Walnut is a southern tree, but it has long been successfully grown in our country. An adult tree is quite unpretentious in care, but you need to tinker with young nuts. But the result of your labor will be enjoyed not only by children, but also by grandchildren.
After planting a walnut, everyone begins to impatiently wait for the first harvest of nuts to ripen. It depends on the variety: in some, fruits appear after 4-5 years, in others - only after 10-12. On average, you will have to wait 6-8 years for the first harvest. However, after this, the walnut will bear fruit for many decades.
Walnut can be grown from seedlings and from seeds (i.e. from the nuts themselves). The first option is simpler, but will cost you more, and the second is a little more difficult, but almost free.
How to prepare walnut seeds for planting
First, we will tell you in detail about the seed version of walnut propagation. There are several methods that will help the walnut seeds to sprout together and quickly.
Method 1
If you have no time or no desire to do extra work, entrust this matter to nature. In the fall, lay the ripe walnuts on the ground and cover with a thick layer of fallen leaves. In the spring, you will only have to get the overwintered nuts from under the thick layer of foliage and plant them in the ground. Nuts that have undergone such - natural - stratification sprout very well. This method is the simplest, but quite effective.
Method 2
The second method will require some effort from you. Put a layer of damp (not wet!) sand on the bottom of any container. On top of it - a layer of nuts. Try to put them so that the nuts do not touch each other. "Cover" them with another layer of sand on top. Place the container in a cool place. The optimum temperature for walnut stratification is 0-5°C.
Check the sand every two weeks for 3-3.5 months. If it starts to dry out, spray it with a spray bottle and place it in a cool place again.
When to start such stratification? Prepared nuts can be planted in open ground in late April - early May, when positive temperatures are established. Therefore, nuts should be sent for stratification, which lasts about 100 days, in the second half of January.
Method 3
The options described above are not always suitable for thin-shelled nuts, since they can simply rot after several months in a humid environment. For this reason, it is better to use the third method for nuts with thin shells.
Place the nuts in any container and fill it with water at a temperature of 45-50°C. Cover with a lid or a plastic bag and place in a warm place, for example, near a radiator.
After 2 days, drain the water, leaving a layer of about 0.5 cm at the bottom. Cover the nuts again and leave in a warm place for 3 weeks. During this period, open the container every day or every other day and air the nuts. If the water has evaporated and the nut shells have become dry, add water. If, on the contrary, there is too much water, drain the excess: the container should always have a high level of humidity, but the nuts should not float in water, so as not to start molding.
In about 3 weeks (this period depends on the room temperature), the shell will begin to crack and sprouts will appear. Plant the hatched nuts in a permanent place or in a nursery. Preparation for spring sowing of walnuts in this way should begin in early April.
If the nuts have hatched, and it is still cold outside, bury the nuts in wet sand and put them in a cool place (with a temperature of about 5 ° C). After the warm weather comes, plant them in open ground.
Planting walnuts
When is the best time to plant walnuts using seed propagation? This can be done in spring and autumn. Each option has its pros and cons.
Autumn planting of walnuts:
- Pros - you can plant immediately after harvesting fresh nuts, without any additional preparation;
- Cons - during a long winter, the contents of the nut can simply rot, so you will never see the sprout.
Spring planting of walnuts:
- Pros - the chance of seed germination is much higher;
- Cons - additional stratification of many months is required.
Thus, autumn planting is usually used in southern regions. In more northern latitudes, where winter is very cold or frosts are often replaced by thaws, spring planting of walnuts is preferable.
As for planting walnut seedlings, they are planted both in spring and autumn. When planting in spring, be sure to monitor the soil moisture, because without watering the seedling will die. When planting in autumn, be sure to insulate the seedling before the onset of frost. If your region has very frosty winters, then spring planting is preferable.
How to plant a walnut in open ground
Walnuts can grow and bear fruit for 100 years. For this reason, the place for planting them must be chosen very carefully.
Walnuts love a well-lit, sunny place with a low level of groundwater. You should not plant them in a lowland where water often stagnates.
Walnuts do not have any requirements for the soil: they grow well on any type of soil, and bear fruit well even on poor soils. Moreover, some gardeners claim that after applying fertilizers, the walnut does not overwinter well, so they recommend not feeding it at all.
