How to grow walnuts

Thanks to its valuable wood and tasty, healthy fruits, the walnut was introduced into culture several thousand years ago. Most modern botanists are inclined to believe that it began to be bred in Ancient Persia, and then the seedlings came to Greece. From there the culture spread first to the Balkans, then to Western Europe. Now not only southerners, but also residents of regions with a temperate climate are trying to plant walnuts on their plots.

Is it possible to grow a walnut from a nut?

For many centuries, walnuts were propagated only by seeds.Varieties are created exclusively by selection and acclimatization, so cultivated trees are not very different from their wild relatives in biological terms. Cross-pollination with other species is possible, but has not yet produced noteworthy results.

So trees grown from nuts may not be identical to the original variety. But they usually produce large, tasty fruits and grow well in the region where the mother tree comes from.

When can you plant walnuts?

The time for planting walnuts depends on the region. In temperate and cold climates, the best time is spring, before the buds swell. If you plant a tree there in the fall, it is almost guaranteed to freeze in winter. In spring, the soil warms up more and more every day and contains a lot of moisture - in such conditions, the seedling takes root well, quickly restores damaged roots and begins to grow.

It is impossible to be late with spring planting, especially in areas where there are problems with watering or are rarely visited by the owners. Moisture from the soil evaporates quickly; leaves that have already begun to grow rapidly lose it. The roots cannot provide water to the above-ground part, since they themselves do not receive enough of it to take root in a new place. And the temperature is rising every day. As a result, the walnut often dies in the first winter.

In the southern regions, on the contrary, the appropriate time for planting the crop is autumn, during or after leaf fall. It is in cool weather and sufficient soil moisture that walnut roots take root best. Although there are drawbacks here too - in a dry autumn and snowless winter, the seedling may take root poorly, freeze, and even die. Strong dry winds are especially dangerous for young plants.

Where to plant walnuts on the plot

Proper planting of walnuts is the key to high yields and longevity of the tree. The culture takes up a lot of space, and in adulthood it does not like transplants. If we add here the allelopathic nature of the walnut, it becomes clear that the wrong location of the tree can cause a lot of problems.

The culture occupies an intermediate position between shade-tolerant and sun-loving plants. At a young age, the seedling is quite shade-tolerant. When it grows and begins to bear fruit, the yield and further development of the tree depend on the illumination of the crown.

The walnut root system is adapted to many types of soil:

• on chernozems, an adult tree generally grows without fertilizing;
• walnut develops well on alkaline, lime-rich soils, loose fertile loams and sandy loams;
• it will grow on calcareous-crushed, stony-sandy, rocky soils if they are well moistened and permeable;
• on dense, poor soils the tree forms a small crown, grows poorly and produces little fruit;
• Podzolic, acidic, soaking, cold soils inhibit development and often cause freezing and death of the seedling.

Only highly saline, swampy and dense wet clay soils are completely unsuitable for growing walnuts.

The tree will reach its maximum height and will produce the greatest yields if the groundwater level is no closer than 2.3 m from the surface. But the walnut is a unique, flexible crop. With higher aquifers, it simply will not grow to 25 m.

Since the walnut is often the tallest tree in the garden, it should be planted on the northern or western edge so as not to shade other crops. The place should be sunny and sheltered from the wind. Once the tree grows, it will be impossible to protect it, but this will no longer be critical.

How to germinate walnuts at home

In the south, walnuts germinate by falling to the ground. They sprout in a compost heap or sprinkled with a small layer of soil. Fruits not harvested in the fall and knocked to the ground by birds in winter easily turn into young trees. They need to be replanted, or uprooted and thrown away as soon as possible.

But, of course, it is best to grow walnuts from fruits taken from a healthy tree that produces a bountiful harvest. If you place them in loose soil in the fall, shoots will appear in May.

When planting in spring, stratification is needed. The fruits are soaked in warm water, which is changed every 12 hours, for 2-3 days. Then they are placed in a box with holes for moisture drainage, filled with clean, damp sand. Maintain at a temperature of 5-7 ° C for about 90 days. The substrate is constantly checked and moistened as necessary, and stirred every 10 days to saturate it with oxygen.

