Welcome to DU! The truly grassroots left-of-center political community where regular people, not algorithms, drive the discussions and set the standards. Join the community: Create a free account Support DU (and get rid of ads!): Become a Star Member Latest Breaking News Editorials & Other Articles General Discussion The DU Lounge All Forums Issue Forums Culture Forums Alliance Forums Region Forums Support Forums Help & Search
 

noamnety

(20,234 posts)
Thu Aug 8, 2013, 12:01 PM Aug 2013

black walnut help please

We have a couple walnut trees that came with our house. I assumed they were black walnuts. They were too young to have nuts when we moved in, and this is my first year trying to harvest them.

I tried storing a few (a dozen or so) inside in a basket to ripen a bit because they felt pretty hard. Those promptly turned black and molded. So I thought I'd try gathering fresh ones and smashing them open. That went okay, but I got to see the inside of a couple that I smashed too hard, and inside the hard shell, the nut is squishy soft even though it doesn't seem to have signs of rot. Also, the shell inside the husk is surprisingly white - like eggshell white. So are they not black walnuts?

Am I doing this wrong? Should I keep smashing husks off, and store the nuts-in-the-shell for a month or so to harden?

6 replies = new reply since forum marked as read
Highlight: NoneDon't highlight anything 5 newestHighlight 5 most recent replies
black walnut help please (Original Post) noamnety Aug 2013 OP
I would lay them flat and separated from each other. TalkingDog Aug 2013 #1
I don't remember how we got the nuts out Curmudgeoness Aug 2013 #2
Thanks. noamnety Aug 2013 #3
I found an article Curmudgeoness Aug 2013 #4
Maybe they aren't ripe. noamnety Aug 2013 #5
Ha! Curmudgeoness Aug 2013 #6

TalkingDog

(9,001 posts)
1. I would lay them flat and separated from each other.
Thu Aug 8, 2013, 03:51 PM
Aug 2013

They are going to turn black and gooey, but there should still be the hard nut in the middle.

Without pictures... including the leaves, it is hard to say. Look these over.





And this might explain some things:

http://www.nutgrowers.org/QA/hulling.htm


Google is your friend. This took me about 5 minutes.

Curmudgeoness

(18,219 posts)
2. I don't remember how we got the nuts out
Thu Aug 8, 2013, 05:32 PM
Aug 2013

when I was a child, but I do remember it was so messy. Black walnuts will turn you and everything else black when they are cleaned, so wear gloves. Also, you clean them when they are black or getting black, so they were not rotten. That is how they got the name, I suppose. I do know that at some point, my parents and grandparents decided that they were not worth all the trouble to clean (and they were super frugal depression era folks). Maybe there is a better way than they used.

I don't know why your nuts are soft, but they should not be. Maybe they were not ready to harvest???

 

noamnety

(20,234 posts)
3. Thanks.
Thu Aug 8, 2013, 05:41 PM
Aug 2013

That's where I was hoping for someone with some experience, because some websites say to let them sit in the husks til the husks get soft, others say to cut them out right away.

I have read not to pull them off the tree because you can damage the tree, so these were all ones picked from the ground, they just started dropping last week.

I wore gloves that were knit, but with the palms and fingers dipped in the thick rubbery goop. Somehow that shit got inside and indeed, several of my fingers are very dark brown now. Very elegant looking.

Curmudgeoness

(18,219 posts)
4. I found an article
Thu Aug 8, 2013, 05:56 PM
Aug 2013

that just about explains my experiences. Short and sweet and easy to understand.

Walnuts ripen in the fall. As the fruit matures, the hull softens and changes from a solid green to a yellowish color. The fruit are mature and ready for harvest as soon as the hull can be dented with your thumb. The best quality nuts are obtained by picking or shaking the mature nuts from the tree. Most individuals, however, gather the mature nuts as they drop to the ground. Dropping of mature nuts usually occurs in mid to late September. Before you spend a lot of time gathering nuts, it's a good idea to crack a few to make sure the kernels are full. Nuts occasionally fail to fill or have small, shrunken kernels. Nut crops vary from year to year. A tree that produced bushels last year may have many or few nuts this year.

The nuts should be hulled immediately after they have been harvested. If the hulls are allowed to remain on for any length of time, the juice in the hull will discolor the nut meats and make them strong tasting. The stain also discolors skin, clothing, concrete, and anything else that it touches. There are various ways and devices to hull walnuts -- a cement mixer, corn sheller, automobile wheel, and squirrel cage are possibilities. Hulls can also be removed by stomping the nuts under foot or pounding with a hammer. After hulling, thoroughly wash the nuts to remove hull debris and juices. Small quantities can be washed in a large bucket or tub. At this time, the good nuts can be sorted from the bad ones. Unfilled nuts float while filled nuts sink. (Rubber gloves should be worn when hulling and cleaning to prevent staining of the hands.)


http://www.ipm.iastate.edu/ipm/hortnews/1994/9-16-1994/bnut.html

It also had some things I didn't know, like that you can sort them by putting them in water. I remember that my folks always used a hammer.

Since your hands are stained so badly, I think you have your answer about whether you have black walnuts. Use plastic gloves, and I bet you still have a mess and stained hands. But since the article says that they usually ripen in September, I wonder if the ones falling from yours are just not ripe yet.
 

noamnety

(20,234 posts)
5. Maybe they aren't ripe.
Thu Aug 8, 2013, 06:20 PM
Aug 2013

There's definitely a discrepancy in the instructions that might be explained by early windfalls not being usable. I can't both hull them immediately, and wait for them to turn yellow and be dentable with my thumb.

I can't believe I have to start the school year with my hands stained. Kids are gonna think I just don't shower!

Curmudgeoness

(18,219 posts)
6. Ha!
Thu Aug 8, 2013, 06:32 PM
Aug 2013

Maybe you can teach the kids to clean black walnuts, then they will know why your hands are "dirty". And as a benefit, you will have cleaned walnuts.

Latest Discussions»Culture Forums»Gardening»black walnut help please