Chapter VIII: The Walnut (2)

JUGLANS RUPESTRIS, Engelmann. Texas Walnut. New Mexico Walnut.--Leaflets thirteen to twenty-five, smooth, bright green, small, narrow, and long-pointed; male catkins short, or about two inches long, and quite slender; fruit round or oblate; husk thin, nearly smooth; nut small, one-half to three-fourths of an inch in diameter; shell very thick, rather deeply furrowed, the narrow grooves on the greater part continuous from base to apex, the broad edges of the ridges smooth, not jagged as in the butternut and black walnut. Kernel sweet and good, but so small (Fig. 84) as not to be worth the trouble of extracting. A small and neat tree twenty to forty feet high, native of the bottom lands of the Colorado in Texas, and throughout the western part of the State, extending through southern and central New Mexico to Arizona. In New Mexico it reaches an elevation of seven or eight thousand feet, though the climate is often severe, the temperature dropping to zero and below during the winter. Seedlings raised from nuts obtained near the northern limits of this species in Texas and New Mexico would probably be hardy in most of the Northern States, but they are scarcely worth cultivating for their nuts, owing to the small size and thick shell; but as the trees are neat and graceful they are worthy of a place among other useful and ornamental kinds. An occasional bearing tree of this Texas walnut may be seen in the gardens and parks of the Eastern States, and probably in some of the Western, but I have no direct information in regard to their locations or age.

Synonyms:

_Juglans rupestris_, Torrey.
_Juglans Californica_, Watson, Bot. California.

=Oriental Walnuts.=--How few or many species of the walnut are indigenous to China, Korea, Japan and other Oriental countries it would be very difficult to determine, with our present limited knowledge of the forests of that part of the world. The few botanists who have had opportunities of studying the flora of those regions do not agree as to names or number of species of the genus. Loureiro, in his "Flora Cochinchinensis" (1788), names three species as indigenous to China, viz.: _Juglans regia_ in the northern part, but this is now considered very doubtful; _Juglans Camirium_, Rhumphius, a medium-sized, heart-shaped nut, the trees found in the forests, and also under cultivation; _Juglans Catappa_, a large forest tree in the Cochin China mountains, with oblong, edible nuts, with husk and shell of nuts of a reddish color. Many years later Siebold describes a Japan walnut under the name of _Juglans Japonica_, and still later the Russian botanist, Maxiomowicz, renames this, in honor of Siebold, _Juglans Sieboldiana_, and describes another native of Japan as _Juglans cordiformis_. But prior to any of the authors named, Thunberg had described a Japan walnut under the name of _Juglans nigra_, probably the same as Loureiro's species, with reddish husk, but as this name had already been given to an American species it had to be dropped. Maxiomowicz also describes what he supposed to be a distinct species, found in the forests of Mandshuria under the name of _J. Mandshurica_ (1872), but it is doubtful if it is anything more than one of the many wild forms of the species found widely distributed over eastern Asia. The red or black fruited walnut of Loureiro (_J. Catappa_), and Siebold's black walnut (_J. nigra_), are probably the same as the Ailantus-leaved (_J. ailantifolia_), recently described in Nicholson's "Dictionary of Gardening," London, Eng., 1884, the origin of which is said to be uncertain. It is _Juglans Mandshurica_, Maxim, in Alphonse Lavallee's "Catalogue of Arboretum Segrezianum." As described in this work, the young fruit is violet-red, and produced in long pendulous clusters, the latter being one of the marked characteristics of these Oriental walnuts. But whether we admit that there is but one or a dozen species of these Eastern walnuts, it cannot be of any special interest to the practical nut culturist, for to him their economic and commercial value is of more importance than scientific nomenclature.

