#Wikipedia - #HazelTrees! Another tree that is found in many locations in the Northern Hemisphere!

Excerpt: "Corylus has around 14–18 species. The circumscription of species in eastern Asia is disputed, with World Flora Online and the Flora of China differing in which taxa are accepted, within this region. WFO accepts 17 species while Flora of China accepts 20 species (including Corylus mandshurica).

Only those taxa accepted by both sources are listed below.

The species are grouped as follows:

Nut surrounded by a soft, leafy involucre, multiple-stemmed, suckering shrubs to 12 m tall
Involucre short, about the same length as the nut
- Corylus americana – American hazel, eastern North America
- Corylus avellana – Common hazel, Europe and western Asia
- Corylus heterophylla – Asian hazel, Asia
- Corylus yunnanensis – Yunnan hazel, central and southern China
Involucre long, twice the length of the nut or more, forming a 'beak'
- Corylus colchica – Colchican filbert, Caucasus
- Corylus cornuta – Beaked hazel, North America
- Corylus maxima – Filbert, southeastern Europe and southwest Asia
- Corylus sieboldiana – Asian beaked hazel, northeastern Asia and Japan (syn. C. mandshurica)
Nut surrounded by a stiff, spiny involucre, single-stemmed trees to 20–35 m tall
Involucre moderately spiny and also with glandular hairs
- Corylus chinensis – Chinese hazel, western China
- Corylus colurna – Turkish hazel, southeastern Europe and Asia Minor
- Corylus fargesii – Farges' hazel, western China
- Corylus jacquemontii – Jacquemont's hazel, Himalaya
- Corylus wangii – Wang's hazel, southwest China
Involucre densely spiny, resembling a chestnut burr
- Corylus ferox – Himalayan hazel, Himalaya, Tibet and southwest China (syn. C. tibetica).

"Several hybrids exist, and they can occur between species in different sections of the genus, e.g. Corylus × colurnoides (C. avellana × C. colurna). The oldest confirmed hazel species is Corylus johnsonii found as fossils in the Ypresian-age rocks of Ferry County, Washington.

"Chilean hazel (Gevuina avellana), despite its name, is not related to this genus.

Ecology

"At least 21 species of #fungus have a #mutualistic relationship with hazel. Lactarius pyrogalus grows almost exclusively on hazel, and hazel is one of two kinds of host for the rare Hypocreopsis rhododendri. Several rare species of Graphidion lichen depend on hazel trees. In the UK, five species of moth are specialised to feed on hazel including Parornix devoniella. Animals which eat hazelnuts include #RedDeer, #dormouse and #RedSquirrel.

Uses

"The nuts of all hazels are edible. The common hazel is the species most extensively grown for its nuts, followed in importance by the #filbert. Nuts are also harvested from the other species, but apart from the filbert, none is of significant commercial importance.

"A number of cultivars of the common hazel and filbert are grown as ornamental plants in gardens, including forms with contorted stems (C. avellana 'Contorta', popularly known as "Corkscrew hazel" or "Harry Lauder's walking stick" from its gnarled appearance); with weeping branches (C. avellana 'Pendula'); and with purple leaves (C. maxima 'Purpurea').

"Hazel is a traditional material used for making #wattle, withy #fencing, #baskets, and the frames of #Coracleboats. The tree can be coppiced, and regenerating shoots allow for harvests every few years. There is a seven-year cycle (cut and grow) for hurdle (fence) making.

"Hazels are used as food plants by the larvae of various species of #Lepidoptera including Eriocrania chrysolepidella.

Culture

"The #Celts believed hazelnuts gave one wisdom and inspiration. There are numerous variations on an ancient tale that nine hazel trees grew around a sacred pool, dropping into the water nuts that were eaten by salmon (a fish sacred to #Druids), which absorbed the wisdom. A Druid teacher, in his bid to become omniscient, caught one of these special salmon and asked a student to cook the fish, but not to eat it. While he was cooking it, a blister formed and the pupil used his thumb to burst it, which he naturally sucked to cool, thereby absorbing the fish's wisdom. This boy was called #FionnMacCumhail (Fin McCool) and went on to become one of the most heroic leaders in Gaelic mythology.

