A big walnut tree - clear up advice
 

We've just moved into a house with a decent size garden. There is an
extremely well established walnut tree (which has a conservation order
on it), which - as you can imagine - drops a considerable amount of
leaves, twigs, and walnuts.

I bought a 2500w flymo electric vac/blower since I had just so many
leaves to deal with, and this handles the leaves ok but the sheer
quantity of walnuts in the grass just depresses me. Raking is not
particularly effective.

Would a more "industrial" vac be able to suck up the walnuts?

Any other ideas?

best wishes
James

"James Berry" wrote
We've just moved into a house with a decent size garden. There is an
extremely well established walnut tree (which has a conservation order
on it), which - as you can imagine - drops a considerable amount of
leaves, twigs, and walnuts.

I bought a 2500w flymo electric vac/blower since I had just so many
leaves to deal with, and this handles the leaves ok but the sheer
quantity of walnuts in the grass just depresses me. Raking is not
particularly effective.

Would a more "industrial" vac be able to suck up the walnuts?

Any other ideas?

No squirrels around your way then? Two large walnut trees close by here but
the squirrels get the lot, or they would if my neighbour didn't trap them.

--
Regards
Bob
In Runnymede, 17 miles West of London

"James Berry" wrote in message
oups.com...

We've just moved into a house with a decent size garden. There is an
extremely well established walnut tree (which has a conservation order
on it), which - as you can imagine - drops a considerable amount of
leaves, twigs, and walnuts.

I bought a 2500w flymo electric vac/blower since I had just so many
leaves to deal with, and this handles the leaves ok but the sheer
quantity of walnuts in the grass just depresses me. Raking is not
particularly effective.

Would a more "industrial" vac be able to suck up the walnuts?

Any other ideas?

best wishes
James


Take my word for it, trees are more trouble than they're worth.
If they're not getting diseases, they're dropping leaves everywhere
come autumn, to say nothing if nuts or whatever. No wonder you're
getting depressed. Who wouldn't be ?

Don't you go worrying about any conservation order. There are plenty
of arboraculturalists around who will remove the tree for you, and
the stump as well, no questions asked. If you've got nosey neighbours
then mention a few weeks beforehand, that you think the tree has canker.
And you've been told it might be a danger, and might have to come down.
Sound really upset when you say it, and they're unlikely to take
matters any further.

If you want my advice you'll concrete over the whole garden and lay
astroturf instead. If you lay a proper grass lawn then you're never
finished feeding it, weeding it, or mowing it, and whatever plants you
try to grow you're simply creating trouble for yourself. The plants
either won't grow properly, or are always getting diseases, or getting
covered in insects. Which then attract birds, who given half the chance
will cover the garden in bird droppings. If you're getting depressed now,
faced with just a few nuts to clear up, just imagine how you're going to
feel when you have to tackle that little lot.

So rather than waste any more money on expensive vaccuum cleaners, why
not bite the bullet right now. Cut down the tree and settle on concrete
and astroturf instead, and all your troubles will be at an end.



Sydney Rumpole

Squirrels, sure. We have a few that come by, but this is a huge tree.
I would say that there are 50-100 walnuts currently on the lawn, with
hundreds more that haven't fallen yet!

And mostly the squirrels seem to bury the walnuts again somewhere else
in the garden.

Jabes wrote:
Squirrels, sure. We have a few that come by, but this is a huge
tree.
I would say that there are 50-100 walnuts currently on the lawn,
with
hundreds more that haven't fallen yet!

And mostly the squirrels seem to bury the walnuts again somewhere
else
in the garden.

Pickled walnuts are _the_ best relish to cold poultry. Discerning
friends and relations will be delighted to receive some for
Christmas, if yours aren't already too ripe. (I'm assuming they
aren't ripe enough to provide proper nuts, or you wouldn't be
worrying about them. If they are, though, there's plenty of advice on
the rather tedious process on the Web.)

--
Mike.

"James Berry" wrote in message
oups.com...
We've just moved into a house with a decent size garden. There is an
extremely well established walnut tree (which has a conservation order
on it), which - as you can imagine - drops a considerable amount of
leaves, twigs, and walnuts.