Up to the present time we have only succeeded in obtaining two species of these walnuts, or perhaps only one species and one variety; but we certainly have two distinct forms, both coming from Japan, and distributed under the names given them by Maxiomowicz, viz.:

JUGLANS SIEBOLDIANA (Siebold Walnut).--Leaflets sessile, usually fifteen, five to seven inches long, oblong-pointed, thin, soft, downy, serratures very shallow, pale green above and somewhat lighter beneath; footstalks densely clothed with clammy hairs; fruit in long pendulous clusters of a half dozen to a dozen, one and a half inches or more long by a little more than one inch broad in the middle; husk thin, downy or clammy; nut somewhat compressed, the point usually bending to one side; shell smooth, with two shallow grooves from base upward on the sides opposite to the sharp, prominent ridges at the seams of the two lobes, the shell ending in a strong, sharp point (Fig. 85). The shell is very hard and thick; the kernel small, sweet, oily, resembling in taste our common butternut; tree a rapid and stocky grower, the coarse shoots and large leaves resembling those of the Ailantus tree at first, but soon spreading branches appear, forming an open, roundish head. The seedlings, as raised here, are abundantly supplied with small fibrous roots, which insures transplanting with safety. Apparently perfectly hardy in our Northern States, as I have heard no complaints of winter-killing of the young trees, although they are now widely distributed and in considerable numbers, but none, so far as I have been able to learn, have reached a bearing age here in the North.

Mr. P. C. Berckmans, of Augusta, Ga., in writing me under date of Dec. 3, 1894, says:

"Last year we fruited _Juglans Sieboldiana_ trees four years
from the seed. Fruit was produced in long clusters, and trees
exceedingly ornamental, but this year these same trees were
killed to the ground on the 26th of March, after they had set a
crop of fruit and made a young growth of more than twelve
inches. This untimely frost may not happen again in years, but
it goes to show that many varieties of trees which are
considered hardy further north, are sometimes destroyed here by
spring frosts."

As these Japanese and Chinese walnuts are natives of cold climates they may be better adapted to the Northern than Southern States, but there is no locality entirely exempt from late spring frosts, as most farmers and fruit growers learned to their cost the past season. There can be little doubt of this species of walnut being the one described by Rhumphius under the name of _J. Camirium_, and more fully later by Loureiro, as already noted; but having come to us from Japan as Siebold's walnut, this name will answer as well as any other, even if it is not the proper one.

JUGLANS CORDIFORMIS, Maxim.--In foliage and growth of tree this is almost, if not absolutely, identical with the last; the difference observed is in the nuts, which are also produced in pendulous clusters. The form of the nut is almost round (Fig. 86), rather blunt-pointed, but the shell is deeply and unevenly furrowed, and indented somewhat like our black walnut; the ridges, however, are not as sharp. The specimens I have received from various sources are not as large as the Siebold, and the shell not quite as thick, but the kernel is small. I may note here that there appears to be some confusion in regard to this variety or species, for in several nurserymen's catalogues this form of nut is figured as Siebold's, and the one that I have described under that name is called _Cordiformis_. The specimens received from California, Japan, and also from Mr. Berckmans, correspond with the names here given, but further investigations may show that they should be reversed. The one I have received as _Cordiformis_ is, doubtless, the nut described by Loureiro as _J. Catappa_, as an ovate-oblong nut, with a fibrous, leathery, reddish husk.

While I do not suppose that these Oriental walnuts will ever become of any considerable commercial value, they are worth planting for shade and ornamental trees. They are rather precocious, coming into bearing at an early age, and the nuts are not only edible, but will always be an acceptable addition to the unimportant although agreeable household supplies.

=Persian Walnuts.= _Juglans regia_, Linn. Royal Walnut, Madeira Nut, English Walnut, French Walnut, Chile Walnut, etc.--Leaflets five to nine, oval, smooth, pointed, slightly serrate; fruit round or slightly oval; husk thin, green, of a leathery texture, becoming brittle and cleaving from the nut when ripe and dry; nut roundish-oval, smallest at the top; shell smooth, with slight indentations, thin, two-valved, readily parting at the seams; kernel large, wrinkled and corrugated, the two lobes separated below with a thin, papery partition, but united at the top; sweet, oily, and generally esteemed.

