Juglans microcarpa seed

LATIN NAME: JUGLANS MICROCARPA

COMMON NAME: Texas Black Walnut

Along the riverbanks of the American southwest, the Texas black walnut grows as a small, rounded, deciduous tree with the pinnate leaves of many narrow, toothed leaflets and the small, green catkins in the spring, the small, round, hard-shelled nuts ripening in the autumn. Growth is steadily, the plant forming a rounded crown that reaches 5-10 metres. It does well in the sun and the deep, well-drained, moist ground.

Scientific Research & Plant Biotechnology

The Texas black walnut shows up in the studies of the southwestern walnuts, its small, hard nuts keeping it in view in the work on the drought-tolerant nut trees and the riparian woodlands of the dry river valleys. The research looks at the way the narrow leaflets hold the summer heat, the hard nuts ripen and fall, and the seed biology of the thick-shelled seeds.

Ecological & Economic Value & Wide Applications

In the dry garden, the Texas black walnut makes the neat, leafy, shade-giving tree that stands the fierce summers of the southwest. The small nuts feed the squirrels and the jays, the dense crown cools the dry courtyard, and the tree makes the fine small specimen, the riparian tree and the tough nut tree of the hot garden. It is a tree for the open, sunny, deep and well-watered place.

To grow the Texas Black Walnut from seed, chill the nuts over the winter, then sow the seeds in the open ground in spring.

Chill the nuts over the winter, then sow the seeds in the open ground in spring, and keep the young trees in the open, sunny spot. The narrow leaflets unfold with the warm season.

LATIN NAME: Juglans microcarpa

COMMON NAME: Little Walnut, Texas Black Walnut, Little Black Walnut

The little walnut is a small and tough tree of the dry American Southwest, and it carries the same dignified character as its great relatives. The plant becomes a flat-topped crown, reaching several metres. In good conditions it forms a low, spreading mat, staying under a metre.

The little walnut belongs to the walnut family, Juglandaceae, and it is native to Texas, New Mexico, Oklahoma and Kansas in the United States and the northern states of Mexico. It grows along streams and ravines, and it is the smallest of the North American walnuts. Despite its size, it has all the character of its great relatives, with the same handsome, pinnate leaves, the same dignified bark and the same ridged, hard-shelled nuts, only smaller, and it is a tough, drought-hardy tree that asks very little of the dry country where it grows.

Scientific Research & Plant Biotechnology

The little walnut has a genuine and growing place in both ecological and horticultural research. As a native of the dry streams and ravines of the American Southwest, it has been studied in ecology for its role in the riparian and dry-country landscapes, and researchers have examined its growth, its water use and its place in the region. The tree has also been studied in horticulture and in walnut breeding, since it is a valuable source of drought tolerance and disease resistance for the cultivated walnuts, and researchers have examined its potential in breeding improved walnut trees. The nuts have also been studied for their value as food, since they are sweet and edible, and the tree is of interest as a small, ornamental walnut for gardens in dry climates. For a tree of such quiet usefulness, the little walnut has a steady and growing record of research.

Ecological & Economic Value & Wide Applications

Ecologically, the little walnut is a generous tree of the dry country. Its sweet nuts feed squirrels, birds and small mammals, its catkins feed bees and other insects, and its tough, spreading growth holds the soil along the streams and ravines where it grows.

Its economic value is real. The sweet nuts are gathered and eaten, the wood is hard and useful for small work, and the tree is of interest in walnut breeding for its drought tolerance, while it is also grown as a small ornamental walnut for dry gardens. For a grower, the little walnut is a tough and useful tree, and for a gardener it brings the dignity of the walnut in a small, manageable form. The nuts are easy to start — give them a spell of cold in the fridge in damp compost, then sow them in a pot, keep them moist, and theyll sprout steadily over a few weeks, the little trees growing on into tough, handsome trees that will one day bear their own sweet nuts.