Indiana Black Walnut

[ashes]

I have been doing a lot of research on Black walnut in Indiana because My family has a farm in northern Indiana, and I was curious about the potential to grow walnut for timber.
This would be a small  project that would be no larger than 5 acres of land because I would not want to be utilizing land that would otherwise be used for crop production. According to the soil maps on NRCS the site I am looking at is well suited for this type of project, but I would naturally evaluate the site further in the spring to make sure the maps are correct.

It seems like appropriate spacing for these trees is about 12x12 or around 300 TPA. I may plant the stock a little closer like 10x10 to have more replacements to choose from at the time of the first thin because I live in CA and can't be on-site to monitor this site all the time.

I will be able to get there every summer to do necessary pruning and site work.

My question: Is 1000 cankers going to ruin this before the rotation ends? What is the mindset of mid-western forest folk in regards to starting a project like this. Will the large buffers of farm fields serve as a buffer to slow the spread of this disease/beetle.

I will probably not see any return on this investment, but would like to leave something that could be worth something for the future. I see under utilized forest land here that I feel could be improved to increase the value and ultimately produce a high quality wood product.

Please tell me how ridiculous this is?

Also, for those of you in the area, what is the best source for the trees or any other thoughts on the matter.
Thanks

[beenthere]

Nice thought you have and hope you carry through with your planting.
Check in with the guys at Purdue Univ and the State, as well as State Extension.

They will have the best ideas for Indiana.

Likely looking at 80 - 100 years down the line for return on that investment.

I planted 10x10 walnuts on about 3 acres 1971. I can say they have been fun to work with and are growing.

Wish you well.

[ashes]

Thanks for the response.

I hope to carry through with the planting for sure. I think the investment would be minimal even if the 1000CD does present a problem down the road. I am not old, but old enough to know that I would likely not benefit from this other than experience and a nice project to make me smile about doing something on the family farm.

Purdue University was the place I was going to talk to concerning nursery stock. It is a great school and I think I would value their input and knowledge concerning this. Quite a few of my family are PU grads.

Been there- How much work/time was needed to ensure proper pruning and thinning. I assume there will be more work needed in the early stages of a project like this and then later you would just watch them grow. After 35-40 years what do your trees look like? What type of site did you plant on?
Thanks again for your input.

[beenthere]

I had a response ready but couldn't get on the forum to post it earlier today. Will try again.. hope nothing left out.

Been there- How much work/time was needed to ensure proper pruning and thinning. I assume there will be more work needed in the early stages of a project like this and then later you would just watch them grow. After 35-40 years what do your trees look like? What type of site did you plant on?
Thanks again for your input.

The "work" at first was getting the field laid out for the 10 x 10 spacing. I wanted to check it in so the rows were straight in both directions.. Then I kept the ground weed/grass free for the first 10 years. Didn't lose a single tree but had some bucks that enjoyed the worked up ground and having fights with the trees.
Being weed free meant faster growth compared to other walnut plantings in the area at the same time.

After a few years, noticed the terminal growth would flush out and then die back. Learned through a forest entomologist that it was an unknown borer, like a corn borer, that would develop in the terminal bud and eat the inside of the stem and girdling it from the inside out as both matured. I sprayed the walnuts with a systemic (Sevin I think). After that, the terminals grew normally but left a few crooked stems in the trees.

A second lesson was that I planted all the seedlings regardless of their size. Realized that I should have tossed the little puny ones out and only planted the more healthy larger ones as the puny ones stayed that way.

Pruning was done just before bud break in the spring. That left fresher stubs to heal over early in the growing season. IMO

I've for the most part left the trees grow at their original spacing. They have pruned themselves and have added a lot of height growth.
Interesting that last years' dry weather caused quite a few of the trees to break out buds lower on the tree trunks this year. That isn't good for wood quality and have been pruned off.

Site was old forest cleared for ag use and is probably not the best walnut growing ground. It is on top of the terminal moraine of the glacier that stopped here some 10,000 years ago. May even be some limestone hardpan down several feet below the glacial till but do not have any borings to know that for sure.

[RPowers]

beenthere,

What kind of dbh aand bole height are you seeing on your trees? After over 40 years I would think you'd have some nice trees going. I am hoping to do a Black Walnut interplanting in the next couple years. 2053 seems like a long ways away!

