deadly black walnut tree of doom

[Anny]

I have a black walnut tree in my back yard, it's 1/2 over my lot 1/2 over the lady next door. The lady next door is really into gardening, and she told me the Black Walnut tree will kill almost anything you plant under it.

Is this true?

She said the Walnut tree was the reason her peach tree was not doing so well, (she moved it this year and it is doing better)

I have Hostas under the tree that have been doing just fine. But I'm afraid to put anything else under it.


p.s. this is my 3rd summer at this house. The first summer the tree produced nuts, we planted some hostas under it, and the lady next door planted a bunch of stuff near or just out of reach of the tree, and the next summer the tree produced no nuts. The lady next door thinks it's because we put the tree into shock from digging around it. And such. Could that be true?

 

[robbobbin]

Hi,
I learned in my master gardener class about Black Walnut toxcity.
Check out this link
http://www.bachmans.com/tipsheets/woodies/blackwalnuts.cfm

where they say:
Black walnuts are beautiful trees that are prized for their form and their wood. Unfortunately, they can also cause problems with other plants growing in the immediate area. The roots of black walnuts and their relatives (butternuts and hickories) all give off a substance called juglone. There are a number of plants that are very sensitive to this toxin and it can be really discouraging. But there are even more plants that don't seem to be affected. In spite of what many gardeners seem to think, when you find a black walnut growing in a yard or in the woods, it is never growing alone. Juglone is obviously not poisonous to everything.

Tomatoes are an example-they will not grow under a black walnut tree-but I've never personally tried it.

On your 2nd question-about disturbing the trees roots and therefore it's health. It is possible. Trees grow their roots in the top 18" of soil for the most part, so can easily be disturbed.
This website says roots are in the top 3ft of soil, either way they can easily be disturbed. If too many were disturbed at one time, the tree would falter.
http://www.ext.vt.edu/departments/envirohort/factsheets2/tree/aug93pr1.html

I love google!

 

[patandchickens]

Yes, it's true. It's called "allelopathy" if you want a name for it The roots emit a chemical into the soil that Discourages growth of most other plants (even some grasses, to some extent). Some other plants do this too but walnuts are sort of the poster child

If you google you can find lists of plants that are less affected by juglone and thus are better candidates for growing under/near walnut trees.

Yes, digging amongst a tree's roots sets it back a bit and can cause a year or more of poor (or no) flowering/fruiting. It can also cause dieback of portions of the tree. I'd be somewhat cautious with the spade if you want to keep the tree. They *are* nice trees, other than the juglone issue.

Good luck,

Pat

 

[ams3651]

Ive planted many types of flowers under our huge black walnut and never had a problem. As far as Im concerned, the yummy walnuts are worth it.

 

[Anny]

I'm yet to actually harvest any of the nuts. The first year we didn't know what it was, by the time we learned most the nuts were on the ground and rotting. How do you go about peeling off the hard green outer part of the nut?

When does it start to product nuts. I haven't seen any yet this year.


Thanks for all the info every buddy

 

[ShellieESterling]

I'm yet to actually harvest any of the nuts. The first year we didn't know what it was, by the time we learned most the nuts were on the ground and rotting. How do you go about peeling off the hard green outer part of the nut?

When does it start to product nuts. I haven't seen any yet this year.


Thanks for all the info every buddy

I'm waiting for an answer on this too. The new house we're moving to has a massive one out back. I'd like to preserve as many as I can and as soon as I can... so I'll check back here for an answer. Thanks in advance everyone

 

[ivan3]

O.K., this is a question I know something about (though I'd rather not). We have 42 mature Black Walnuts on this property. Cass loves them, I'd rather they were all furniture already (cutting down all snags and replacing with Pecans).

Ours will begin dropping nuts in August. `We' collect them up in milk crates and let the `rind' decompose (get rather soft and nasty - like a green peach gone bad). We then spread the rotten things out on the driveway (unused extra parking area) in two lines. Then she drives her jeep over them. Wait two-three days, depending on the weather, let `em dry out a bit, and the `husks' can be removed easily.

Now, Cass once saw an ad in the Rural Missourian for a `Magic' Walnut cracker. She sent off $30.00 and received a short section of PVC tubing with a steel billet that fit inside (not so hot a tool).

I use a nine pound hammer, quite a bit, for other tasks, and I can just line up the nuts, drop the head and let gravity do the work of breaking open the nuts.

Remember to alway wear gloves - stain is permanent. And freeze the nuts you are not going to use right away, they get stronger, if not rancid, otherwise.

Black Walnut and several species of Oak will definitely impact growth of certain flowers (daylilies are immune here). Hickories, not so much (wouldn't have any plants at all if that was the case).

Ed: hanging the still damp unshelled nuts in net bagging will dry them out faster

 

[Tutter]

We have a black walnut at the edge of the property, but let the neighbor have the nuts. When my mother was a child, however, her grandfather had a vise for black walnuts clamped onto the porch!

Just east of me there are groves and groves of walnuts, but they are English walnuts. Before we moved here, they were my least favorite nut, but fresh they are a different animal.

California Walnuts and Walnut History.

There's a photo on that site showing a walnut separating from it's husk. The kids used to pick them up once it got cold, and there was little trouble, if any, with husks.

Everyone I've spoken to says that black walnuts are worth the trouble! Enjoy!

 

[ivan3]

Cass gives away most of the nuts as soon as they're out of their shells. Lots of folks love the flavor but I'll stick to the Commercial English Walnuts (can't find the tannin content of Juglans Regia - mild taste, but I do know that the Nigra runs at about 147ppm and tastes bitter to me).

We only drive over the `harvest' because we get so many from cleared area around house (most stay in woods under twisted bowers of multifloral rose and gooseberry) that it is the fastest - pretty much just pick up nuts out of the mucked husks, wire brush `em, and into mesh bags for a week. One thing that I've noticed is that when I'm cracking open the Black Walnuts the chickens don't show much interest, when I'm cracking hickory nuts they don't leave the area (grab up everything that falls).

If the price of the shells and nuts were to go up I'd probably appreciate them a bit more.

 

[ams3651]

I'm yet to actually harvest any of the nuts. The first year we didn't know what it was, by the time we learned most the nuts were on the ground and rotting. How do you go about peeling off the hard green outer part of the nut?

When does it start to product nuts. I haven't seen any yet this year.


Thanks for all the info every buddy

It should produce every other year. We have 2 that alternate. As for peeling them, my dad has a dirt driveway, we would rake and shovel them up and lay them in a layer in the driveway and drive over them a few times. Some will crack but it works well for the most part. The sticky black stuff inside will stain everything from your clothes to your hands so be careful. Just pick them out and lay them out to dry, crack with a hammer and enjoy.