" 'The #HazelBranch' from #Grimms' Fairy Tales claims that hazel branches offer the greatest protection from snakes and other things that creep on the earth. In the Grimm tale '#Cinderella', a hazel branch is planted by the protagonist at her mother's grave and grows into a tree that is the site where the girl's wishes are granted by birds."

Learn more:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hazel

#SolarPunkSunday #Hazelnuts #HazelTrees #CelticMythology #NutTrees #Trees

How to Create a Backyard #FoodForest with #Fruit & #NutTrees 🌳🥜🍎

Published by Ty Ty Plant Nursery, LLC, on
June 4, 2025

"A backyard food forest is a #sustainable, low-maintenance #gardening method that mimics a natural #forest #ecosystem—except instead of wild plants, you’re growing delicious fruits, nuts, #herbs, and more. It’s a long-term investment in your health, your land, and your ability to grow your own nutrient-rich food without relying on chemicals or constant labor.

"Whether you have a sprawling #backyard or a small suburban plot, you can design your own food forest using fruit and nut trees as the foundation. Here’s how to get started.

🌿 What Is a Food Forest?

"A food forest (also called a #ForestGarden) is a multi-layered growing system that mirrors the structure of a natural forest. It includes:

- Canopy layer – Large fruit and nut trees (like pecans, walnuts, pears) [I WOULD USE CAUTION WITH WALNUTS! They can be poisonous to other plants!]

- Sub-canopy layer – Dwarf or semi-dwarf fruit trees (like plums, figs, or apples)

- Shrub layer – Berries and bush fruits (like raspberries, blueberries, elderberries)

- Herbaceous layer – Culinary and medicinal herbs (like mint, comfrey, lemon balm)

- Groundcover layer – Spreading, edible or soil-building plants (like strawberries or clover)

- Root layer – Underground crops (like garlic, onions, or horseradish)

- Vertical/vine layer – Climbing plants (like grapes or kiwis)

"Together, these layers maximize space, diversify harvests, and support soil health and #biodiversity."

Learn more:
https://blog.tytyga.com/2025/06/04/how-to-create-a-backyard-food-forest-with-fruit-amp-nut-trees/

#SolarPunkSunday #BackyardGardens #BackyardFoodForests #GrowYourOwn #GrownYourOwnFood #FruitTrees #BerryBushes #NutTrees

61 Popular Types of #Nuts Around the World

By Rosa Parks

https://richmondmom.com/popular-types-of-nuts-around-the-world/

#SolarPunkSunday #NutTrees #Trees #GroundNuts #Nutrition

#CentralAsia’s #fruit and #nut #forests: the real Garden of Eden?

Birthplaces of some of the world’s most beloved snacks

by Monica Evans
17 December 2020

"Millions of years ago, in the temperate montane forests of a little-known region in Central Asia, some of the world’s best-loved fruit and nut trees began to grow. #Apples, #apricots, #cherries, #plums, #grapes, #figs, #peaches, #pomegranates, #pears, #almonds, #pistachios and #walnuts all originated in the hills and valleys of the #TianShan mountain range, which stretches from #Uzbekistan in the west to #China and #Mongolia in the east.

"The area is volcanic and geologically tumultuous, but fertile – scientists have hypothesized that in a place prone to frequent eruptions, earthquakes and landslides, shorter-lived tree species that could disperse their seeds widely by making themselves palatable to large mammals had a better shot at survival than long-lived, slow-maturing trees.

"And that tasty survival strategy has served these species well. For residents of the region, the foods represent both security and social currency. 'From the taxi drivers to the ministers to the local people, almost everyone carries some #DriedFruit or #Nuts with them,' says Paola Agostini, a lead natural resources specialist for Europe and Central Asia at the World Bank. 'It’s like this safety net, and it’s also a lovely gift: something to share with others that is always appreciated.'

"Central Asian marketplaces offer a cornucopia of colors, flavors, textures and varieties – many more than those most of us are accustomed to finding in our local supermarket’s produce aisle. 'I was always astonished that people in the region could so easily tell which country a particular dried apricot came from,' says Agostini. 'Their knowledge of these products is just so deep.'

"Procuring and sharing these energy-dense treats is an ancient practice in the area. Fruit and nuts were major commodities on the Silk Road, an ancient network of trade routes that tracked through the heart of Central Asia, linking Europe, the Middle East and Asia, from the first century BC through to the mid-1400s. Over centuries of trade and travel – and lots of munching by humans, camels and horses along the way – prized fruit and nut species spread their seeds wider and wider, and new hybrid varieties were created, many of which are now supermarket and home-orchard staples, cultivated enthusiastically in temperate regions across the globe.