But fruits with thin shells that are easy to crush with your fingers will rot with such stratification. They are kept in clean, damp sand for 30 to 45 days at room temperature.

If the time has come for planting, but the seedlings have not hatched, the fruits are transferred to a room with a temperature of 25-30 ° C. There they will quickly germinate.

By May, loose soil is prepared in a place well protected from the wind by adding leaf humus and sand.Then dig a groove 7-10 cm deep and place the nuts in it on edge.

If stratification was carried out correctly, seedlings should appear in 10 days.

How to plant a walnut correctly

Growing and caring for walnuts begins with planting. If you choose the right place and time, the culture takes root well. A tree grows in one place for decades, replanting an adult tree is very difficult, and sometimes impossible, and removing it from the site requires a lot of time and effort.

How to properly plant a walnut seedling

To plant walnuts in the spring, the hole is prepared at the end of the previous season, in the fall - 2-3 months in advance. The top fertile layer of soil is mixed with humus. On chernozems, a bucket is added; for poor soils, the amount of rotted manure is increased 2-3 times and starting fertilizers are added. Leaf humus can be added to dense soils. Add from 500 g to 3 kg of lime to acidic soils (depending on pH).

The depth and diameter of the planting hole depend on soil fertility. On poor soils they should not be less than 100 cm, on chernozems - 60 cm wide, 80 cm deep. The hole is filled with planting mixture and allowed to settle.

On the eve of planting, part of the soil is taken out of the hole and filled with water. All damaged roots of the seedling are cut out to healthy tissue, the central one is shortened, leaving 60-70 cm. Planting is done by two people in the following sequence:

1. A strong peg is driven into the center of the hole.
2. A seedling is placed next to it so that the root collar rises 6-8 cm above the edge of the hole.
3. The tree is tied to a peg.
4. One person holds the seedling, the second begins to fill the root, constantly compacting the fertile soil around it.
5. When planting is completed, check the position of the root collar.
6. Along the diameter of the planting hole, sides are formed from the remaining soil.
7. Each seedling is watered abundantly, using 2-3 buckets of water.
8. The tree trunk circle is mulched with humus.

How to plant a walnut from a fruit

Next spring, the sprouted walnut is dug up, the root is shortened, leaving no more than 60-70 cm, and moved to a permanent place or to a school. Preferably growing followed by transplantation.

The walnut root grows faster than the above-ground part. If you prune it several times, the quality of the wood will become worse, but the yield will increase significantly. In southern dacha plots, where nuts are grown for personal consumption and some are still left on the tree, this is of little importance. But on industrial plantations and in cold or temperate climates, where the trees do not grow so large, and the yield is much less, significantly.

For better fruiting, walnuts grown from seeds are replanted several times, shortening the root. In farm gardens, seedlings are not transported from place to place, but the roots are cut directly in the ground with a special tool.

The technology for planting walnuts grown independently from seeds is no different from those brought from a nursery.

Walnut planting scheme

There is no agreement on planting schemes for walnuts on industrial plantations. Some farmers claim that a distance between trees of 10x10 m is quite sufficient. Others are firmly convinced that the plantation will be able to bear fruit for no longer than 20 years and plant nuts according to a 20x20 m pattern.

Perhaps both are right:

• on chernozems in warm climates, trees grow taller, the planting pattern should be sparse;
• In the middle zone, compacted planting is possible on poor soils.

Of course, varieties also matter, among them there are low-growing ones. Although the crown is still spreading, they take up less space than tall ones.

At dachas and personal plots there can be no question of any kind of planting scheme. One or two walnuts grow in each yard. There is simply no room for more trees, especially considering that the culture does not like neighbors. Or rather, the nut doesn’t care whether anything grows next to it. It's the neighbors who don't like his proximity.

The tree is usually located on the periphery of the site; it is better to plant it on the north or west side so that the shadow from the giant does not fall on other crops. But you can place it in the center of a large yard, paved or tiled. It will provide shade, and you can put a bench or table nearby for family celebrations.

