On the West Coast where irrigation is necessary, it is important to keep water from standing around the tree trunks. Build a shallow, permanent earthen basin under the trees with a slight mound close to the trunks to keep the bases of the trunks dry.
The butternut, or white walnut, is the hardiest of nut trees and grows well in Zones 4-8, becoming 30 to 50 feet tall with an equal spread. Although it closely resembles the black walnut, the butternut is lower and more spreading in its form. The name butternut is applied to this species because of the nuts' 1 1/2- to 2-inch oval, oily, sweet-tasting kernels that lie within the hard, deeply ridged shell.
Plant at least two different varieties since pollination of one variety by the pollen of another is usually necessary if the trees are to bear fruit. Since the pollen is carried by the wind, trees should be planted within 50 feet of one another. The roots of walnut trees secrete a substance known as juglone that poisons certain other plants, especially tomatoes, rhododendrons and azaleas. Do not plant vegetable or flower gardens closer than 80 feet to the trees.
Black walnuts and English walnuts do well in almost any soil, adapting to a wide range of pH, from 6.0 to 8.0, but butternuts are more sensitive to alkalinity and do best in soil with a pH of 6.0 to 7.0. Black walnuts should be planted as soon as the ground can be worked in spring, and butternuts can be planted in early spring or fall.
One way to loosen the husks of butternuts and black walnuts sounds like a strange and extreme method but it works: put the nuts on the driveway and drive your car back and forth over them. (This may, however, stain a light-colored driveway.)
Early the second spring scatter 1 pound of 10-10-10 fertilizer beneath the branches of all types of walnuts. Each year increase the amount of fertilizer by 1 pound; large trees should receive 5 to 6 pounds of 10-10-10 fertilizer per inch of diameter annually.
The butternut, or white walnut, is the hardiest of nut trees and grows well in Zones 4-8, becoming 30 to 50 feet tall with an equal spread. Although it closely resembles the black walnut, the butternut is lower and more spreading in its form. The name butternut is applied to this species because of the nuts' 1 1/2- to 2-inch oval, oily, sweet-tasting kernels that lie within the hard, deeply ridged shell.
Plant at least two different varieties since pollination of one variety by the pollen of another is usually necessary if the trees are to bear fruit. Since the pollen is carried by the wind, trees should be planted within 50 feet of one another. The roots of walnut trees secrete a substance known as juglone that poisons certain other plants, especially tomatoes, rhododendrons and azaleas. Do not plant vegetable or flower gardens closer than 80 feet to the trees.
Black walnuts and English walnuts do well in almost any soil, adapting to a wide range of pH, from 6.0 to 8.0, but butternuts are more sensitive to alkalinity and do best in soil with a pH of 6.0 to 7.0. Black walnuts should be planted as soon as the ground can be worked in spring, and butternuts can be planted in early spring or fall.
One way to loosen the husks of butternuts and black walnuts sounds like a strange and extreme method but it works: put the nuts on the driveway and drive your car back and forth over them. (This may, however, stain a light-colored driveway.)
Early the second spring scatter 1 pound of 10-10-10 fertilizer beneath the branches of all types of walnuts. Each year increase the amount of fertilizer by 1 pound; large trees should receive 5 to 6 pounds of 10-10-10 fertilizer per inch of diameter annually.
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With proper pruning, feeding and spraying, most fruit trees will bear abundantly in your garden.
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