Tree Talk: Black Walnut

Today we're talkin' walnut! Black Walnut that is, Juglans nigra. Black walnut is an abundant and widespread canopy tree across the eastern United States, where it is an important member of our floodplain forests.
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Recorded on 10/15/23 in Lancaster County Pennsylvania, by Allyson "Catkin" Davis.

[@jeffrey-bc1ig]

Please do not stop making these videos!

[@KarlBunker]

Hey, nice to see new a video from you. I found your channel a while ago and quickly worked my way through your whole back catalog. I always learn a lot from your Tree Talks.

[@seanwebster3816]

Same here!

[@benfarhatameur2284]

Well for your information walnuts are a top nut for brain health. They are chock full of omega-3 fatty acids, polyphenols, and other nutrients with antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties. Protecting the brain from oxidative stress and inflammation helps improve the health of brain cells and prevent cognitive decline.

[@sailor382]

Greetings from Mississippi. Love your videos. Going to plant an acre or two of black walnut trees on my property that is low and tends to stay moist. Hopefully the grandkids will appreciate in 30 to 50 years.

[@davids7799]

Glad to see another video. Always enjoy your work.

[@jacob_gable_]

The black walnut tree in my grandparents' yard has a wide u split into two big parts, each bigger than the larger walnut tree you showed. It is a super old tree, and it dwarfs the 2 story house near it. I got about a dozen walnuts this past fall, and planted them in hopes that they will germinate this spring.

[@nathanhaskell1743]

I found some walnuts today! Your timing is impeccable!

[@janolson7118]

Love the lemony smell of the nut hulls. The nuts and hulls make beautiful natural fiber dyes. You can get a bright green from hulls, a brown from nuts and a wonderful deep brown black if you let the nuts stew for a while.

[@jamiemurray4268]

Love this, thank you. Don't forget the freshly fallen fruits smell limey-lemony. I discovered that this fall as I accidentally stumbled across them walking my dogs in a cemetery. I was surprised when I learned it was it was indeed black walnut. I brought them home and excited to plant a few

[@MRoark-wl5fr]

Yay! A new video! Would like to see more when you have time 😊

[@fiercecassowaryv3366]

Magnificient tree, same as our east-asiatic species J.manjurica and J.ailanthifolia and west-asiatic J.regia. I like nuts since childhood:)

[@JonDunnmusician]

Ultra professional- helpful as a wood worker working with walnut.Thank you so much for sharing your knowledge!

[@sagebrushrepair]

Just found this channel and am binging everything. Your presentation style is great and the camera person is on top of it too!

[@RBnPA]

Very good video! Any idea on growth of these pertaining to how high they can grow, how old they can get, and how much they grow per year? I’m sure there are variables but any information is appreciated.

[@WhistleLad]

Thank you!

[@laneherrlinger7478]

Love it man thanks!!!!

[@dianaberan-bj9fp]

Hello from Southeast MN. Loved the tree talk! Ps. I wonder about the root structure of this and any cousin ( perhaps a white walnut). Squirrels planted one 4 feet from my homes foundation! It is 3 years old and taller than my ranch style home roof peak. I am AMAZED at home fast it grew with the beautiful compound leaf arrays. Do I need to cut it out...to prevent damage.

[@forestsforthebay4784]

Unfortunately I do think that walnut is too close to the house! They will get very large. They are wonderful trees though; if you have space I recommend either trying to dig it up and moving it to somewhere more suitable in the yard, or letting a squirrel inevitably plant another one elsewhere. White walnut doesn't get as large (that will actually be the next Tree Talk, so stay tuned) but that's still probably too close to the house for comfort. Hope that helps!

[@RBnPA]

Excellent video How about tulip poplar?

