Jump to content

Walnuts


Walker570
 Share

Recommended Posts

Just started to harvest the walnuts and have now just over 1700 collected rom two trees.  Keeping the tree rats down and picking three times a day helps but this year because of the increase in small bird life and now having at least four pairs of nuthatches we have had to accept they would punch holes through a few ...maybe twenty so far and they are welcome.   Ensuring as many as possible are picked late evening also stops the badgers getting too many.   Just looking forward to rich fruit cake with walnuts on top and apple crumble with walnuts or even just walnuts on their own with a glass of amber liquid.   They are laid out here in the sun to ripen and dry.

005.jpg

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Wow you would need some nutcracker to tackle all of them, what a wonderful crop.

Can I ask do they produce a crop every year and do they need to be off the tree for ripening?

Sounds like you have got many delights for them to adorn your palate.

I know every sloe and damson tree in the parish, however we have no walnut trees I know of, always wanted to try medlars but alas for 40 years I am still left wanting!

atb

7diaw

Link to comment
Share on other sites

48 minutes ago, guzzicat said:

Do you  beat yours as per the old addage,A dog, a woman & a walnut tree, the more you beat them the better they be. 

I think the saying is more breed specific.....A Spaniel, a woman and a Walnut tree........etc etc....but really!.....Who would beat a dog? Lol!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

3 minutes ago, panoma1 said:

I think the saying is more breed specific.....A Spaniel, a woman and a Walnut tree........etc etc....but really!.....Who would beat a dog? Lol!

Used to be legal to beat your wife as long as the stick was no thicker than your thumb!, the wives of blind cobblers were particularly well behaved

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Obviously if left to just fall off and lay on the ground they will a) ripen and b) root on the spot.  I try to harvest them as the shell cracks and pick up any fallers. Our back entrance is ideal for ripening/drying as it is south facing and large window. Everyone we give some to, say they are the best flavour they have ever tasted, but they have only had imported nuts at Christmas or the dry shelled packs for cooking.  It has taken close to 20yrs for both these trees to start producing nuts and I'm fortunate I don't have to beat either my wife or the trees. Never ever have I beat my dogs or hauled them up by the ears as seems advocated by the experts.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

A few years back we had such a heavy crop a large branch came off the tree taking down another branch.  Of the remainder I collected over 5 stone and dried them as best I could which I then sold to a farm shop.  He said he bought them on the taste, the only others he had and I've seen elsewhere are the inferior Californian ones. A lot this year are empty and the squirrels have had most of the rest. Like a lot of the best food, it's difficult if not impossible for most people to get hold of unless you do it yourself or know somebody who does.  Enjoy your treat.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

7 hours ago, Lampwick said:

I,ve had nightmares over walnuts!! Stained fingers, hands, clothes etc. 

How do you get them from the husks? Do you let them come out naturally and ignore the fallen "green" ones? Do you ever pick the " "cracking" nuts from the tree?

The occasional solid green one which gets dislodged is discarded.  Once the husk cracks and starts to disintegrate I pick from the tree where I can once they have cracked open(200 today) and as they start to crack open completely I shake the upper branches with a long pole.  If I don't do this then the badgers will clear up what drops overnight (I pick at least twice a day) and the pesky little nuthatches open a few up as well, those I don't mind. I have very little problem with squirrels as they die very quickly.  Yes my hands and fingers are now stained brown like a heavy smoker and it will be Christmas before it wears off, but all very worthwhile. 

yod dropper ...that is a whole load of nuts and must have been an old large tree. My neighbour has such a one and she does not pick any, a total waste.  It is a joy to be able to share them with friends.

I believe I have found about twenty which the nuthatch got there first, but we will finish up with over 2000 by the looks and just that few for that dapper little bird I enjoying sharing with.

Amazing how they can punch a hole through. 

 

003.jpg

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Yes, I have pickled them but to be honest it is easier and cheaper to buy what we need from Morrisons.  The process is long and tedious and remember anything that liquid touches will stain.  Check them on the tree in early July, stick the point of your pen knife in and if it does not hit hard shell then they will pickle.  Hard shell and your too late, leave them to mature.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I planted my first one twenty four years ago and it started to produce three years ago. I planted a second two years later and that produced a half dozen walnuts three years ago and this year will probably produce about a hundred.    In my experience therefore it will be 15 to 20yrs before any substantial harvest can be taken but they are a handsom tree to have about and I now have twelve or more growing wild, one of which is about 20yrs old from seeding and looks like it may produce next season.  O'm not sure if it is self pollinating, it may be because it produces catkin like flowers and much small flowers, not unlike the hazel and the fruit is produced from the smaller flower.  Heh!  I'm no expert, just watched things happen for twenty odd years.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

16 hours ago, Walker570 said:

that is a whole load of nuts and must have been an old large tree.

Just measured it, fully 8' round.  We've been here 30 years and it was large then.  We've some very busy squirrels and I pull up endless seedlings and have recently taken out a couple of saplings to about 15'.  I haven't seen one viable nut this year, a poor crop to start, some squirrel activity and lots of shrivelled fruit inside the shell, don't know what that's to do with.  I find it's a sporadic cropper and seems to have tailed off more recently so if yours are anything like mine make hay.  Really glad your long term vision has paid off and nature gets some reward as well.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

44 minutes ago, yod dropper said:

Just measured it, fully 8' round.  We've been here 30 years and it was large then.  We've some very busy squirrels and I pull up endless seedlings and have recently taken out a couple of saplings to about 15'.  I haven't seen one viable nut this year, a poor crop to start, some squirrel activity and lots of shrivelled fruit inside the shell, don't know what that's to do with.  I find it's a sporadic cropper and seems to have tailed off more recently so if yours are anything like mine make hay.  Really glad your long term vision has paid off and nature gets some reward as well.

Ours has been the same this year, not seen anything to speak of.

Other years, you could stand under it an it sounded like it was raining. It was the bits raining down from the great squirrel feast. The floor littered with fallen or part eaten fruit.

All I can put it down to is the particularly dry year we have had here in the east. Even our large pond has almost dried out this year. Never known that in the eight years we have lived here.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Squirrels do not abide in my wood...they may visit for 48hrs but NEVER leave, other than in the insides of a buzzard or fox courtesy of the 17HMR. In fact my Forest Ranger has just reported an intruder coming in from next door so I must leave for the moment.:good:

To answer a question about picking off the tree...yes when they get like this....

 

004.jpg

Edited by Walker570
Link to comment
Share on other sites

I have grown 8 from walnuts I picked up in France the trees are only 3 years old now, It took along time trying to figure out were to plant them as my thoughts were when I am dead and gone someone will enjoy the fruits of my labours.... 20 years before I get a nut though …….. they wont even remember who planted them !!!! 

looks like all my walnuts for the foreseeable future will be from tescos

well done on your crop walker570  

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

Loading...
 Share

  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
×
×
  • Create New...