"Narratives of plant domestication often tend to overstate the role of humans, but newer science suggests that 'evolution in parallel' with the plants we love is often a more accurate way of framing this process. 'It’s very unlikely that when somebody took an apple from #Kazakhstan and carried it across an entire continent, they were thinking that they could cross it with another variety and end up with something better,' says #RobertSpengler, a paleo-ethnobotanist at the Max Planck Institute in Jena, Germany. 'They were more likely just carrying the seeds to plant somewhere else. And in doing so, they inadvertently set off a chain reaction of hybridization events.'

"According to Spengler’s research into the origins of apples, humans were not the first mammals to participate in that process of dispersal and co-evolution, either. In the late #Miocene, which spanned the period from 11.63 to 5.33 million years ago, large mammals such as #mammoths and #horses played critical roles in dispersing apple seeds and facilitating their evolutionary process into the large, sweet, flavor-rich fruits we enjoy today."

Learn more:
https://thinklandscape.globallandscapesforum.org/48941/central-asias-fruit-and-nut-forests-the-real-garden-of-eden/

#SolarPunkSunday #Ethnobotany #PlantHistory #SaveTheForests #SaveTheTrees #FruitTrees #NutTrees

#Australia - NATIVE NUTS FOR FOLIAGE AND FOOD

"The so called 'Hawaiian Nut', more accurately, the Queensland or macadamia nut, - is one of the most popular culinary nuts of the world. It is also the only native Australian food with widespread popularity, even though many people are still unaware that it is a native.

"Macadamia nuts are not, however, the only edible nut native to Australia. The nuts discussed below are all native and well worthwhile cultivating for their foliage and food. While #AustralianAborigines made extensive use of native produce, the white settlers and subsequent migrants have been reluctant to do so.

"The importation of exotic species in many instances has been at the expense of native species. Bunya-bunya pines, for example, have suffered enormous damage at the hands of loggers, because of their fine timber. Nuts from this pine, however, are among the best of the native nuts and deserve to be cultivated as much as macadamias.

"The use of native nuts, as with other native foods, need not be a replacement for exotic imported species, but an addition. We can still enjoy roasted almonds, as well as roasted bunya bunya nuts. Cultivating and growing native species ensures their survival and expansion. The macadamia nut, for example, is assured survival because it has become popular. Unfortunately, humans seem to respond when they exploit a species, rather than letting that species exist for its own sake. The great hope of conservation is not the preservation of species for human consumption and use, but the conservation of species per se.

"Native species are suited to native conditions, and it makes more sense to grow native species in their own habitat than to clear that habitat and try to adjust an imported species on that terrain. This, however, does not mean that any native species can be grown anywhere throughout Australia. Species that grow well in #TropicalRainforests, may do poorly (if at all) in cold temperate regions.

"Cultivating native species fits in well with #permaculture and any system of #SustainableAgriculture. Indeed, it should become an indispensable part of #sustainable agricultural practices.

"The fragile state of Australian forests cannot be overemphasised. Never pick fruit or seeds from national parks or any protected area. Native forests present us the opportunity to study the plants in their natural habitat, and as the cliche runs, 'Take only photographs and leave only footprints'."

Web page includes:
- Caring For Trees
- People And Places
- Fruits And Nuts
- Recipes
- Helpful Hints

Learn more:
https://rfcarchives.org.au/Next/Fruits/Nuts/NativeNuts11-91.htm

#SolarPunkSunday #NutTrees #MacadamiaNuts #EbonyHeart #BushPeanut #BunyaNuts #BushTucker #NativeAustralianPlants #NativeAustralianFoods #SaveTheForests #SaveTheTrees `

A guide to Australian native #nuts

"When we think of nuts that are native to #Australia undoubtedly we think of the #macadamia. But macadamia isn’t the only native nut in town.

"The macadamia nut really is a global success story. Originating here around 60 million years ago it is now exported to more than 40 countries around the world.

"Because it evolved here, the macadamia tree has an incredible natural ability to tolerate the harsh Australian conditions, and it’s been called a ‘sustainability giant’ of the plant world, thanks to its inherent ability to optimise its water use, and sequester carbon from the atmosphere.

