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Who doesn’t love to learn a little something about common forest trees in North Carolina?
Black walnut, an extremely valuable forest tree, only grows well on rich bottomlands in moist, fertile coves and on lower slopes throughout the state. Its survival, growth and quality on less fertile sites is not good.
Black walnut leaves are alternate, pinnately compound, 12 to 24 inches long, with 15 to 23 sharply oval, finely toothed, long-pointed leaflets that are 3 to 3-1/2 inches long.
The fruit is attached singly or in pairs and is globular in shape with a pointed apex. The fruit is 1-1/2 to 2 inches in diameter and has a thick, yellow-green fibrous husk. The hard, woody nut is dark brown, oval to oblong, 1 to 1-1/2 inches in diameter and is deeply divided on the outer surface into irregular ridges. The meat of the nut is sweet and edible and is a favorite food for squirrels.
The bark is thick, dark brown to black and is divided by deep fissures into rounded ridges. The tree reaches 50 to 90 feet in height and 2 to 3 feet in diameter.
The heartwood is of superior quality and value. It is heavy, hard and strong, has a rich chocolate brown color, and it warps or checks little when drying. Once dry, it is dimensionally stable. These attributes, along with the wood’s receptiveness to a high polish, make it highly prized for a great variety of uses including furniture, cabinetwork and gun stocks. Walnut is the most valuable of our hardwoods.
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