For many people across the Midwest and East-Central United States, the Black Walnut harvest every October is a tradition passed down from generation to generation.
The harvest continues to be a longstanding tradition for many, as well as an opportunity to earn extra income or raise money for a worthy organization. Whatever the reason, the only way we all get to enjoy Black Walnuts at our dinner tables is because of the hard working hands of the harvesters.
New to the harvest? Here are a few tips to get you started! Local legend claims that Alexander the Great spread walnuts from Arslanbob more than 2, years ago Credit: Mayank Soni. The soldiers explained that they had foraged in the forest and found an abundance of walnuts, apples and other foods. Having fed on this bounty, they quickly recovered and went on to join their commander.
Alexander was so delighted that on this way back to Europe, he and his men took walnut seeds from Arslanbob and planted them back in Greece. Families begin moving towards the groves in mid-September with their cattle, gathering walnuts from local trees along the way Credit: Mayank Soni. While early October is the official start of the harvest, families begin moving towards the mountain groves in mid-September with their cattle, gathering walnuts from local trees along the way and filling their bags with up to 20kg of the nuts.
For the next two months, the families will camp on and work the land. Many of the trees in the grove are several hundred years old, though they can live for as long as 1, and reach a diameter of 2m. The tree climbers of Arslanbob Credit: Mayank Soni. People have been harvesting walnuts in Arslanbob the same way for centuries, and it can be quite dangerous. During the harvest, young children help their families gather walnuts Credit: Mayank Soni.
While young children typically remain with their grandparents in the village during the week to attend school, their parents often descend from the forest each weekend to bring them back to the campsite on horseback. The children of Arslanbob make a huge contribution to the harvest. Some folks swear the best way to remove a large amount of hulls is to jack up your car and spin the wheels over trays of walnuts. Ohio Nut Growers Association maintains a list of Hammons Hulling locations that will de-hull black walnuts for you.
Processors buy walnuts by the in-shell weight. If you encounter worms when you are removing hulls, rest assured they do not affect the nut. Dispose of worms with the hulls and proceed to next step.
Shelled nuts keep up to two years in the freezer. Salt-brining and dehydrating preserves shelled nuts. Store preserved nuts in air-tight containers at room temperature. Up-to-date agriculture news in your inbox! I remember shelling black walnuts by hand as a newbie…not a good thing without rubber gloves! Did your hands get black? Marybeth, You beat me to commenting… Yes, Yes, Yes wear rubber gloves! Otherwise the Walnuts will stain your hands a lovely and dark Walnut color.
It wears off… difficult to wash off, if not impossible. Likewise, wear old clothes for the same reason. They are lots of work, but the rewards are great. Me and a friend of mine at age 13 gathered up a bunch of walnuts back in We decided we would just ripe the soft hulls off ourselves, no gloves. We tried everything to wash off our hands, everything we were aware of anyways.
That was a long week of school, lol. The squirrels love them too. Last winter I had a few pecks, and fed them to the little critters during the coldest months. It kept them off the bird feeders and suet. They even took the hulls off of the walnuts! Do walnuts still in the shell spoil? Most of the hulls are black now, as I have not had time to pick them up yet.
Is the meat safe inside the shell? Dry the nut in warm oven or dehydrator. Crack nuts in a vice and taste test for rancidity. Forget the vise! I can generate one Quarter to a pound of nut meat in one hour. Clean too, it usually leaves all four lobes intact and keeps the shell in large pieces, less chips to clean off the meat. Do you soak the walnuts as he suggests? Do you have any problems with mold? There is a demonstration video there and on YouTube as well. Walnuts are not ready to harvest until they fall to the ground, typically September through October.
If you harvest before that the nut will not be fully developed. What you can do with the extra, if you have space to store them, is feed them to the squirrels in the winter. The hulls have enough tannin to tan animal hides. Just the hulls and water and soak hide for a few days. This year I thought I would save a step and allow them to dry in the green hull.
They have all dried nicely by leaving them on racks in the sunshine. Thanks, Chris. Did anyone answer your question in regards to the walnuts I have the same question and am curious of the answer. Someone answered and said they are fine even if already black. I cracked one open and meat tasted fine. Lots of good information here, thanks! I have one black walnut tree in the yard with many nuts! I am trying to harvest. Put dropped nuts on a screen, so the outer shell softens,so I can get the nut out.