"But macadamia isn’t the only native nut in town. Along with the macadamia, let’s look at a few other delicious native nuts."

Read more:
https://www.australian-macadamias.org/a-guide-to-australian-native-nuts/

#SolarPunkSunday #NutTrees #MacadamiaNuts #SandalwoodNuts #BunyaNuts #WattleSeed #NativeAustralianPlants #NativeAustralianFoods

The incredible, edible #nut. Here's a look at the 8,000-year history of the #pecan

by Shelly Mitchell, Oklahoma State University/Special to Wisconsin State Farmer, Nov. 26, 2025

Excerpt: "The pecan derives its name from the #Algonquin '#pakani,' which means 'a nut too hard to crack by hand.' Rich in fat and easy to transport, pecans traveled with #NativeAmericans throughout what is now the southern United States. They were used for food, #medicine and trade as early as 8,000 years ago.

"Pecans are native to the southern United States, and while they had previously spread along travel and trade routes, the first documented purposeful planting of a pecan tree was in New York in 1722. Three years later, George Washington’s estate, Mount Vernon, had some planted pecans. Washington loved pecans, and Revolutionary War soldiers said he was constantly eating them.

"Meanwhile, no one needed to plant pecans in the South, since they naturally grew along riverbanks and in groves. Pecan trees are alternate bearing: They will have a very large crop one year, followed by one or two very small crops. But because they naturally produced a harvest with no input from farmers, people did not need to actively cultivate them. Locals would harvest nuts for themselves but otherwise ignored the self-sufficient trees.

"It wasn’t until the late 1800s that people in the pecan’s native range realized the pecan’s potential worth for income and trade. Harvesting pecans became competitive, and young boys would climb onto precarious tree branches. One girl was lifted by a hot air balloon so she could beat on the upper branches of trees and let them fall to collectors below. Pecan poaching was a problem in natural groves on private property.

"Even with so obvious a demand, cultivated orchards in the South were still rare into the 1900s. Pecan trees don’t produce nuts for several years after planting, so their future quality is unknown.

"To guarantee quality nuts, farmers began using a technique called grafting; they’d join branches from quality trees to another pecan tree’s trunk. The first attempt at grafting pecans was in 1822, but the attempts weren’t very successful.

"Grafting pecans became popular after an enslaved man named Antoine who lived on a Louisiana plantation successfully produced large pecans with tender shells by grafting, around 1846. His pecans became the first widely available improved pecan variety.

"The variety was named Centennial because it was introduced to the public 30 years later at the Philadelphia Centennial Expedition in 1876, alongside the telephone, Heinz ketchup and the right arm of the Statue of Liberty.

"This technique also sped up the production process. To keep pecan quality up and produce consistent annual harvests, today’s pecan growers shake the trees while the nuts are still growing, until about half of the pecans fall off. This reduces the number of nuts so that the tree can put more energy into fewer pecans, which leads to better quality. Shaking also evens out the yield, so that the alternate-bearing characteristic doesn’t create a boom-bust cycle."

Learn more:
https://www.wisfarmer.com/story/news/2025/11/26/pecans-americas-only-native-major-nut-has-quite-a-storied-history/87382328007/

#SolarPunkSunday #NutTrees #PecanTrees #NativeAmericanFoods

🤷🏽‍♂️ How deer resistant are your fruit and nut trees?

I ranked a fair number of common and rare fruit and nut trees for theur deer resistance based on my direct observation of the trees and the deer.

🦌 Learn more in the link 👇🏼 and be sure to grab the sale, which is this week only! 🙌🏻
https://homesteadculture.com/protect-trees-from-deer-and-rodents/

#deerresistant #foodforest #homesteading #gardening #permaculture #orchard #regenerative #fruittrees #nuttrees

You don't have to deer fence your entire property or orchard to grow fruit and nut trees.

After tempting the deer to eat leaves from hundreds of trees, from dozens of species, I learned so much about what I can get away with and what I can't.

🦌 Learn more in the link 👇🏼 and be sure to grab the sale, which is this week only 🙌🏻
https://homesteadculture.com/protect-trees-from-deer-and-rodents/

#deerresistant #foodforest #homesteading #permaculture #orchard #gardening #fruittrees #nuttrees