’ in England
Puerto Rico: the game of conkers is known as ‘gullets' in Puerto Rico
USA: in America the game is known both as ‘conkers’ but also as ‘buckeyes'
Ireland: in Ireland the game is also known as conkers (like in the UK)
Australia: they play conkers in Australia (largely because of the British ex-pat influence)

When do conkers fall off trees?

Conker nuts usually mature and fall from trees in early Autumn in the UK - between mid-September and mid October. With world temperatures rising, the conker season is getting earlier.

Conkers start growing from early Spring, and by mid Spring you can see white ‘conker blossom’ on Horse Chestnut trees.

The best indication of whether a Horse Chestnut tree is going to grow lots of conkers is whether the tree in Spring has lots of white ‘conker blossom’ covering it - as the more blossom, the more and bigger the conkers will be by Autumn-time.

The 2021 conker season is due to start from 20th September, and will run for 4 weeks til mid October.

What are the rules of conkers?

The basic rules of the game of conkers are as follows:

Two players each face each other, 1 meter apart
One player (the receiver) holds their arm outstretched with their conker loose; the other player (the attacker) aims their conker at the receiver
The attacker aims to hit the opponent’s conker; with each player taking three strikes each, and alternating
The game continues until one of the player’s conkers smashes, and the player whose conker is remaining (un-smashed) wins
There’s the option to ‘time limit’ a conker game, limiting a game to set time e.g. 5 minutes - however, it’s not necessary to limit a game

There are various variations of the rules of conkers which different people play. For example, the World Conker Championships have an official set of rules and so does Peckham Conker Club, who advocate the Battle Royale conker rules.

How does scoring work in the game of conkers?

The tradition way to score in a game of conkers is based on how many times a player wins / smashes an opponents conker. The score is usually attributed to the conker itself, rather than the player. So for example, a conker that has smashed just one other conker is called a ‘one-er’; a conker that has smashed two conkers is called a ‘two-er’. An added complication involved in scoring is that if your conker is a ‘two-er’ and you beat another conker that is a ‘two-er’ your conker turns into a ‘four-er’ (i.e. you add the two values of the conkers together - with the victorious conker taking the combiner value e.g. 2 + 2 = ‘four-er’.)

There are alternative conker game scoring systems where scores are accrued according to how many times players hit the opponents conker, as well as bonus points for smashing the opponent’s conker.

In 2021, the Peckham Conker Club invented the ‘conker coin’ which is a way to add more fun to the game of conkers - and provide something to play for, including an easy way to indicate what score your conker is. The idea is that each conker starts with 1 coin, and then as players beat other players they gain the opponents coin - reflecting the classic conker scoring mechanic of a ‘oner’ or ‘fiver’.

You can read more about how to score in conkers and Conker Coins here.

What is stampsies and tangles in conkers?

There are some alternative rules to the the traditional rules of conkers, where players are allowed to perform alternative moves. The two main alternative moves are stampsies (or stamps) and tangles.

Stampsies (or stamps) is where if a conker ends up on the floor, a player shouts ‘stampsies’ and then races to try to stamp and crush their opponents conker.

Tangles is where if the string of two conkers end up getting tangled together, each can pull the other out of the other’s hands - and when on the floor stamp on it - thus winning!

What equipment is needed to play conkers?

The basic equipment needed to play a game of conkers is:

Two conkers (at least)
Two strings (some people use shoe laces!)
A ‘holing device’ e.g. a bradawl, drill or kebab skewer

If you want to play a more advanced game of conkers, then using ‘conker coins’ to score and accrue points is a must - as this makes the game more fun.

Here at Peckham Conker Club we’ve also developed up special ‘conker laces’ designed to help you play conkers like a pro.

Tips on how to hole a conker

The best way to make a hole in a conker is to use a sharp screw-type device. It’s important to use a screw-type method rather than trying to punch a hole in the conker, as if you try to punch a hole (for example, using a kebab skewer or bradawl) then it’s highly dangerous and your likely to put the the skewer through your hand - as the conker is so small and hard.

The best tools to hole a really hard conker (for example an old conker) is to use an electric drill (only to be used with a clamp), or a gimlet.

We’ve put together a ‘how to hole a conker’ video guide to show you the different approaches - the best we’d recommend being using a ‘hand drill’, which you can buy as part of our Battle Packs here >>

Step-by-step-guide to preparing a conker

Preparing for a game of conkers is easy if you have all the right equipment - essentially the biggest challenge is how to make a hole and string a conker safely (as conkers are really hard!). Here’s a step-by-step guide to holing and stringing a conker:

Get all the equipment you need: hole-making device (e.g. ideally a gimlet - which is a type of hand drill) and string (twine s the best, but if in doubt use a shoe-lace!)
Hold the conker in one hand, and the take the gimlet in the other
Start slowly drilling the conker, using a twisting motion
As you’re getting close to drilling through the other side of the conker, make sure you move the fingers of the hand grasping the conker, so they’re position to let the gimlet exit without drilling your hand!
One you’ve drilled the hole in your conker, push the gimlet through the hole to clean it out
Now thread your string through the hole, and tie a knot at one end (making sure the knot is big enough to not fall through the hole of the conker).
Now you’re ready to play conkers!

Important things to remember when you’re making a hole in a conker is that you don’t use a BBQ skewer, as if you do you’re likely to not only put a hole in the conker but also your hand!

What’s the safest way to hole a conker?