[@pyraxusthelutarian7276]

So glad to see yet another wonderful video. I have learned a lot from your previous ones and I thank you very kindly for that. I live in Fayette county PA so some very relevant content for me, though in my area I have found a few somewhat less common species in my local woods such as sourwood, tamarack and a lone, huge empress tree which I thought was an out of place catalpa at first as it was in a quite crowded old growth area and no leaves even close to the ground but I could see the different shaped seed pods. I have 2 black walnut trees on my property and every few years they produce heavily (this was one of those years). I had a question I hope you (or a knowledgeable subscriber) can answer for me as I am having trouble finding the answer on the web. Are there any other pine trees besides the short leaf pine that produces both 2 and 3 needles per fascicle on the same branch? There are at least 3 different kinds of pines growing on an old recovering coal stripped area (very rocky/gravelly) that I am having trouble with. I'm pretty sure one is Virginia pine (lots of them), one is definitely white pine (only a few) and the most prolific is the 2 AND 3 needle one with needles only 2-3 inches long. Anyway, thanks again for the tree-rific content! 🙂

[@forestsforthebay4784]

Thank you! Pitch pine (Pinus rigida) usually has 3 needles per fascicle, but sometimes has 2. And I'd expect pitch pine in southwestern PA on former strip mines. Their needles are a little longer than your 2-3" specimen though. Table-mountain pine (Pinus pungens) can have either 2 or 3 needles per bundle and has short needles. It has very distinctive cones that will hard to mistake for something else. I'd recommend looking at the bark to eliminate shortleaf; it has pretty distinctive yellow hue and resin glands that are visible when you peel off the outer layer or two. I've never seen shortleaf in PA but you never know what could have been planted nearby! Hope that helps!

[@pyraxusthelutarian7276]

@@forestsforthebay4784 Thanks so much for the info. I will definitely check those species with my field guides. I just discovered this area even though it is just across the main road from me and it has lots of plant species I haven't yet found anywhere else in my area such as devil's walking stick, Wapato (arrowleaf), the aforementioned sourwood trees and tons of lowbush blueberries. Oh, and even a single mountain laurel bush 🙂

[@ShinerBockGirlz]

You didn't mention Juglone....

[@knitterscheidt]

boy try to find black walnuts at the grocery store and the price is very high. my grandma baked black walnut cookies at Christmas, delicious and crispy. i have her recipe and if i can find them in the store i bake them. she was born in 1902 and raised in se Pennsylvania. she knew of every black walnut tree in the neighborhood. just saying. oh and love the hair!

[@user-ds2jg6kd2e]

years ago i read that black walnut trees give off a chemical called siloam which keeps other trees and plants from developing too close. we had a huge black walnut tree next to our vegetable garden when i was a kid and nothing we planted near the tree would grow.

[@seanwebster3816]

I’ve heard of this too but I believe the chemical is called “juglone.”

[@Jim-the-Engineer]

Sean is correct - the chemical is called juglone. The effects of juglone are still debated in the scientific literature - even though the negative effects under walnuts have been discussed since at least the first century. Pliny the Elder wrote: "The shadow of walnut trees is poison to all plants within its compass."

[@carolmoon2104]

Yes, we've lost some other trees & shrubs in our yard (including two apple trees) as our black walnuts have grown larger, I was hoping he'd mention this. Very informative video otherwise though!

[@ohcrapwhatsnext]

I really would like to see the inside of that tree. I have a bark of a tree and the wood from inside and i would like to know what it is. Could you help me identify it if i shoot you a picture?

[@lamarwilliams185]

Thanks for this video. I was wondering how trees are identified? Some species look identical if you just look at one feature. I was wondering. How do people identify a tree after it has been processed. I bbq. I purchased cherry wood chips. How do I make sure it’s cherry and not willow chips?

[@RBnPA]

Sorry, Found tulip poplar video.

[@rossbunnell7992]

Thanks! Is is true that Black Walnuts will release chemical compounds into the soil around them that prevent other trees and plants from growing underneath them? If so, why do they do this? To prevent competition from other deep-rooted species?

[@tonymassara4018]

Great tree but not great to plants around it, which die from the toxicity black walnut creates from most of its parts.

[@executivesteps]

Good information. Seriously work on eliminating your “uhms”. It really kills your presentation.