This species has been in cultivation many centuries, and in different countries and climates, and under such variable conditions that many of the varieties have departed widely from the normal type. There are now an almost innumerable number of varieties, varying greatly in size and form. Some are not larger than a good-sized pea, as seen in the "Small Fruited Walnut" (Fig. 87), while others are nearly as large as a man's fist, as in the thick-shelled or "Gibbous Walnut" (Fig. 92), while in others the nut is greatly elongated, as in the "Barthere Walnut" (Fig. 88), and hundreds of other intermediate forms. There are also varieties that bloom early in spring, others late. Some are very hardy, others quite tender in cold climates. There are also dwarf and tall-growing, as well as the precocious and tardy fruiting varieties. But very few of these have ever been cultivated in our Eastern States, consequently little is known of their value here; but more may be in the near future, when our horticulturists and farmers begin to plant nut trees as freely as they have other kinds, or are awakened to the fact that such trees can be made a source of pleasure and profit.

Here in the Northern States our main dependence for hardy and productive trees of this species will be upon seedlings or cions from those acclimated specimens which have already been thoroughly tested and found to be both hardy and prolific. There are plenty of these, as I have stated elsewhere, and they are well worthy of attention and multiplication until something better is produced or discovered. In the meantime, the most promising European varieties could be imported and tested, although it is not probable that those originating in southern France and Italy would be of much value for planting in the latitude of New York city or north of it, but south of this line the chances of success would be somewhat greater; and to escape injury from late spring frosts, the more elevated regions are preferable to the lower and warmer anywhere in the Southern States. In anticipation of the question being asked, I will say that, at present, I do not know of any nurseryman in the Eastern States who propagates or imports named varieties of walnuts for sale. Of course, seedlings of these are offered, but it is well known that there is but a remote chance of these coming true from seed. Even the little dwarf French walnut _Praeparturiens_, or Early Prolific, cannot be depended upon to produce dwarf or early bearing trees beyond the first generation from the nut, and these must be the product of grafted trees, to insure this much. The following list contains the names of only a few of the most noted varieties, the greater part having originated in Europe.

AILANTUS-LEAVED WALNUT. See Oriental walnuts.

BARTHERE WALNUTS. See Fig. 88.--A very long nut, pointed at both ends. Shell thin; kernel large and of excellent flavor. Named after M. Barthere, a horticulturist of Toulouse, France, who discovered it growing among a number of other trees; consequently, its origin is a mystery. M. Barthere says that it is very productive, and even the seedlings of this variety begin to bear very early.

CHABERTE.--An old standard French variety, of an oval shape; medium size, with very full and rich flavored kernel (Fig. 89). The tree buds and blooms late, therefore especially valuable in localities where late spring frosts are likely to occur.

CHILE WALNUT.--This name is given, in a general way, to all the walnuts received in our markets from South America. The nuts are usually of good size, with a dark grayish shell; thin but firm, with plump kernels of excellent flavor. These nuts arrive in February and March. Many of the Chile walnuts have three valves (Fig. 90), instead of the normal two. Such freaks are occasionally found among the European varieties, also in the native hickories, but these tri-valved nuts appear to be very abundant among the Chile walnuts.

CLUSTER WALNUT. RACEMOSA OR SPICATA.--Described by Mr. Gillet as a variety of the Persian walnut, producing medium, thin-shelled nuts in long clusters of from eight to twenty-eight. He also says that he introduced it into this country, but from whence we are not informed. Lavellee (1877) records it as a variety of _J. regia_, under the name of _racemosa_, giving its synonym as _Juglans Californica_ of the horticulturists. I have not found it mentioned elsewhere.

CUT-LEAVED WALNUT.--A variety with deeply cut leaves; very ornamental, as seen in Fig. 91. Nuts quite small, but of good quality.

FRANQUETTE.--Another old standard French variety, with large, elongated-oval nuts with a distinct point. Shell thin; kernel large, and of rich flavor. The tree blooms late; valuable for planting in the South.

