Time for me to harvest my walnut trees

Paul Gallian

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Time for me to harvest my walnut trees --- time to go or let them just fall down.
 

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Wow nice pile of walnut.

A friend has a similar sized tree (but only one) that's coming down and looks to be MINE (muhahaha) but we're waiting for the sap to drop before we take it down. Closest mill I know of I can use is my cousins in Gold Beach which is a bit of a drive. May have to decide benefit vs chainsaw slabs...
 
nice bunch of logs paul,, one looks like it might make veneer??? dont sell them to the first bidder.. i heard of two logs going for 7k and 11k separately now they were exceptional logs but, a good walnut can easily bring 500 each plus.. and ryan wait for a mill, dont use a chainsaw on them you will waste to much.. seal it and cut it when you can get it to him or him to you..

he has more!!! bob, but i just got 3 dandys,1-24"x17', and 2-20"x10' and 4 maples and got 5 red oak coming:)
 
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Larry, you are undoubtedly correct - especially given my chainsaw skills :rolleyes: I did split some cedar logs about the same size (~24" +-) in half a couple years ago, but walnut is a whole nuther critter for a number of reasons. Would give me a chance to go raid my cousins wood stash anyway (he's a small lumber dealer and gets some amazing maple and Oregon-myrtle mostly).

Paul, questions - where abouts are you and why did you decide to harvest them at this time of year? I thought it would be better to do it in the fall after the sap dropped (less splits)? Also how big are those around? All I can tell from the pics is PRETTY BIG :D
 
I have a guy and his crew doing the cutting and moving with the limbs being cut in firewood lengths.
The guy doing the cutting sells to very large walnut business - we are splitting the money 60% to me and 40% to him and am present when they are scaled and priced.
I keep the smaller limb logs for my mill he is stacking and cutting for firewood. I am NOT fond of burning walnut -- seasoned it burns hot and fast with too much ash.

This guy that is cutting, claims that the sap did not move up (or not like other years in the past) the trees this year.. ( I think that is bull) but he does this for a living.
I am not able physically to do much cutting so I am happy to watch. Larry you may remember these large trees -- not easy to get to fall where you want them to - some up against my tractor sheds, some along the road with power lines, some near my barn, and some in a perfect position to smash my sawmill which I did not wish to move.. anything over 10K for my share I will happy with.

We had 50 acres logged in the past few months -- white and black oak along with a few walnut -- made over 20k $$ but money is now all gone.. where I am not sure but I must of have had some fun.--New Jeep
 
Paul if they not all down by the time this post goes up, would you do this woodworker a favor. Pic a single tree and take pictures of the tree so we can see it up close and see the limbs. Then show what the guy cut out of it.

I keep having difficulty understanding where these logs come from. I dont think i have knowingly seen a large mature walnut tree, but my problem is every time i envision wood being harvested i can only see it in the kind of cultivated forests where a tree goes up straight and well there is typically a single shaft of wood.

Where are "straight" or straightish limbs in a tree like a walnut or for that matter several other species where the lengths are i dunno something that produces or will produce decent length boards given trimming of ends etc.

Larry you feel free to do the same if you can do so and see this post.


Kind of like I know what a chicken looks like, i know where my eggs come from etc.

Now i would like to understand the hardwoods better than i do the softwoods. I mean who has not seen a christmas tree.
 
rob you get here in sept and i can show you in person.. or you can search google for what makes a good walnut log, venner quality logs or grade lumber quality logs.. i am sure there wil be pictures to show you.. on the walnut i just had cut i got basically 4 good logs but the last one is still one long one.. the butt log would be a premium log maybe veneer, the next one ou was a number 1 grade or a select and better log, the next two are grade logs and it will depend on what comes out of them as to what grade i get.. maybe i can get some select lumber but normally it will be number 1 or 2 common lumber..its all in how the log grew and how its cut a sawyer can make you money or take it away from you..with just one cut.. oh and this tree was probally 70 ft tall.
i have some over the hill that are taller and better than this one was..
 
Rob I hope this helps. 1. to be firewood 2. Large Ivy covered walnut (took Larry and Jay photo here) 3. same Ivy covered tree 4 the tree shatters like this when it twist or hits the ground wrong...several hundreds of $$$ gone -- firewood only now...... 5 6 7 8 series of shots for Rob. 9 ground stump
 

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Thanks Larry. Thanks Paul.

Boy Paul that tree all cracked makes for a broken heart. Sad.

So there really is only one strait log and thats the base. One can see why the good stuff costs so much.


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rob not all trees are made the same,, in pauls case of that tree that broke ,yes it had one good log,, but the one he posted pics of last had more in it, but the butte log is usually the best grade..
 
Rob - walnut is real picky about shattering. I have seem some that look like a deck of cards almost like the tree was cut into planks.

Also most will not buy yard trees or even fence line trees -- metal in the tree will do a job on expensive large mill blades. Most of trees with iron will show purple or blue in the cut area.
 
Ok this walnut tree thread cost me some hours of sleep last night.

Dang.

So you walnut tree boys.....did these trees actually produce walnuts for you.?
If so whats the typical yield like on a tree like this.

I was thinking of Rick down in Carolina and his spread he was planting some nut type tree and was wondering how they do that withwalnuts. surely the space required as in plant apart distance must be huge for these things to mature.
How many years old do they need to be to produce a crop and do they need a "male" and "female" tree as i was once told nuts needed. (that was by my mother by the way who was a gardener when she had a garden)

I suppose we looking at realy ancient trees here. So were Rick to plant them on his spread he would never get to harvest them :(
Dunno now will have to google walnut trees and learn about them.

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rick had pecans rob and they are more sought after than walnuts, better flavor,, black walnuts have a stronger flavor than english walnuts which are cultivated for there fruit.. but black walnut is just a lumber resource mostly and they are a mess in ones yard..dont know the age to nut bearing but i bet its not to long..
 
Here in SW Missouri it is a cash crop for pickers in the fall -- In fact they drive the roads picking. There is a tool that they sell that resembles a golf ball picker upper. There are many places that you take your walnuts to get shucked (thick husk) not cracked. I think nuts were selling for about $12.00 a hundred pounds after husked. I think most come from people's yards because they are a mess to rake up. Diamond sell them in most grocery stores yes they are strong favored but good in ice cream and cookies. Note you are in competition with the tree rodents (squirrels). I have picked up and sold a few but I am too lazy. almost every small community have a shucking machine and buyers on hand.
 
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