Nuts!

[WVBill]

We live in the eastern panhandle West Virginia - at the northern end of the Shenandoah valley. We have a line of trees along our property edge. Most of these trees are 50' tall and possibly a hundred years old. In this line are several trees that drop multitudes of golfball-sized green "fruit" each fall. Cutting into this reveals something that resembles a walnut.

Question - are these likely to be the same kind of walnuts you get in the super market? If so, how do I get them from the round green stage to the point where they are hard and brown and have that little "Diamond Brand" logo stamped on them? [img]/forums/images/icons/wink.gif[/img]

[Hayseed]

I don't know one type of walnut from another so I don't know if you have the same type as you see in the supermarket. I do know that walnuts have a thick green husk around the shell. I have not picked up any walnuts since I was a kid but seems I remember that the green husk will stain the heck out of your clothes and hands so you gotta take a little care when handling them.

[Gatorboy]

Those are Black Walnut trees.

To remove the husks try one of these 3 methods:

~ Place nuts in a bucket of water to soften and then peel the husks by hand.
~ Place nuts in a hand-operated corn sheller.
~ Place nuts in a small cement mixer along with gravel, cover with water, and rotate for 20 to 30 minutes.

[Argee]

Gatorboy is right on, those are black walnuts. Another way to get the husks off, if your not in a hurry, is to use a mechanics vise. [img]/forums/images/icons/laugh.gif[/img] [img]/forums/images/icons/laugh.gif[/img]

When I lived in the city, I had a neighbor who had an English Walnut (the same ones you buy at the super market) in his backyard next to the fence. As the years went by this tree started shading my garden, which irritated me somewhat until I saw the fruits dropping down. It bore fruit about every other year and it was a feast when it did. [img]/forums/images/icons/tongue.gif[/img] [img]/forums/images/icons/tongue.gif[/img] Oh the memories. [img]/forums/images/icons/smirk.gif[/img]

[poorboy]

Gatorboy, you can also put them in a feed sack and let them dry out a little and drive over the sack, this will get the hulls off. Then put the nuts in a vise to get to the meat.

Patrick

WVBill,

Yep, you gots Black Walnuts!!

There are multiple ways of removing the husks. Hammers, driving over them, and those mentioned previously. Pick one that suits you the best.

A word of caution though... try to avoid handling them with your bare hands. Especially when the husks are brown. Else, you will have yellow hands. Black Walnut husks are used for yellow dying. Ever wonder how buckskins were yellow... you guessed it. Black Walnut husks!!

Other than that... enjoy your harvest. Keep in mind that the taste of Black Walnuts is much different than English Walnuts. Much richer and earthier.

Terry

[WVBill]

Thanks for the input everyone. I shared your directions and ones I found on a University of Michigan website with my wife and she said if I wanted Walnuts, she would help. The told me to gather up a bunch of the nuts, put them in a sack and she would drive over them in her car the next time she goes to the market to buy nuts. [img]/forums/images/icons/grin.gif[/img]

But seriously, she did point out an article in our local paper. The West Virginia University Agriculture extension and local Boy Scouts are asking area residents to gather seeds from native tree species (e.g. my Walnut tree). The Scouts will pick them up and take them to the Ag extension where they will be planted, nurtured to transplantable size and then made available free to residents. Seems they're very concerned about the disappearance of native tree species and this is a way to help preserve them.

I think I'll go that route - beats getting yellow dye all over the inside of my concrete mixer. [img]/forums/images/icons/wink.gif[/img]

[Stoneheartfarm]

WVBill

Native Tree species are becoming sort of a hot topic. I live about 30 miles from the Champion tree project. This is a small private nursery that has managed to get clippings from many of the country's champion trees and has been quietly cloning them for years. They claim they are almost ready to begin selling and that the seedlings grow faster and should grow larger than common members of the same species.

Also, I'm about 50 miles from the Chestnut festival (which should be held in just a couple of weeks). These guys are trying to establish a return of the American Chestnut, using disease resistant trees. They've been at it quite a few years, since I can remember the announcement about 10 years ago of the resistant trees being found. Now, you can go to the festival, buy fresh nuts, get seedlings, try chestnut soup, bread and other stuff.

SHF

[Scott_IN_WVa]

We use to lay them in a gravel driveway and run over them,just leave them there a week or so.

[Al_Wa]

Stick em in your "beaney crutch" and shoot em at a big ole rock.