Subject: Re: Harvesting Black walnuts, again

From: [email-masked] (Bob Gunzenhauser)
Date: Tue, 19 Oct 1993 01:56:48 GMT

In article <[email-masked]> Jeffrey J. Nucciarone <[email-masked]> writes:
>I just finished husking several dozen black walnuts I picked up from
>one of my neighbors (she has a black walnut tree, but hates the taste of them).
>
>What is the reccommended way to dry the husked nuts?  I have them sitting
>in a pile on my screened porch (where hopefully the local rodents wont find
>them and make off with them).  Can I force dry them in the oven or should
>I find a nice sunny place inside the house?
>
>Are they ready to be used for eating and cooking as soon as they are
>dried out? (and of course, how will I know when they are dry enough?)
>

A good way to husk walnuts is to dump them in a track of your driveway and
drive over them with your car.  I am serious, we do it!  Then, pick them
up, at least the nuts that aren't cracked, clean them off a bit, and leave
them outside for a couple of weeks.  That'll dry them pretty well.

Don't eat too many walnut meats; it'll make ya sick.

--
Bob Gunzenhauser
AST / Ag Ed
Iowa State University
[email-masked]

-- 
Bob Gunzenhauser
[email-masked]

---

From: [email-masked] (Dan Simkins)
Date: 19 Oct 1993 20:19:59 GMT

In article <[email-masked]>, [email-masked] (michael.jackson) writes:
|> In article <[email-masked]> [email-masked] (Ronald D. Erickson) writes:
|> >
|> >Another way which is some work is to soak the walnuts for
|> >a minimum of 24 hours.  Where I live the it is a given
|> >the squirrels will take the walnuts if left outside.  For
|> >some strange reason, most of our walnut trees no longer
|> >bear walnuts.  I am not sure what is causing that problem.
|> >
|> >Ron
|> >AK0N
|> 
|> 
|> 
|> I have noticed a marked decrease in the production of my hickory trees over
|> the years.  I haven't been too concerned - I just take what the trees will
|> give but now that you've mentioned it...
|> 
|> Does anyone know what could be causing this and how could it be reversed to
|> see a larger yield?

I am not a nut grower, but I live in the middle of the Almond Capitol of the world,
or so it is claimed.  Anyway, check with an agriculture expert on black walnuts,
but I do know that almond trees only produce well for about 15 years, some times
up to 25 if one is lucky.  The trees are then uprooted and new trees planted.
A lot of the other kind of walnut are grown around here also, they also have a
limited useful lifespan, but I don't know for sure how long.  I seem to remember
that the walnuts produce well for about 30 years.  Judging by the apparent age
the orchards look when they are ripped out seems to jive with this number.

Dan