Nut trees - tips on growing for May GYO issue

[Sian Bunney]

Good afternoon all,

This is my first thread on the Vegging Out forum as the new Editorial Assistant for Grow Your Own!

For our Allotment Inspiration pages in our May issue, we would like to create a small feature on nut trees. It would be great if forum members could share their tips on how to grow nut trees, and share which varieties you prefer. If you have any tips that relate to the springtime/May in particular that would be brilliant!

Best wishes,

Sian

[planetologist]

The first walnuts came after 6 years off a Broadview tree grown from seed, and in year 8 made about 100 walnuts.
ART, the agroforestry research trust, have grafted chestnut tree varieties that start producing relatively soon. I got my first chestnut (yes, singular) after 3 years off a Marigoule tree.
After 3 years I'm still waiting for the first hazel.
Since my whole garden has rabbit fencing I figured individual trees didn't need additional protection, but I assume a mouse chewed through the small buartnut seedling and killed it.
Springtime would be the time to order trees for planting in winter.

[Kier]

I planted the same tree in france and got 2 walnuts in the first year, do you have a pollinator ? or is there other walnut trees in your area, is it grafted

[Scarlet]

I've got a walnut Kier. I have read, though can't find it that they take 8years to fruit which ties in a little with planetologists post. Mine is over 50 years old, no other walnut trees in my area. Usually laden with nuts though squirrels often eat the lot before we can harvest them.

[planetologist]

All the flowers produce seeds, so pollination is fine. My walnut trees are daughters of the neighbours' tree, planted by the squirrels. When you got walnuts in the first year, this must have been a year after buying an existing tree, not the first year from sowing. Maybe it was even a grafted tree?

[Kier]

sorry yes it was a grafted tree, I forgot about the squirrels the don't seem to have them in france not like here

[Kier]

has anyone been able to stop the squirrels ?? I want to grow a walnut here but unless I can do something about them there is not much hope of a good crop , has anyone tried keeping a tree small so it could be netted?

[planetologist]

Not small enough to net the whole tree, but I did experiment with netting clusters of three walnuts:
Of course, as the tree starts to produce more nuts this becomes a lot of work, and I've stopped doing it. Instead I find that if I harvest the nuts as soon as the fleshy fruits split and before the nuts fall out (https://www.google.co.uk/search?q=wa...6xKqzW6ZY3M%3A), that losses are acceptable.

[Sian Bunney]

Thank you for your replies! It would be great to feature a couple more tips on nut trees in the May issue, so feel free to share any more pearls of wisdom.

[veggiechicken]

Hi Sian. I don't have any tips on growing nut trees, sorry.

I have several native hazel bushes in the hedgerow around the garden. Every year, I watch the hazel nuts developing but the squirrels always pick them before me. The bushes are too big to net so I've taken the view that they're welcome to the hazelnuts as long as they leave the strawberries alone.
I'd love to grow walnuts but it would be a losing battle with the squirrels.

[Greenleaves]

^^^ our resident nut