I have just been given a young walnut tree that has been dug up, around 3"
high, with bare roots that are now sitting in a bucket with some soil and
water. It's very healthy and has lots of leaves. I supose it's a couple of
years old at the most. I think it's the large-nut californian variety,
rather than the European type.

I suppose the best thing to do is to give it a planting prune to cut water
loss while the roots recover? I realise it's probably not the best time to
plant, but it's either give it a try or let the poor thing die().

Has anyone got any tips for me as I know nothing about them? What sort of
soil do they prefer? sun/temperature/wind preferences? There are a few
growing well in the neighbourhood so I assume that climate and soil are
roughly suitable.

Does anyone know how old they have to be before they start producing nuts?

Tim.

In article oprqo9gfg2wxhha1@localhost, Tim writes:
| I have just been given a young walnut tree that has been dug up, around 3"
| high, with bare roots that are now sitting in a bucket with some soil and
| water. It's very healthy and has lots of leaves. I supose it's a couple of
| years old at the most. I think it's the large-nut californian variety,
| rather than the European type.

No, 3" is this year's germination.

| I suppose the best thing to do is to give it a planting prune to cut water
| loss while the roots recover? I realise it's probably not the best time to
| plant, but it's either give it a try or let the poor thing die().

No, don't do that, but remove excess leaves if necessary.

| Has anyone got any tips for me as I know nothing about them? What sort of
| soil do they prefer? sun/temperature/wind preferences? There are a few
| growing well in the neighbourhood so I assume that climate and soil are
| roughly suitable.

Good, deepish soil, preferably reasonably drained. Full sun (in the
UK) and not Western Isles type wind.

| Does anyone know how old they have to be before they start producing nuts?

c. 20 years.


Regards,
Nick Maclaren.

On 13 Jun 2003 10:36:37 GMT, Nick Maclaren wrote:


In article oprqo9gfg2wxhha1@localhost, Tim
writes:
| I have just been given a young walnut tree that has been dug up,
around 3" | high, with bare roots that are now sitting in a bucket with
some soil and | water. It's very healthy and has lots of leaves. I
supose it's a couple of | years old at the most. I think it's the large-
nut californian variety, | rather than the European type.

No, 3" is this year's germination.
Blimey they grow fast.



| I suppose the best thing to do is to give it a planting prune to cut
water | loss while the roots recover? I realise it's probably not the
best time to | plant, but it's either give it a try or let the poor
thing die().

No, don't do that, but remove excess leaves if necessary.
Good job I asked.




| Has anyone got any tips for me as I know nothing about them? What sort
of | soil do they prefer? sun/temperature/wind preferences? There are a
few | growing well in the neighbourhood so I assume that climate and
soil are | roughly suitable.

Good, deepish soil, preferably reasonably drained. Full sun (in the
UK) and not Western Isles type wind.

| Does anyone know how old they have to be before they start producing
nuts?

c. 20 years.

I won't hold my breath then. I like the foliage, but nuts at some stage
would be a plus , of course.



Thanks a lot Nick.

In article oprqpdd2d2wxhha1@localhost,
Tim writes:
|
| No, 3" is this year's germination.
|
| Blimey they grow fast.

Effectively, it is the size of the nut. The initial growth is
fuelled out of that, and a walnut seedling will reach c. 3"
before it starts to need its roots for anything except water.

They grow at a medium speed thereafter - say 9-12" a year.


Regards,
Nick Maclaren.

Tim wrote:

I have just been given a young walnut tree that has been dug up, around 3"
high, with bare roots that are now sitting in a bucket with some soil and
water. It's very healthy and has lots of leaves. I supose it's a couple of
years old at the most. I think it's the large-nut californian variety,
rather than the European type.

I suppose the best thing to do is to give it a planting prune to cut water
loss while the roots recover? I realise it's probably not the best time to
plant, but it's either give it a try or let the poor thing die().

Has anyone got any tips for me as I know nothing about them? What sort of
soil do they prefer? sun/temperature/wind preferences? There are a few
growing well in the neighbourhood so I assume that climate and soil are
roughly suitable.

You might want to try an RCB (root control bag..) this will allow you to
move it if it gets too big and may encourage earlier fruiting.. BTW if
anyone knows of a cheaper source of these than Ken Muir, let me know..

Does anyone know how old they have to be before they start producing nuts?


