How to Harvest Black Walnuts
Collect the nuts that have fallen., Get the green hull off of the walnut., Dispose of the hull., Lay out your brown hard shell nut to dry., To crack open your nuts you can use a hammer or a vise., Pull the nut meat out., Dispose of the nutshell in...
Step-by-Step Guide
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Step 1: Collect the nuts that have fallen.
Some walnut trees are very tall so picking them off the branches is out of the question.
Plus, picking them can sometimes damage the tree limbs, so just wait for them to fall and gather them up.
Be sure to wear heavy duty rubber gloves as the cheap disposables will not work. -
Step 2: Get the green hull off of the walnut.
As black walnuts ripen, the husk changes from solid green to yellowish green.
Walnut juice leaves a dark stain, so wear gloves or use tongs when you handle un-husked walnuts.
Press on the skin of the walnut with your thumb; ripe nuts will show an indentation.
Removal can be done by just taking a small jack knife and cutting around the hull and peeling off, or you can lay them on the driveway and run over them with your car! It often is just as easy to roll them under your foot until the hull is cracked open, pick them up and peel the hull off.
The video below shows the hull being taken off in an antique corn huller.
Any of these methods will work.
For an easy way to separate the hulls, put them in water.
The hulls float, the nuts don't.
See the video for a demonstration. , Black walnuts contain juglone, a compound that inhibits growth in many species of plants.
Juglone degrades with exposure to heat, sunlight and air, and should break down completely after several weeks or months in a compost pile.
Finished compost from a well-structured and maintained pile will be safe to use to grow even sensitive crops, such as nightshades (tomatoes, potatoes, peppers, eggplant, etc). , You can lay them out on a layer of newspapers to dry for a few days or longer.
Some people leave them for much longer.
The dryer the nut, the easier the nut meat is to remove.
You also can store them in the shell in a dry, squirrel proof area.
Do not lay them out where the squirrels can find them.
They will take every one they can. , The vise does not do as much damage to the walnut meat inside.
This part can be a bit tricky and can take some time.
If you don't have time on your hands you will not like doing the harvesting of these nuts.
You cannot be in a hurry in this step or you will damage the nut meat. , If you can and if it is stubborn, you can use a commercial nut pick (usually can buy these and the nutcracker around holiday season in grocery stores or any time of the year in cooking supply stores).
If you are just using the nuts for a black walnut cake, it does not matter if they are broken up badly.
This is perfect for the cake. , Remember these things are really hard and can be sharp so don't leave them where someone can step on them.
The discarded shells make a fine polishing medium that can be used in a rotary tumbler, and are often used to polish brass objects.
If you have a large enough walnut harvest, you might consider using the shells as a timely source of winter heat in your wood stove. , Some species of walnut trees have different flavors.
Some are stronger than others. ,, Your hands will be stained for days! ,, It won't take much effort.
Then peel it right off the nut. ,,, -
Step 3: Dispose of the hull.
-
Step 4: Lay out your brown hard shell nut to dry.
-
Step 5: To crack open your nuts you can use a hammer or a vise.
-
Step 6: Pull the nut meat out.
-
Step 7: Dispose of the nutshell in whatever manner you prefer.
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Step 8: Eat the nut fresh or save for later.
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Step 9: Drill a 1 1/4"
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Step 10: 1 1/2"
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Step 11: and a 2" hole in a two foot long 2x4.
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Step 12: Support it with two 2x4" blocks and take a small ball peen hammer and pound the green nut through the appropriate hole
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Step 13: popping the green shells off.
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Step 14: Blanch the black walnuts in boiling water for 30 seconds to 1 minute.
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Step 15: With heavy rubber gloves
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Step 16: squeeze the green skin and crack it open.
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Step 17: Soak the skinned nuts in cold water to remove the heat from the shell.
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Step 18: Dry the nuts.
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Step 19: Then follow the shelling instructions above.
Detailed Guide
Some walnut trees are very tall so picking them off the branches is out of the question.
Plus, picking them can sometimes damage the tree limbs, so just wait for them to fall and gather them up.
Be sure to wear heavy duty rubber gloves as the cheap disposables will not work.
As black walnuts ripen, the husk changes from solid green to yellowish green.
Walnut juice leaves a dark stain, so wear gloves or use tongs when you handle un-husked walnuts.
Press on the skin of the walnut with your thumb; ripe nuts will show an indentation.
Removal can be done by just taking a small jack knife and cutting around the hull and peeling off, or you can lay them on the driveway and run over them with your car! It often is just as easy to roll them under your foot until the hull is cracked open, pick them up and peel the hull off.
The video below shows the hull being taken off in an antique corn huller.
Any of these methods will work.
For an easy way to separate the hulls, put them in water.
The hulls float, the nuts don't.
See the video for a demonstration. , Black walnuts contain juglone, a compound that inhibits growth in many species of plants.
Juglone degrades with exposure to heat, sunlight and air, and should break down completely after several weeks or months in a compost pile.
Finished compost from a well-structured and maintained pile will be safe to use to grow even sensitive crops, such as nightshades (tomatoes, potatoes, peppers, eggplant, etc). , You can lay them out on a layer of newspapers to dry for a few days or longer.
Some people leave them for much longer.
The dryer the nut, the easier the nut meat is to remove.
You also can store them in the shell in a dry, squirrel proof area.
Do not lay them out where the squirrels can find them.
They will take every one they can. , The vise does not do as much damage to the walnut meat inside.
This part can be a bit tricky and can take some time.
If you don't have time on your hands you will not like doing the harvesting of these nuts.
You cannot be in a hurry in this step or you will damage the nut meat. , If you can and if it is stubborn, you can use a commercial nut pick (usually can buy these and the nutcracker around holiday season in grocery stores or any time of the year in cooking supply stores).
If you are just using the nuts for a black walnut cake, it does not matter if they are broken up badly.
This is perfect for the cake. , Remember these things are really hard and can be sharp so don't leave them where someone can step on them.
The discarded shells make a fine polishing medium that can be used in a rotary tumbler, and are often used to polish brass objects.
If you have a large enough walnut harvest, you might consider using the shells as a timely source of winter heat in your wood stove. , Some species of walnut trees have different flavors.
Some are stronger than others. ,, Your hands will be stained for days! ,, It won't take much effort.
Then peel it right off the nut. ,,,
About the Author
Sandra Bell
Professional writer focused on creating easy-to-follow home improvement tutorials.
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