Problem is, they are also molding. Is that going to be a problem? Glad to here about the worms being ok, was worried about that. Advise appreciated!!! I thought I would mention how I deal with the hulls. I simply set one at a time on my sidewalk and with firm pressure I push down on them with one of my feet and roll it back and forth a few times. Simple, quick and easy! Using a rubber mallet I hammer the hull through the nearest hole size wise. Works every time. Wear rubber gloves.
Can I harvest them before they fall and ripen them somehow? Last year I waited patiently only to come out mid September and find they were all taken! My experience is that nuts are immature small, bitter, undeveloped before they fall. Think of the nut as a three part process.
The whole thing is green when it drops from the trees, turns black , and the nut is inside. It is messy, and gloves are advised unless you want walnut stained hands for weeks and weeks. Hammers are the best. The black shreds that you are seeing, Catherine, are just part of the outer shell. The nut is inside. I tap gently at first with the sledge hammer and sometimes it smashes the whole nut but the hammer wasnt doing it for me.
I go back and forth. My problem is the very tiny shards that are created. Use a penknife. Gently work the tip of the blade into the end of the shell where the stalk would have been then twist the blade and it will easily split in two most of the time. No need for hammers, vices nor nut crackers! This is what I do with a paring knife lol Slice and twist Then pop the nut into a bowl and I scrub em with a small kitchen brush Most of the time I get them when the hulls are green and the inside flesh is still yellow so no staining of the hands Easy peasy.
The nits on one of my trees are turning black before they fall off. Is this okay or should I avoid those walnuts. I have a very prolific black walnut tree at my new house yr old house. I have collected bushels and bushels of nuts.
I have been busy with other things and they have blackened and the hull has fallen off a lot of them. I also have a squirrel in my attic storing nuts walnut hulls deter spiders. I opened the attic door and blasted the Overture with cannons into the attic and the squirrels left and I boarded up where they were getting in.
In the meantime they appear to have built a nest in the maple trees on the property. I found it easier to hull the blackened walnuts and retrieve the nuts in their shells. Put the blackened walnuts into burlap bags if you have them and run over them with the car.
Pick the nuts in the shell out and put them through a quick rinse with a power hose. Let them dry off in the sun then put them in bags for storage. A couple of questions, once the outer hull is removed, I sprayed off the not and let them dry. Does it matter, or once dry do you extract the nut right away? Interesting comment on the tannin process. Definitely also would be a good natural dye! Anything else that the hull debris is useful for?
I believe I read that the hard shell works for tumbling rocks! Native Americans and pioneers used walnut stain for dyes. Well, the comment about the indians using the walnut stain for dye makes perfect sense. I did not know about that little problem and my hands look like I have been working on car engines for the past year. I have a neighbor that has been washing walnuts in his driveway. He has a portable concrete mixer and he turns it onfills it with walnuts stick a hose in and lets all of the gunk flow down the hill of our street in the gutter.
This is staining the street about 2 feet out from the curb, flowing down about one half of a city block right past my driveway! Every time I pull in or out of the driveway it gets on my tires and stains the street more and also the driveway. And did I mention I am in the process of selling my home. May as well forget that idea for a good 2 or 3 years until the stain wears off!!!
Wonder if the City would think that is destruction of property? And what is he possibly doing with all of those walnuts??? When life gives you lemons make lemonade try staining the concrete the same color assuming it is concrete! Most people overthink this. Pick them up from the ground soon after they fall.
Power wash the hulls off. They come out very clean. Spread them out for a day or two to dry. Put them in a bucket or whatever to store. I have left them in a bucket in my garage non freezing for 3 years, and have only lost a few.
I use a simple nut vise to crack them. I will send pictures if you email me. Bolt cutters are easier to use. If you use a hammer to crack them, you will eventually smash a finger! Lynn, would you kindly email me a photo of your vise at jdmsw hotmail. Tips For maximum freshness, always store walnuts in an air-tight container. English walnuts will keep in the shell for several months and black walnuts will keep for about a year if stored properly.
Store them in a cool, dry spot to keep them from going rancid prematurely. Shelled nuts can be kept in the refrigerator for up to six months, and in the freezer for well over a year. If you invest in a good nutcracker, it'll save you a ton of work. A good one is the Texan York Nut Sheller. It works very well and is sturdy enough to withstand a lot of use.
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