GANT OR BIJOU WALNUT.--A remarkable variety on account of its extraordinary size. The shell is thin, with rather deep furrows, those of the largest size being made into ladies' companions, where to stow away gloves or handkerchiefs, hence the name "Gant" walnut. The kernel, though, does not correspond to the size of the shell (Gillet).

GIBBOUS WALNUT (Fig. 92).--This is a very large variety, supposed to be a hybrid, raised in France many years ago. It is of little value, as the shell is very thick and kernel small. Valuable mainly for its immense size.

KAGHAZI.--This is supposed to be a variety of the Persian walnut, of fair size, with a very thin shell. The tree blooms very late in spring, and for this reason is recommended for localities where there is danger from injury by frost. The tree is said to be a very rapid grower, and much more hardy than the general run of varieties of this species. I have been unable to learn its origin, but it has been planted quite extensively in California, and some of our Eastern nurserymen are offering the seedling trees for sale, but whether they will possess the merits of the original or not must be determined by experience.

LARGE-FRUITED PRAEPARTURIENS.--A sub-variety of the Praeparturiens, originating with Mr. Felix Gillet of California.

LATE PRAEPARTURIENS.--Also originated with Mr. Gillet. Valuable because the trees bloom late in spring. Nuts described as of medium size, but with full kernels of excellent quality.

MAYETTE.--Very large (Fig. 93), with a light-colored shell of moderate thickness. Kernel plump, readily extracted whole, as shown in Fig. 94, sweet, and a rich, nutty flavor. Tree blooms late and is very productive. An old and standard French variety.

MESANGE OR PAPER-SHELL.--This nut has the thinnest shell of any variety known; it derives its name of Mesange from a little lark of that name, that goes to the kernel through the tender shell. Tree very productive, and the kernel quite rich in oil. We do not, however, recommend the growing of this variety for market, on account of the thinness of the shell, which breaks off too easily in handling the nuts, or even when they drop on the ground (Felix Gillet).

MEYLAN WALNUT.--A French variety that originated near the little village of Meylan, in the vicinity of which it is quite extensively cultivated for home use and export.

OCTOGONA.--Of uncertain origin, but very much resembles one of the Oriental species in the form and sculpture of the shell (Fig. 95). The shell is also very thick, as shown in the cross section (Fig. 96). Of no special value.

PARISIENNE WALNUT.--Although this was named for the city of Paris it did not originate there, but in the South of France. It is a large and rather broad variety, with a firm but thin shell (Fig. 97) and excellent flavored kernel. It is reported that this variety succeeds in California, also in the South wherever tried. The trees leaf out late in spring and are rarely injured by frosts, and are remarkably productive.

PRAEPARTURIENS. Precocious Dwarf Prolific.--A French variety of a dwarf habit, and the plants noted for bearing when very young. A correspondent of _The Garden_ (London, Eng.), referring to this variety some years ago, says:

"It is precocious on account of the singular and exceptional
fact that it is born almost an adult; in fact, it is nothing
uncommon to see a tree in its third year bearing excellent
fruit."

He does not say, however, whether he refers to seedlings or grafted plants, but we may presume the latter or those raised from layers, for cultivators who have experimented with seedlings have found that they possess a strong tendency to revert to the original or tree form. This may not show itself very strongly in the first generation if the nuts are obtained from grafted trees of some age, but in the second and third generation the early-fruiting and dwarf are usually entirely lost. The only certain way of securing the true variety is by grafting or layering, but it is to be feared that very few trees propagated by these modes are in cultivation, at least in the Eastern States, although nurserymen have been offering Praeparturiens walnut trees in their catalogues during the past fifty years. In one now before me, published in New York city in 1844, trees of this walnut are offered at one dollar each, or about what is charged for seedlings at the present time. As nothing is said in the catalogues about the mode of propagation, we infer that they are seedlings, as grafted trees would be worth more than one dollar. The nuts of this dwarf walnut are of medium size, thin-shelled and of excellent flavor; valuable for gardens of limited extent.

