Homes

Grow your own nuts

The fruits of your labour will be rewarded if you crack on and plant a nut tree.
Nut-Trees

Our fig tree, which took up half the orchard, has been sacrificed to make space for at least one nut tree. Friends were horrified when we whacked it down, but the truth is, it took up far too much room, made the meanest, driest figs and then dropped its big, ugly brown leaves all over the lawn. Give me a handful of nuts any old day.

A surprising number of different nut trees grow in New Zealand. My thoughts turned immediately to pine nuts, driven by the heart-stopping price tag they carry in the supermarket.

Almonds blossom in late winter, so it’s a good idea to plant them somewhere sheltered.

Heaps of the Pinaceae family have edible nuts but only a few are commercially cultivated. Pinus Pinea is the one most commonly grown here, far from its origins on the Mediterranean coastline.

Those origins make it an ideal tree for exposed coastal areas – it has a strong tap root, which can penetrate hard soils when looking for water during hot, dry summers. It’ll also tolerate salty air, high winds and temperatures in the negative.

Wet soil is the pine nut’s nemesis, because the tap root struggles to develop and the tree is inclined to blow over. Assuming it doesn’t, you’ll eventually have a 15-20m tree, which may not endear you to your neighbours.

It takes about six or seven years for the tree to begin producing cones and it won’t reach its full production until it’s about 40 years old, so if you’re already retirement age, perhaps choose something faster. Furthermore, by the time it’s delivering the goods, you’ll be too old to be bothered trying to get the nuts out.

The mature cones need to be hooked with long poles from the branches or harvested mechanically, and then laid on tarpaulins to dry in the sun and release the nuts. The theory is the nuts will fall out of the cone but many are reluctant and have to be put through rollers to crack off the shells.

The pink flowers of the macadamia and the yummy nuts make up for the unappealing foliage of the tree, which can look prickly, dried up and half dead.

I think walnuts might be simpler. Certainly, I use a lot more of them than I do pine nuts. Italians may disagree, but pesto is almost as good without the pine nuts, but walnut loaf without the walnuts? I don’t think so.

To grow a walnut tree, you need a space that’s at least five metres in diameter.

Plant during winter in fertile, well-drained soil, in a sunny, sheltered spot. Walnuts don’t love frosts, especially in spring when the flowers can be damaged. They need plenty of water when the fruit is developing to produce good-sized nuts.

You can prune annually for shape, once it’s looking as you want, just remove excess twiggy growth. Pick up the walnuts as they fall to the ground, and either dry them for storage or eat them.

Macadamias do best in soil that is rich in organic matter, with good drainage, and plenty of light.

I should probably also have a macadamia tree too, but the pity of it is, the flowers and nuts might be lovely but the foliage looks prickly, dried up and half dead.

Macadamias like soil rich in organic matter with good drainage, a pH balance of 5-6, plenty of light, protection from wind when young and average rainfall. Frosts and wet feet are a no-no.

You can prune after planting to reduce the tree to two leaders at each branching, and trim the tree to allow for light, ease of picking and good air circulation in the centre.

I rather fancy an almond too. You can get a self-fertile one that’s recommended for home orchards and it’s suitable for northern areas because it requires less chill than other varieties.

It produces heavy crops of soft-shell nuts with a sweet flavour.

Almonds blossom in late winter around about August so it’s a good idea to plant them somewhere sheltered, where strong winds or frost won’t damage the blossom. They grow to a manageable 4.5m x 3.5m.

If you don’t mind belting your nuts with a hammer, a pecan is another goodie.

The name actually means a nut that has to be cracked with a stone.

Pecans have been grown in New Zealand for more than 100 years.

Pecan trees have been growing in New Zealand for more than 100 years. They seem to do well from the top of the South Island and throughout the North Island, and there are cultivars available that suit other climates.

You’ll need close to 200 frost-free days for nut production and temperatures need to be warm enough to sustain an adequate growing season, with a chilly spell during the winter dormancy. They like deep, fertile, well-drained soil that has substantial water-holding capacity.

If you’re ever somewhere that pecans are served, you can sound incredibly smart by pointing out that the pecan is not a nut but a drupe, which is a fruit with a single stone or pit surrounded by a husk.

Take a look at how to plan a courtyard garden here.

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