Such a tree is usually called a family tree. They choose a beautiful, large, long-lived crop that can preserve the memory of generations of people gathering under its shade. Walnut is perfect for this role.But you will have to carefully care for the tree so that the crown is beautiful and dry branches, diseased leaves or pests do not fall on your head.

Peculiarities of growing walnut trees in different regions

In Russia, walnuts bear fruit well in warm climates on black soil. With proper care, they can be grown in the middle zone, but other regions cannot boast only of the harvest and preservation of trees.

How to grow walnuts in the Moscow region

Growing walnuts in the Moscow region is quite possible, and if certain conditions are met, you can often get a pretty good harvest. The main thing is to find the “right” seedlings or fruits. They must be adapted to local conditions.

It’s better not to buy walnut seedlings for growing in the middle zone - you may stumble upon southern trees. You need to take them from a nursery located nearby or to the north. Growing a crop from a nut purchased at the market is generally a hopeless matter. Neighbors or acquaintances living nearby should share the planting material, only then is there a guarantee that the seedlings will not freeze.

The culture does not like the soil in the Moscow region; the planting hole needs to be dug large and the soil deoxidized with lime. For the future, you can add small crushed stone to the bottom of the hole. But you will still need to water the tree with lime milk once a year.

Further care consists of rare watering in hot weather and mandatory feeding. Moreover, if the walnut grows well, you don’t have to add nitrogen in the spring, limiting yourself to late-autumn mulching of the tree trunk circle with humus.But at the end of summer, phosphorus and potassium must be given - without this, the tree is unlikely to survive the winter.

Trees need to be planted freely - in the Moscow region, good illumination of the crown is especially important. If your neighbors do not have nuts, it is better to plant two at once - this will increase the likelihood of fruit appearing.

Growing walnuts in the Leningrad region

On the Internet you can find articles that describe how well walnuts brought from Moldova have taken root in the Leningrad region. Don't believe it! No, theoretically it is possible. But only if you find a fruiting nut near St. Petersburg, take the seeds to Moldova, germinate there, and return the seedling to the Leningrad region. It just turns out to be a painfully complex intrigue.

In fact, in the North-West it is very difficult to grow fruit-bearing walnuts, but it is possible. Those trees that are not completely frozen out most often grow squat and practically do not bear fruit. But there are a few walnuts that have reached a decent size and are bearing fruit. Candidate of Agricultural Sciences Starostin V.A. recommends that they all be registered and used for further breeding.

This makes sense. Only gardeners who are lucky enough to get “local” nuts can be more or less confident of success. The rest can start experimenting - a young tree does not take up much space.

How to grow a walnut tree in Siberia

So far, growing walnuts in Siberia most often ends in failure.And it's not just the cold winters. Long-term acclimatization and selection allow the trees to overwinter at -40° C. Return frosts are terrible for walnuts, which in some years reduce the yield or destroy specimens located on open hills, even in Central Ukraine.

But selection does not stand still; scientists claim that the crop will soon grow in Siberia. The following varieties are considered the most promising for further selection:

• Voronezh;
• Sturdy;
• Kamensky;
• Shevgenya.

Growing walnuts in the Urals

When growing walnuts in the Urals, gardeners face not only the same problems as residents of other cold regions. More than the winter cold, trees are hampered by the changing climate. In the Urals, frosts occur even at the beginning of summer, which does not contribute to the promotion of culture in the region. Therefore, here selection is aimed at creating varieties that are distinguished by delayed vegetation.

Walnut care

In the south, close attention is paid only to young trees. In other regions, the crop needs to be looked after constantly.

Watering and fertilizing

Walnut is a crop that requires sufficient, but not excessive moisture. It needs the greatest amount of moisture in spring and the first half of summer, when green mass is growing and fruits are forming. In the second half of summer and autumn, excessive watering or frequent rains can damage the tree. But recharging the moisture before retiring is a mandatory procedure, otherwise it will freeze or not survive the winter at all.