I bought a 2500w flymo electric vac/blower since I had just so many
leaves to deal with, and this handles the leaves ok but the sheer
quantity of walnuts in the grass just depresses me. Raking is not
particularly effective.

Would a more "industrial" vac be able to suck up the walnuts?

If you are within 10 miles of Windsor, I'll gladly come and pick them
up, this year the damned squirrels have decimated my tree, where I
usually get about 6 of those plastic trays used by fruit and veg
sellers filled with striped walnuts, this year I have barely one
tray all with the covering still on, and that is in spite of my
attempts to trap the bloody things.

Alan


Any other ideas?

best wishes
James

The message .com
from "James Berry" contains these words:

Would a more "industrial" vac be able to suck up the walnuts?

Any other ideas?

Leaf rake.

Sell or give away the walnuts.

Or I'd come and pick them up for you, but if you were too far away for
me to walk/cycle, and you're desperate to get rid of them, you could
bring them round here...

--
Rusty

The message
from "Mike Lyle" contains these words:

Pickled walnuts are _the_ best relish to cold poultry. Discerning
friends and relations will be delighted to receive some for
Christmas, if yours aren't already too ripe. (I'm assuming they
aren't ripe enough to provide proper nuts, or you wouldn't be
worrying about them. If they are, though, there's plenty of advice on
the rather tedious process on the Web.)

You have to pick them *months* ago for pickling.

However, 'wet' walnuts are so much tastier than the kiln-dried ones you
buy in the shops.

--
Rusty

The message
from "Alan Holmes" contains these words:

If you are within 10 miles of Windsor, I'll gladly come and pick them
up, this year the damned squirrels have decimated my tree, where I
usually get about 6 of those plastic trays used by fruit and veg
sellers filled with striped walnuts, this year I have barely one
tray all with the covering still on, and that is in spite of my
attempts to trap the bloody things.

You're not using a proper walnut trap, then.

--
Rusty

"Jaques d'Alltrades" wrote in message
k...
The message
from "Alan Holmes" contains these words:

If you are within 10 miles of Windsor, I'll gladly come and pick them
up, this year the damned squirrels have decimated my tree, where I
usually get about 6 of those plastic trays used by fruit and veg
sellers filled with striped walnuts, this year I have barely one
tray all with the covering still on, and that is in spite of my
attempts to trap the bloody things.

You're not using a proper walnut trap, then.

Damn, I never thought of that, I must get one for next year!

Alan


--
Rusty

why rake them up? Have you seen the price of English walnuts in the
shops?Pick them and sell them if you don't like walnuts.
My dozy townie neighours let the apples drop off their tree and rot in
the lawn, then buy apples from tesco. I mean why bother with nasty
organic russets for free, when you can have nice shiny french golden
delicious at over a =A3 a kilo?
The world has gone mad.

The message .com
from "pammyT" contains these words:

why rake them up? Have you seen the price of English walnuts in the
shops?Pick them and sell them if you don't like walnuts.
My dozy townie neighours let the apples drop off their tree and rot in
the lawn, then buy apples from tesco. I mean why bother with nasty
organic russets for free, when you can have nice shiny french golden
delicious at over a £ a kilo?
The world has gone mad.

Don't be silly! You can't eat apples which have been hanging on a tree
for half the year! They might have been walked on by a caterpillar or
worse, and in any case, they have all lost that tasty sticky label and
their plastic wrapping.

--
Rusty

"pammyT" wrote in message
oups.com...
why rake them up? Have you seen the price of English walnuts in the
shops?Pick them and sell them if you don't like walnuts.

Or give them to your local greengrocer, I'm sure he would love them, he
might even offer to come and pick them up himself.

Alan

We've got proper nuts coming out of our ears. Most of the nuts are
still in their green pods, but these are opening up, dropping on the
ground.

I grabbed about 50 off the tree the other day for a walnut-loving
friend (hope they're ok), but this is an extremely well established
tree.

This is a good thing, of course, because it's beautiful. But it's just
the mess that it's making!

The rake I've got is probably best described as a leaf rake. It works
really effectively on the million leaves that the tree is shedding
right now, but the walnuts just slip right through it.

Perhaps it wouldn't be so bad if I liked walnuts, but they don't do a
think for me! :-)