The best tool for making a hole in a conker is a ‘hand drill’. Using a hand drill is the safest way to hole a conker, as it means you’re actually drilling the conker - rather than punching a hole, which can result in you punching a hole in your hand!

The team at Peckham Conker Club sell tools for making holes in conkers. Check out them here >>

There are multiple other ways of holing a conker, which we’ve listed in our guide to holing conkers here. One of the ways we definitely don’t recommend is using a kebab skewer or hammer and nail - as these are both highly dangerous and likely to leave you with a hole in your hand!

How to cheat at conkers

There are various ways to cheat at playing conkers - but the main way of cheating is to harden your conker, so that it’s artificially harder than your competitors.

The best ways of hardening your conker include:

Naturally ageing your conker e.g. using a conker from a previous year
Soak in vinegar
Put your conker in the oven and slowly bake
Cover your conker in varnish
Fill your conker with glue

Other ways to cheat at conkers is to bend the rules - for example, when you’re playing a game of conkers who can do ‘stampsies’ which is when you stamp on your opponent’s conker, therefore smashing it!

Is conkers really banned in schools in the UK?

There are no specific UK laws that ban conkers from being played at schools, however schools have the powers to ban any activity within their domain that they deem dangerous / to contravene school rules based on heath and safety grounds.

Schools are reported to be increasingly banning conkers from being played at schools, but parents have been fighting back with petitions to the government - like this one.

Tips on how to encourage schools to allow conkers to be played in the school playground include asking children to wear safety goggles (like ones they way wear in the science lab) and only allowing children to play conkers outside.

Do they play conkers in the US?

Yes, conkers is a game that is played in the USA. However, the popularity of the game of conkers in America varies on States - for example, it is popular in Ohio (which is actually nicknamed the Buckeyes) and also in hipster areas of New York - like Brooklyn.

In the US, many people refer to conkers as ‘buckeyes’ - which is the North American name for horse chestnuts, as they resemble an eye of buck or male deer (apparently!).

Conkers in the US tend to be smaller than the European version - because of the specific type of horse chestnut, so possibly not as good for playing conkers.

Ohio State University is nicknamed the ‘Buckeyes’ because of the trees that used to cover many areas of the state. Acid from these Buckeyes used to be collected for use in making leather - in the 19th and early 20th centuries.

Can you eat a conker?

No, it’s not possible to eat conkers. Unlike other types of chestnuts - which are edible - horse chestnuts - Aesculus hippocastanum - conkers are in fact poisonous.

What makes a conker poisonous are the toxins in them called glycosides and saponins. The only animal that can and do eat conkers are deer - which have chemicals in their stomachs that can digest these toxins.

Conkers are very rich in starch however, and extracts are used in natural shampoos and body washes.

How big do conkers grow?

Conkers vary in size depending on how long they’re left to grow on the tree, how old the horse chestnut tree is and the season’s growing conditions (i.e. how much sun and water they’ve had).

The biggest conkers recorded are 5 to 6 centimetres in diameter.

Some bigger conkers actually grow as ‘twins’, and split down the middle - with a flat side.

What happens if you plant a conker?

You can grow a horse chestnut tree by planting a conker - however you need to make sure that the conker is fresh and hasn’t dried out.

You can keep a conker in a damp dark bag to preserve longevity, however once a conker has dried out it’s not possible to successfully germinate and grow a tree!

What’s the real name of a conker?

The real name for a conker is a horse chestnut - or in its latin name Aesculus hippocastanum

Conker Equipment

What Conker equipment is needed to play conkers? The key equipment need to play conkers is as follows:

Conker holer / drill: a conker drill or holer of sorts is needed to drill a hole in the conker
String: you need to ‘string’ your conker, and tie it with a knot on the end
Conker coins : to mark you score in conkers you can use ‘conker coins’, which you exchange with your opponent depending on who wins
Goggles and arm guard: for safety, if you don’t want to risk your eyes or forearm a pair of goggles and arm guard are key!
Nut sack: for keen conker collectors, a ‘nut sack’ will come in handy for collecting your conkers ;-)
Jar and bottle of vinegar: for those cheating conker players, having a bottle of vinegar and jar to hand would be useful to help your harden your conker.

Peckham Conker Club’s Battle Pack - Conker equipment

How conker scoring works

Scoring in conkers is very straight-forward. In every game you basically win the points of your opponent’s conker. So for example, if your conker has 2 points (i.e. a is a ‘two-er’) and your opponent’s conker has 3 points (i.e. is a ‘three-er’) then then winner’s conker will become a ‘five-er’.

There is the exception to this rule of conker scoring, when it’s a ‘first round’ game of conkers - where both conkers are ‘virgin conkers’ i.e. they both haven’t played before. In this case, you pick up a first single point - i.e. making your conker a ‘one-er’.

Conker competitions

There is a growing number of conker competitions around the world. The majority of conker competitions are in the UK, however there are also some in other corners of the world. The biggest conker competitions are:

World Conker Championships (Southwick, England)
Hampstead Heath Conker Championships (London)
Peckham Conker Championships (London)
North American Conker Championships (Canada)
Scottish Conker Championships (Scotland)

Can you buy ready-prepared conkers?

Yes. It is possible buy conkers with holes in them already. If you don’t want to hole and prepare a conker yourself, then you can buy pre-holed conkers - so you don’t have to worry about skewering your hand?!

We sell pre-prepared conkers at Peckham Conker Club - for example, our battle pack (which includes everything you need to play conkers!)

Everything you need to know about conkers