Ususally quite a while, but with ideal conditions can be as little as 5
years, though this IS unususal.

//
Jim

"Tim" wrote in message newsprqpdd2d2wxhha1@localhost...
I
supose it's a couple of | years old at the most. I think it's the large-
nut californian variety, | rather than the European type.

No, 3" is this year's germination.
Blimey they grow fast.

That's not a lot for seedlings of large deciduous trees. As Nick says some of it is down to the size of the seed, but
I've just spent a week pulling out Sycamore seedlings germinated this year and they range from 2 inches to about 9
inches in a large bed with very variable soil conditions. A few Aesculus seedlings in the same bed are about 8-10
inches, Ash typically about 3-4 inches.

Rod

Tim wrote in message ...
On 13 Jun 2003 10:36:37 GMT, Nick Maclaren wrote:


In article oprqo9gfg2wxhha1@localhost, Tim
writes:
| I have just been given a young walnut tree that has been dug up,

| Does anyone know how old they have to be before they start producing
nuts?

c. 20 years.

I won't hold my breath then. I like the foliage, but nuts at some stage
would be a plus , of course.


If you buy a grafted walnut of a named variety, it will produce
nuts much faster. The nuts will also be better in one way or another than a
seedling walnut. However, the young tree will
cost quite alot.

--
Anton

In article ,
anton wrote:


If you buy a grafted walnut of a named variety, it will produce
nuts much faster. The nuts will also be better in one way or another than a
seedling walnut. However, the young tree will
cost quite alot.

And quite likely be more short-lived. Grafting is a common cause of
premature tree death.


Regards,
Nick Maclaren.

Nick Maclaren wrote in message ...
In article ,
anton wrote:


If you buy a grafted walnut of a named variety, it will produce
nuts much faster. The nuts will also be better in one way or another than
a
seedling walnut. However, the young tree will
cost quite alot.

And quite likely be more short-lived. Grafting is a common cause of
premature tree death.


You mean it might not live for its full allotted span of thirty
score years and ten?

--
Anton

In article ,
anton wrote:

If you buy a grafted walnut of a named variety, it will produce
nuts much faster. The nuts will also be better in one way or another than
a
seedling walnut. However, the young tree will
cost quite alot.

And quite likely be more short-lived. Grafting is a common cause of
premature tree death.

You mean it might not live for its full allotted span of thirty
score years and ten?

No, I mean that it might reach the height of 20' in 30 years, and then
blow over in a gale. If you are lucky. If you are really unlucky, it
will blow over when it has got big enough to cause serious damage.

The point is that grafting necessarily introduces a weakness just
where you don't want it. Sometimes, the two plants bond well. With
some combinations, the join always remains weak. And, in a few cases,
the graft appears to join perfectly, but lets a heartwood fungus in,
and so the tree rots from the inside, invisibly.

Take a look at what Bean says about grafting!


Regards,
Nick Maclaren.

On 14 Jun 2003 10:14:00 GMT, Nick Maclaren wrote:

In article ,
anton wrote:


If you buy a grafted walnut of a named variety, it will produce
nuts much faster. The nuts will also be better in one way or another
than a
seedling walnut. However, the young tree will
cost quite alot.

And quite likely be more short-lived. Grafting is a common cause of
premature tree death.


Regards,
Nick Maclaren.

Thanks for the tips everyone. The tree is just one grown from seed off a
mature tree and dug up from their garden. I'm not realy bothered about
getting nuts on it (but it would be a plus one day), as I just like the
trees and their shapes. I think I've found a suitable spot (not too close
to the house). Tim.

On Fri, 13 Jun 2003 19:03:16 +0100, Rod wrote:


"Tim" wrote in message
newsprqpdd2d2wxhha1@localhost...
I
supose it's a couple of | years old at the most. I think it's the
large-
nut californian variety, | rather than the European type.

No, 3" is this year's germination.
Blimey they grow fast.

That's not a lot for seedlings of large deciduous trees. As Nick says
some of it is down to the size of the seed, but
I've just spent a week pulling out Sycamore seedlings germinated this
year and they range from 2 inches to about 9
inches in a large bed with very variable soil conditions. A few Aesculus
seedlings in the same bed are about 8-10
inches, Ash typically about 3-4 inches.

Rod


As you can see, I haven't got the faintest ideas about trees. Ground elder,
horsetails and creeping buttercup, no problem. Trees? Dodgy mate.
Tim.