An adult tree grows large, so plant nuts at a distance of at least 8-10 m from each other. Keep this in mind if there are already trees growing nearby. You should not place walnuts near a house or other buildings.
How to plant walnut seeds
Prepare walnut seeds using one of the methods described above. Dig a small hole for planting. Its depth is three times the width of a walnut, i.e. approximately 7-9 cm. Water the soil. When the water is absorbed, lower the nut into the hole, sprinkle it with soil and compact it well. Water again.
When the seedlings appear, monitor the humidity level and do not allow weeds to grow. If necessary, cover the sprout from the scorching sun. In the first year, a walnut seedling can grow 25-30 cm high. For the winter, mulch the soil around it with a thick layer of peat or dry leaves.
How to plant a walnut seedling
When choosing a walnut seedling, pay attention to the roots, trunk and leaves of the tree:
- Roots: the root system of the seedling should be well developed, without damage and signs of rot. If you try to scrape off the top layer and healthy, fresh wood appears underneath, the root system is fine.
- Trunk: a smooth, even trunk without cracks, bumps or damage indicates a good quality seedling. But a dry surface with various defects should alert you - it is better to refuse such a purchase.
- Leaves: choose completely leafless seedlings, because they take root easier.
The next stage of planting is preparing a hole for the walnut. Its size depends on the seedling, but the average size is 80x80 cm (the depth of the hole should be 20-30 cm more than the longest vertical root). Dig a hole, putting the top - the most fertile - layer aside. Then mix it with humus (1 bucket), wood ash (2 cups) and superphosphate (50 g).
Fill the hole with the prepared fertile mixture, leaving a free space in the middle for the seedling. Lower the tree into the hole, carefully straighten the roots and fill the lower shoots with soil. Then gradually fill all the roots to the very top. The root collar of the planted seedling should be at the soil level. After planting, mulch the soil with straw and water generously.
Walnut care
Care is mainly necessary only for young trees that have not reached 5 years of age.
Pruning
Formative pruning is necessary for a walnut seedling that has reached 2-3 years of age. You can also focus on the height of the tree: it needs to be pruned for the first time when the nut grows higher than 1.5 m.
During the first pruning, select the strongest shoot - this will be the trunk of your tree. Shorten it to a height of 70-120 cm - depending on how long you want the trunk to be. Remove all other shoots completely. After drying, cover the cuts with garden paint for whitewashing trees or lime to protect the tree from moisture, pathogens or insects.
The next formative pruning of the walnut is carried out in a year. From the shoots that have grown during this time, select 3-4 of the strongest, growing in different directions. Remove all other branches. The purpose of this pruning is to give the walnut the correct shape, to form a skeleton.
It has been noted that the more horizontally the branches of the walnut are located, the more fruits will be on them. If the remaining shoots are located at an acute angle (growing almost vertically upwards), try to bend them slightly in the summer, placing them at an angle of 45-60 °. This can be done with weights (carefully place the weight on the branch) or guy ropes (fasten one end of the rope to the branch and the other to the soil). Over time, the branches will be fixed in this position.
After another year, the remaining shoots should be shortened, leaving about 70 cm. At the same time, during pruning, remove all branches growing inward or vertically. When shaping the walnut, try to give it a rounded shape.
If the formative pruning of the walnut was carried out correctly at a young age, then in the future it will only need sanitary pruning. Inspect the tree annually and remove:
- dry, broken and damaged branches;
- frozen shoots;
- branches that grow inward to the crown or interfere with others;
- part of the crown of trees planted too close to each other.
Watering
Walnut is a moisture-loving crop. Adult trees have roots that go deep into the ground, so they can get moisture for themselves, but young seedlings need additional watering.
In the spring and summer, when the nut tree especially needs moisture, water it twice a month. Pour 3-4 buckets under each tree. When watering, distribute the water along the outer edge of the trunk circle. Moisture getting on the trunk can provoke the development of fungal diseases.
Trees that have reached 4-5 m in height are watered less often - once a month. To reduce the number of waterings, mulch the trunk circle.
Walnut has long ceased to be only a southern tree. The main thing is to choose the right variety and follow the rules of cultivation.