How to Harvest & Preserve Black Walnuts

Black walnuts are a luscious autumn treat.

Black walnuts are among the tastiest and nutritious nut meats used for salads, baking and eating out-of-hand. In many parts of the country, black walnuts go unharvested every year because the process of harvesting, hulling, curing and shelling can be time-consuming and messy. Have all of your collection and storage materials ready in advance and set aside enough time at harvest time to do the job properly without rushing. Walnut shells are notoriously hard and crack-resistant, so be patient while anticipating the payoff -- a supply of luscious walnut meat all winter long.

Things You'll Need

• Bushel baskets
• Latex gloves
• Hammer
• Safety glasses
• Large plastic or tin tubs
• Cold water
• Wire or mesh screen
• Nutcracker
• Ice pick
• Pliers
• Plastic freezer storage bags
• Permanent marker

Instructions

1. Collect ripe walnuts in bushel baskets in the fall. Black walnuts are ripe when the outer flesh begins to turn yellow from green and pressure from a fingernail or screwdriver leaves an indentation in the hull.

2. Remove the outer walnut hulls as soon as you've collected a batch. Wear latex gloves when removing the outer black walnut hull to prevent staining by the hull juice. Use protective eyewear. Smash the hull repeatedly with a hammer until no hull remains and the nut casing is exposed.

3. Fill a tub with cold water. Add hulled walnuts to the tub and rinse thoroughly. Throw away any nuts that appear rotten or moldy.

4. Spread a length of wire or mesh screen over a work table in a cool, dry and shaded area, such as a potting shed, gazebo or garage. Place walnuts on the surface to dry or cure. Walnuts may be stacked up to three deep during the curing process.

5. Wait two weeks to begin shelling cured black walnuts. Inspect a test sample walnut to be sure your batch is ready to shell. Place an ice pick in a shell seam and crack open the nut by striking the ice pick repeatedly with a hammer.

6. Widen the crack in the hard shell to expose the nut meat. Use pliers or a nutcracker to finish opening the shell. The nut meat inside will be crisp and crackling when dry.

7. Remove the dry black walnut meat from the shells. Place the nut kernels immediately in a plastic storage bag. Mark the date and contents of the bag and freeze until ready to use. Frozen walnuts should be used within two years.

Tips & Warnings

• If walnut shells are difficult to crack after curing, try soaking the shells in warm water for about two hours before cracking. This will soften the hard shell slightly.

• The black walnut hull's rich, dark brown juice permanently stains anything it touches. Wear old clothes and cover any surfaces used when hulling black walnuts.

• Dispose of black walnut hulls in plastic trash bags. Don't add them to your compost, as they contain toxins that could harm young fruits and vegetables.

References

• University of Minnesota Extension: Harvesting Black Walnuts
• Iowa State University Extension: Harvesting, Cracking and Storing Black Walnuts