Walnut tree clean-up

[stevej37]

A beautiful 68 degree sunny fall day here in MI.
Mowing the lawn today, I usually have to rake up the black walnuts first. Most years it adds up to 10-20 wheelbarrows full by the time they all drop. (some years more)

This year, I found 4 single walnuts so far on the ground...can't see any on the trees.
It only happens every 5th or 6th year....I'm delighted.

Any others have walnut trees and notice the same...or is it a local weather thing?

[gumby]

I've got lots of them...more than the squirrels can handle and trecherious walking
I never tried raking them, just way to futile....but if you'er missing the raking your welcome to mine ; -)

[stevej37]

^^^ Yes...it's a good way to twist an ankle by walking under the tree.

If I don't rake and pick them up...they get pushed into the sod by the lawn tractor. In a normal year, the ground is covered by the walnuts. This year is the exception...and I'm happy.

[flatbutt]

Are those the smallish green orbs?

[stevej37]

Originally Posted by flatbutt

Are those the smallish green orbs?

Yes..they are about the size of a small tennis ball. Under the green outer skin is a layer of black meat/pulp....below that is the nut (which is golf ball size)

The nut is very strong..takes a squirrel or a nut cracker to break it.

[KFC911]

Hell nutz .... that what they are !

My neighbor's tree drops them on me.... but nothing like Steve is blessed with.... NOTHING.

A lot a couple, mebbe three years ago, last year just a few..... think I've had one this year. But I did cut off three overhanging limbs last spring

[Crowbob]

It’s called masting.

[stevej37]

[QUOTE=KC911;11818501]Hell nutz .... that what they are !


If you ever want some....I have a huge pile of past years walnuts that are free for the taking.

[flatbutt]

Do you know if they are difficult to germinate?

[Crowbob]

Black walnuts vs. English walnuts?

They both can be cultivated. English (actually from Asia) are what we all like. Blacks not so much.

Collect walnuts after they fall. Remove the hulls and then place the nuts in a glass of water. Nuts that float are not viable and can be thrown away (or eaten). Good, viable nuts will sink to the bottom of the glass.

The viable walnuts will need to stratify (i.e., be exposed to cold and moist conditions that mimic winter conditions underground). Stratification can be done by placing the nuts in a sandwich bag fill sand and peat mix with a few spritzes of water to moisten the mix and putting the bag in the veggie drawer in your fridge for 90-120 days. Alternatively, you can plant the nuts directly in the ground in the fall for a less controlled result.
After stratification, plant the nut two inches deep and wait for it to germinate.
Care for the sapling and wait eight years to collect your first harvest of walnuts.

[stevej37]

Originally Posted by flatbutt

Do you know if they are difficult to germinate?

The pile where I place them has 'new trees' started all over. I spray the pile with Round-up ever month to keep them from growing into new trees.

[stevej37]

Originally Posted by Crowbob

Black walnuts vs. English walnuts?

They both can be cultivated. English (actually from Asia) are what we all like. Blacks not so much.

Collect walnuts after they fall. Remove the hulls and then place the nuts in a glass of water. Nuts that float are not viable and can be thrown away (or eaten). Good, viable nuts will sink to the bottom of the glass.

The viable walnuts will need to stratify (i.e., be exposed to cold and moist conditions that mimic winter conditions underground). Stratification can be done by placing the nuts in a sandwich bag fill sand and peat mix with a few spritzes of water to moisten the mix and putting the bag in the veggie drawer in your fridge for 90-120 days. Alternatively, you can plant the nuts direcBtly in the ground in the fall for a less controlled result.
After stratification, plant the nut two inches deep and wait for it to germinate.
Care for the sapling and wait eight years to collect your first harvest of walnuts.

These are Blacks. I do have an English Walnut tree also.
The Blacks are from a tree that is prob 8 ft in circumference.

[Crowbob]

Blacks are VERY easy to transplant. And they grow like weeds. Seriously, 1-2 feet per year is normal.

Problem is digging out the roots. Which you need to do if transplanting, obviously.

My experience is that there’s a tap root on the buggers that I swear speak Chinese.

The old timers planted ‘em all along their property lines so that about the time they (the old-timers) hang up their dungarees, their homestead is surrounded by beautiful, enormous, shade trees that make great furniture.

[stevej37]

There are a number of homes near me that planted them many years ago with the hope of selling the mature wood for a profit.

The wood is valuable. I would gladly sell mine.

[Crowbob]

Guy comes knocking at my dad’s door right when dad’s on hard times money-wise.

Guy says I’ll buy those walnut trees in the woods on your northwestern corner.

Oh yeah? How much you gonna pay?

Ten thousand, cash tomorrow.

Sold!

Dad coulda got 50 easy, in retrospect. Plus, as a bonus, it devastated the ecology of the woods that took 30 years to get back on track.

[stevej37]

^^^
Yes...mature trees are hard to replace.

I have mostly hard maples in my yard...one of them a birds-eye maple. Makes for a lot of fall clean-up, but I don't mind it.

[flatbutt]

I'm a sort of Flatty Apple seed. I have about 50 trees in pots now. I transplant seedlings from places that I think are not conducive to their future, nuture them in pots until I find a place to plant them. As for the black walnut I have a space on my back slope that I'm replanting where it would do very well.

[stevej37]

^^^ Be careful where you plant the walnuts. They grow into trees that are large and drop their seeds at an alarming rate.
They are almost like willow trees....chop them down before they get ahold and grow.

[porsche tech]

Next door neighbor in VA had one between our houses. Nastiest tree I’ve ever seen. Always something falling out of it ALL YEAR LONG…continually staining my patio. When neighbor was getting ready to move, I offered to pay if he’d let me have it cut down before he left. He claimed he could get big money for it so he had it cut down (had to have a crane truck). It laid around for a while and I’m not sure if he ever found someone to buy it or paid someone to haul it away. I was just happy to have it gone.

[stevej37]

They are usually the last trees to leaf-out in the spring...and the first trees to lose them in the fall.
The meat under the outer skin is a mess if they don't get picked up soon.