SEROTINA. Late Walnut, St. John Walnut.--A very peculiar sort, inasmuch as it is the latest of all to bud and bloom in spring, and yet it pushes forward so rapidly that the nuts are ripe with others in the fall. They are of medium size (Fig. 98), with a rather hard shell, but the kernel is plump and good flavored. The tree is very productive, and sure to escape late spring frosts.

VILMORIN.--This is claimed to be a hybrid between some variety of _J. regia_ and our native black walnut, _J. nigra_. Scarcely known outside of France.

VOUREY.--A new and splendid variety raised near Vourey, a small town in southeast France. It has much the same shape and qualities of the Parisienne walnut (Gillet).

VARIEGATED WALNUT.--A handsome variety, with young branches covered with dark-green bark spotted with gray, and often striped longitudinally with yellow. The leaves resemble those of the common walnut; the fruit is of a light yellowish-green streaked with darker green, and reminds one closely of certain varieties of pears which, in common with this variety, frequently have their young branches striped in a similar manner. Propagated by grafting or layers. (_The Garden._)

WEEPING WALNUT.--A tree with pendulous twigs and branches. Quite ornamental, but not especially valuable for its fruit. Hardy in England.

In addition to those described, there are a large number of varieties, which may be worth importing and testing in this country, by those who may feel inclined to make experiments with these nuts. Probably some of those highly extolled by earlier writers are now lost, but this cannot be determined until a careful search through the old European gardens has been made.

Among the early-fruiting or precocious varieties we find an account of one raised by Anthony Carlisle, of England, as recorded in a paper read at a meeting of the Horticultural Society of London, March 3, 1812. Mr. Carlisle planted six nuts in March, 1802, these having been received from Mr. Thomas Wedgewood of Blandford. Six years later, or in 1808, one of the seedlings bore and matured ten walnuts, and the next season (1809) upwards of fifty, and in 1810 one hundred and twelve, the tree at that age being nineteen feet seven and one-half inches high. Another variety, under the name of Highflyer walnut, is described in the Transactions of the same society, Vol. IV, 1822, p. 517. The nuts sent to the society were grown in the town of Thetford, and are described as a long oval, with a shell so very thin that the slightest pressure of the fingers crushes it. I find that this Highflyer walnut is mentioned in the recently published "Dictionary of Gardening," but whether obtainable in English nurseries or not we are left in doubt.

I refer to these English varieties mainly to show that some of the very best and thinnest-shelled walnuts have been grown in cool climates, and are not confined entirely to the warm or semi-tropical, as many persons seem to suppose and even claim to be the fact. It is principally from these English walnuts, as they are usually termed, that our hardy old-bearing trees, referred to elsewhere, have been produced, and, doubtless, many more will be, when we begin to pay some attention to this very valuable nut. It is also quite likely that when our horticulturists look about for choice acclimated varieties for propagation, they will be found right here in the grounds of next-door neighbors, and there may be no necessity of sending to Europe or elsewhere for either nuts or trees.

At present there is much confusion and uncertainty in regard to the identity and nomenclature of both species and varieties of the walnut, and it must remain so until they are collected from all countries and climes, of which they are either native or into which they have been introduced, and when so collected, and fruiting specimens produce, it will not be difficult to classify and determine their synonyms. This will be an undertaking scarcely to be expected of the individual nut culturist, but is within the legitimate line of the arboretum, and of public botanical gardens located in both cold and warm climates, thereby securing a division of labor, and at the same time avoiding the uncertainty of trying to produce practical results under uncongenial conditions and surroundings.

