Has anyone ever tried to grow walnut trees from walnuts? I would like to try to grow some English walnuts. I saw a special on TV years ago on how to do it but have since forgotten. Thank you! Dan

-- Dan (farmerdan130@msn.com), November 10, 2001

Answers

Dan,

Not sure about English Walnuts, but black walnuts need one year in the ground before they sprout. Where we used to live we had several hundred trees at one time. The squirrels made our little grove ever larger, so I know that they grow well from the nuts.

I have read that the nuts should be collected and put in a pile and covered with dirt and left for one year. They should always be kept moist, but not soaked. When you are ready to plant, 1 year from harvesting, just dig them up and plant. They are probably best planted in the fall, when nature does it aoutmatically.

Hope this helps you.

Talk to you later.

-- Bob in WI (bjwick@hotmail.com), November 10, 2001.

If I remember correctly, the person on TV put them in the refridgerator for awhile to simulate winter then planted them. I don't think it was too long of a time. Thanks again. Dan

-- Dan (farmerdan130@msn.com), November 10, 2001.

Most commercial orchards of English walnuts in the US are actually English or Carpathian walnut tops grafted onto Black walnut root stock as it's hardier. Maybe you could grow out a few English walnuts from seed and then graft them onto Black walnut roots. It would be better to find a source for English walnut scion wood though so you could be sure you were getting a good nut producing tree. I think the biggest plantations are in California but I have no idea if they market scion wood.

-- Susan (smtroxel@socket.net), November 10, 2001.

Dan,

The idea of using the refrigerator may work well. It did for ginseng when I used to grow it from seed. After it was refrigerated for a certain amount of time it was called stratified seed. I had forgot about that, thanks for reminding me.

Talk to you later.

-- Bob in WI (bjwick@hotmail.com), November 10, 2001.

Just don't plant Black Walnut; it's quite toxic. Not only to critters, but it kills any plants around it! They've found that even when the tree is cut down and the stump removed that the toxicity remains in the ground for quite a while.

-- ~Rogo (rogo2020@yahoo.com), November 10, 2001.

You just start the black walnuts where you want the trees to be. Once the tree is a year old you graft the english tree right into the cut off stump of the black walnut. If you need nice english walnuts to start I could send you some from out trees. They are falling right now. They use the black walnut as the root stalk because the the english roots don't last as long and are prone to more diseases, but they do grow and produce.

-- miller (smillers@snowcrest.net), November 11, 2001.

Hi - thanks for reminding me about juglone!!! I knew it, but forgot it - I was about to make a big mistake!!! Thanks and blessings... Helen

-- Helen, in WI (applebake@cybrzn.com), November 11, 2001.

just a little word in "defense" :) of the black walnut.... there has been some sucess with cancer. Injecting the tumor with black walnut extract has either killed or reduced the tumor. Of course I read this somewhere and cannot verify it or the source now, it's been a while.

-- Lynnda (venus@zeelink.net), November 13, 2001.

Another defense of black walnuts....they grow around quite readily (wish they were easier to pick the meats out) and they grow in the middle of vegetation. Have never seen them kill any plant or critter. Frankly, if you have a long time horizon, they can be very profitable as timber buyers will buy the standing timber for premium prices.

-- Marvin in Nebraska (brinmg@hotmail.com), November 13, 2001.

The husks of english walnut can kill to. A dog at the place I use to do there lawns at died after eating english walnut husks. In defense of black walnut I have heard the wood is much desired for wood working as it is realy nice, they are complitly drought tolarent,and here in calif that is the only way they can grow english walnuts by grafting to black walnut.They are the coyote of the tree world.some like them some dont.

-- kathy h (ckhart55@earthlink.net), November 17, 2001.