[Okrafarmer]

They must grow pretty slowly that far north. Here, walnuts can easily grow 1/2 inch or more diameter per year and in 40 years would be worth harvesting. In fact one inch per year or more can easily be obtained for yard trees that receive incidental lawn fertilizer. Up there the growth is no doubt much slower, as it is for most species.

[OneWithWood]

Ashes, depending on the soil types on the farm you should be able to grow high quality Black Walnut.  Black Walnut requires a deep, well drained soil so keep that in mind when siting your planting.
I also planted Black Walnut on 10x10 spacing and suffered the shoot beetle.  My soil is not at all suited to growing walnut but the trees have survived, albeit with a lot of pruning and tlc.  Planted them in 2000 and the best are 30 feet tall and about 10"dbh.
I would recommend getting 2-0 seedlings from the state nursery if possible, sort by size, dig a large enough hole to spread the roots properly.  The good folks at Purdue can give some great advice.

[Okrafarmer]

10 inches in 13 years isn't too bad, I reckon.

[ashes]

Onewithwood-

The area according to NRCS soil maps is well suited. It is near a small creek in a low area, and walnuts grow there naturally as it is. They are all larger and wolfey though. They produce a heck of a nut crop some years. I know because I have been tasked with cracking them for my Grandmother. Not a job I fancy too much, but the nuts are really good. The adjacent field has always been used for pasture. I am trying to work out the logistics for getting this done currently. It is good to know that you are growing them on a site that is less desirable and getting the growth you mentioned. 10" dbh after 13-14 years seems like pretty good growth. I know they can be pretty finicky. What effort did you take for grass/weed control early on? I've heard that roundup is the best solution.   

[OneWithWood]

For many years I merely mowed between the rows and weed wacked (carefully) around the stems.  Now I spray using a solution of glyphosate to keep the grasses and broadleaf stuff in check.  The trees are now large enough on the better soil half of the site to fend off a lot of competition on their own so the mowing and spraying needs are decreasing.
If you space your seedlings appropriately you will not have any wolf trees or need to do an excessive amount of pruning. 

[chain]

There's an important organization located in West Lafayette, In. [walnut council.org] website active. We belonged to an affiliation to the WC here in Mizzou. Really great hands-on field days in regards to cultivating Black Walnut. Everything you ever wanted to know. Good Luck!

[mesquite buckeye]

1. What is your deer population level?

2. Growing a mix of trees will reduce the incidence of insect and disease problems.

3. New pest introductions or new diseases have the potential to wipe out whole species for timber production.

4. The greater the species diversity in your planting, the less vulnerable the stand is.

[Okrafarmer]

Mesquite, I have wondered about the possibility of planting walnut interspersed with one or more other species, that would grow faster and make the walnuts reach taller early in life. Around here, a logical species would be tulip tree. If planted in careful rows, the tulip trees could be removed when they reached marketable age, releasing the walnuts to pack on the inches. Other species could be used as well.

[beenthere]

Okra
Might have to be careful planting with Black Walnuts, as they release the juglone which is toxic to some plants.
A link to some info that might help.

http://www.extension.umn.edu/yardandgarden/ygbriefs/h407blkwal-tox.html

[mesquite buckeye]

Mesquite, I have wondered about the possibility of planting walnut interspersed with one or more other species, that would grow faster and make the walnuts reach taller early in life. Around here, a logical species would be tulip tree. If planted in careful rows, the tulip trees could be removed when they reached marketable age, releasing the walnuts to pack on the inches. Other species could be used as well.

Personally, at least with my land and with what I have seen, it seems black walnuts grow slower in a pure stand than in a mixed stand. I would plant as many different species of trees as I believe will grow well on the site. If you start out with 300 trees/acre, and ultimately end up with 5-20 at full maturity, you don't need that big of a percentage of black walnuts at the beginning to end up with all black walnut at final harvest, which is where the big money veneer logs are. Also, the mix of trees will show the different soil areas of your land, and different trees will grow better or worse on the different areas. All you have to do is pay attention, especially once the trees get above the deer line. The best trees for each site will be obvious, and that may or may not be a walnut or a cherry. Those are the ones you want to favor in future thinnings and prunings.

Don't forget cherry if you are planting in Indiana. Some of the world's best cherry veneer comes from Indiana.