=Husking Walnuts.=--The husks of nearly all the varieties of the Persian and Oriental walnuts part from their shells freely when fully ripened and dried, but in a few varieties the husks are rather persistent, requiring force and friction for their removal. This may be accomplished by placing them in bags and shaking, or in barrels and rolling, until the nuts are scraped clean. But the better way, where there is any considerable quantity of nuts to be operated upon, is to take a strong barrel or cask, and so arrange it on standards that it can be rapidly revolved with a crank attached to one end. Of course, the cask must have its two heads left in place, and an opening made in the side to admit the nuts and remove them when cleaned. Almost any man handy with tools can make such a cleaner and polisher in a few hours, and if stored in a dry place it will last for several years. With butternuts and black walnuts the husks are much tougher, and they should be thrown into heaps in the open air, and turned over occasionally until the husks become softened sufficiently to permit of their removal, in case they are to be sent to market. Ordinary threshing machines may be used for cleaning the husks from black walnuts, by removing about one-half the teeth, or enough to allow the nuts to pass through without breaking their shells.

Most of the hickories drop from the husk, leaving the nut clean; but in some varieties of the pecan the inner part of the husk adheres rather tenaciously, and they sell better if cleaned; besides, some have rather rough and thick shells, and a little scraping and polishing adds much to their appearance. The revolving cask, either worked by hand or other power, is an excellent implement for preparing these nuts for market, and if the husk is very persistent, a little dry sand thrown in will aid in cleaning and polishing. Sometimes these nuts are subjected to what is called the soapstone polish, leaving the shells very smooth, with a greasy feel. The French walnuts, which are extensively imported under the general name of Grenoble walnuts, are usually bleached with sulphur before they are shipped, and while this adds nothing to the quality of the kernel, the sulphur is an excellent insecticide and fungicide, and may be of some use on that account; but otherwise it is likely to be more injurious than beneficial. As bleaching both walnuts and almonds is often insisted upon by dealers, I give the process suggested by Director Hilgard, of the California Agricultural Experiment Station, which he believes will prove more satisfactory than the one usually employed, and is as follows:

"The nuts, placed in small baskets (such as the Chinese use for
carrying), are dipped for about five minutes in a solution
containing to every fifty gallons of water six pounds of
bleaching powder and twelve pounds of sal soda. They are then
rinsed with a hose, and after draining, again dipped into
another solution containing one per cent of bisulphite of lime;
after the nuts have assumed the desired tint, they are again
rinsed with water and then dried. Instead of the second dipping,
the nuts may be sulphured (fumigated) for ten or fifteen
minutes. The cost of fifty gallons of chlorine dip will be about
forty cents; the same bulk of the bisulphite dip, probably
considerably less. The time occupied in handling one batch (two
dips) is from twelve to fifteen minutes."

=Insect Enemies.=--The walnut is attacked by the same kinds of insects that infest the hickories, with, perhaps, a few exceptions; as, for instance, the bark beetles and the nut weevils. The leaves appear to be more or less acceptable food for the caterpillars that feed on the hickories, and the same insecticides and means employed for destroying these pests on one will answer for the other.

The caterpillars of some of the smaller kinds of moths are, as a rule, far more destructive to the leaves than the larger, and their ravages often escape notice until it is too late for the use of preventives, or for their destruction with insecticides.

Ever since I became connected with the New York city press, some thirty odd years ago, scarcely a season has passed during which one or more specimens of the Regal walnut caterpillar (_Citheronia regalis_), shown in Fig. 99, have not been received from some correspondent who had found them crawling down the stem or on the ground near a walnut tree. Such a large caterpillar would naturally attract the attention of almost any person, but to the timid its appearance is exceedingly ferocious and repulsive, while to the entomologist it is a beautiful and interesting creature, and far more likely to be handled with care than injured. This caterpillar is of a green color, and transversely banded across each of the rings with pale blue. The head and legs are of an orange color, also the long spine or horns, with the points tipped with black. It is certainly very formidable in appearance, but perfectly harmless, and may be handled with impunity. The parent moth (Fig. 100) has fore wings of an olive color, ornamented with small yellow spots and veined with red lines. The hind wings are orange-red, with two large irregular yellow patches before, and a row of wedge-shaped olive colored spots between the veins behind. Although this insect appears to be widely distributed over the country, and the caterpillars feed on the walnuts and occasionally on the hickory, it has never been known to be sufficiently numerous to attract any special attention.