In short, you should pay attention to the following points:

1. In the south, adult walnuts growing on black soils do not need to be fed. Once every 4 years, the tree trunk circle is mulched with humus.
2. In other regions, the tree is fertilized with nitrogen in early spring, and with phosphorus and potassium in the second half of summer. Before winter, humus is added to the tree trunk circle.

Trimming and shaping

Often the walnut crown is not formed at all; at best, one trunk is removed if a fork has formed on the central conductor. But to improve fruiting, especially on varieties with densely growing branches, pruning is necessary.

When forming the crown, it is recommended to set the height of the trunk at 80-90 cm. This will make it easier to harvest and care for the tree. For all varieties it is better to leave one central conductor.

The crown should maintain its natural shape, the branches should be thinned out to improve the lighting of the tree. The further north the site is, the greater the distance left between the skeletal shoots. For example, in the southernmost regions, the uterine branches can be 25-30 cm apart from each other, closer to the middle zone - 40 cm.

If the walnut crown is sparse and well lit, pruning involves preventing the formation of forks located at an acute angle. Every year, remove all dried and frozen ends of the shoots in winter or spring.

Protection from diseases and pests

Nuts growing in well-lit and ventilated areas that are properly cared for rarely get sick or are affected by pests. This is largely due to the fact that the phytoncides secreted by the crop have a detrimental effect on pathological microorganisms, and the specific smell repels insects.

The crop is affected by brown spot, which should be combated by spraying with copper-containing preparations.Before the leaves bloom and after they fall off, fungicides are used in strong concentrations, for example, 2-3% Bordeaux mixture. During the growing season, the solution is made at 1%. Usually 2-3 treatments are enough.

Sooty fungus can settle on walnuts. True, it causes little inconvenience to the culture itself, but it affects plants growing nearby quite severely.

Among the pests it is necessary to highlight:

• aphids;
• moth;
• ticks;
• nut borer;
• urban barbel;
• nut moth.

It is better to combat them using biological methods, for example, spraying them with a solution of green soap or tobacco infusion. Only if these measures are unsuccessful, insecticides are used.

Preparing for winter

Only young nuts can be covered for the winter. Very quickly the trees become so large that they cannot be placed in a special tube or wrapped in agrofibre. All that remains is to carry out measures that increase resistance to frost:

• form trees with one conductor (trunk);
• reduce watering in the second half of summer;
• mulch the tree trunk circle with humus;
• feed at the end of summer or beginning of autumn with phosphorus-potassium fertilizers;
• whiten the trunk and skeletal branches for the winter.

How long does it take for a walnut to bear fruit after planting?

Walnuts grown from seeds come into fruiting later. They are divided into three groups:

• precocious – yielding crops 7-8 years after germination;
• medium-sized, entering fruiting after 9-13 years;
• late-fertile, the harvest from which is harvested in 14-17 years.

Much earlier, the harvest is harvested from grafted walnuts - from 1-4 years of age.

The maximum fruiting of the crop occurs in 50-100 years, when on average 100 kg of nuts are collected from each well-developed tree.

What to plant under a walnut

The correct answer is nothing. Sometimes something takes root under a walnut, for example, periwinkle or shade-loving, unpretentious hosts: plantain and lanceolate. But this is rather an exception.

Walnut leaves contain juglone, which is toxic to many plants. When it rains, it falls on the ground and poisons it, making it unsuitable for growing other crops. Apple and pear trees, tomatoes and other vegetables especially do not like the neighborhood of walnuts.

But this does not mean that there should be a dead zone around the tree. It doesn’t cost anything to plant directly under a nut tree, although you can experiment with shade-loving, not particularly expensive crops. In the same place where drops falling from the leaves after rain do not fall, you can plant berry bushes or plums, aromatic and medicinal herbs.

Reviews about growing walnuts in the Moscow region

Conclusion

Walnuts can be planted in any region, but stable yields are obtained only in the south. In the central zone, the crop bears fruit once every few years and requires care. Some trees can grow in colder climates, but this is rather an exception to the rule, although breeders promise to create varieties resistant to spring frosts in the near future.

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