Black Walnut (Juglans nigra) is a tree I have been building relationship with for years. Through gathering, processing, storing, cooking, dyeing, planting, distributing and educating, this has been a plant I have come to know a lot about, and with whom I have shared some of myself with. I do not know Walnut in all stages (I long to know the flowers more), and I do not know the post glacial dispersal (it’s always nice to learn the backstory), I am slowly coming to understand the more than human relationships this tree has with the world around them. I am also deepening my understanding of the complex relationships this plant has with humans.
Now is the time of the year has arrived for the first harvest of hulls, but not yet the time for the nut itself. That will come in a few weeks, but until then tune in to hear about how the Black Walnut supports a strong community of wild life, how to use the hulls for dye, and a little bit of lore on this wonderful tree.