Black Walnuts

Black Walnuts

black walnut tree, showing nuts in husk, leaves,
and deeply furrowed bark

 

     I've a new found respect for squirrels. I've always liked them, and we even have one who's practically a pet. Her name is Mama Squirrel, and she comes around about as often as we're moving about outside. She even comes in th' house when we let her. Last year she was badly maimed by a blue jay, and we fed her nuts while she was recovering, while she could barely walk. It took her about six months to heal, and even now she itches a lot, and has a bald spot just above her back right leg. We've seen her have two litters of babies, watched the babies grow up and move on, but mama squirrel stays around. She takes nuts out of our hands, and sometimes lets me pet her.

Mama Squirrel

      And, what has earned her my new found respect, she cracks black walnut shells with her teeth. You may not think much of this feat until you try to crack into a black walnut yourself. I think they're quite possibly th' hardest thing on th' planet. Exaggeratedly so of course. But still, they're so hard that if you try to use a common nutcracker to crack them, it may just come alive for a moment and laugh at you. But enough of th' wise cracks.

Hey! Come back here with that nut!

     There's a lot of black walnut trees around here. Most of them have been planted as ornamentals many years ago, and now a days th' walnuts usually just fall to th' ground for th' squirrels and stain peoples lawn mower blades. Suffice it to say that most folk are happy to part with them, all you need do is ask. Some times they'll even help you gather them, or at least offer you a bag to put them in. 

    Th' husks are green, somewhat larger than a golf ball around here, and have a sensational citrus like scent which repels insects, but attracts squirrels and myself. You can use th' husks to make ink, which was a common usage in medieval Europe, or a dye color anywhere from an olive green to a dark black. I've rubbed th' husks fresh over a sinew backed longbow and it made a nice natural camoflage. If you want worms for fishing, just run some water over a pile of fresh husks in your yard and "voila", instant worms. A guy that frequents th' bike shop where i work tells me he used to soak th' fresh husks in a bucket of water, then pour it into a stream or lake to catch fish. They'd rise to the surface stunned, and he'd scoop 'em up. I'll leave you to judge th' morality behind that one.

     The wood of the tree, like th' nut itself, is very hard and is a common fine furniture wood. It also makes good bow staves, and i've made a couple of arrows from walnut wood as well. 

wagon load of walnuts

     So, once you get your nuts gathered in their husks, you want to get them out of there asap, th' more th' husks dry th' harder they are to remove. A lot of folks will tell you to run them over with th' car, and some people even do it! But if you, like me, find the idea of driving on your food a little repulsive, and maybe even sacreligious, don't worry, there is a better way.

mashed husks and nuts

     If possible, i just mash them with my feet where they are, or use a log stomper, this way i can get many more in th' same amount of space, as th' husks are about half of their volume. You'd be surprised how efficient this method is, and how much less ridiculous you'll look than if your were driving back and forth back and forth over something you're gonna eat. When we can't husk them right there where we find them, we take them home, find a spot in th' back yard where th' ground is firm and mash them with a log, usually a bow stave that's curing. Fynn likes this th' best, as we can get "Black Hands" together. 

Fynn, mashing log, nuts in husk and de-husked

      This is really my favorite part of th' whole process, me and Fynn smashing walnut husks, about six squirrels fighting to get at 'em, and us getting black hands. Oh, it makes us smile. And Bethra in th' kitchen bakin up somethin good. This is livin i say. 

"Black Hands!"

Fynn getting black hands

     I work at a bike shop, so black hands are acceptable, most people just think it's bike grease and never wonder about it. For those who don't jump to that conclusion, it's a great conversation starter. But, if black hands aren't your thing, you'd better not touch these buggers with bare hands, it won't wash off. Also, it makes your hands very slippery for a few days, like there's soap on your finger tips and you can't seem to hold on to nothin. But one bite of that nut and oh it's worth it. 

     After we de-husk them, i rinse them well, them spread them evenly in a shallow cardboard box, and anytime i'm in th' back yard i'll put them in th' sun, but with mama squirrel around, i can not leave them alone even for a minute. Even with us out there she manages to get some, often with a daring leap from incredible distances. So anyway, let 'em dry for about two weeks. If you open them young, they're kinda jelly like, and reminiscent of a brain. Due to th' close resemblance of th' nut to a brain, th' Doctrine of Signatures would say they're good for your brain and mental functions. And th' Doctine of Signatures is very often correct. 

black walnuts and acorns drying in th' sun
(note th' squirrel tail in there) 

     Once they're dry, they're ready to crack and eat. And here's where it's just work. There's no shortcut to cracking black walnust as far as i know, and that's OK. All my life my family has sat around cracking pecans together. It was fun, it was something we did together, and it was work. Black walnuts are th' same. Though their shells are much harder, once you find your technique and practice a bit, it really doesn't take much longer than cracking any other nut. But it does taste better. So far i've only talked to one person who's tried them and didnae like them. She had about twenty pounds of them from her tree, ate one, and then brought us a bag full. Everyone else i've shared them with has liked them so far as i can tell. 

     What works best for me is to sit down near a small hole in my driveway (which i don't drive on, by th' way), which just holds th' nut up so i don't have to, then hit it a couple of good whacks with our river stone pestle.  

pounding stone and divet for nut

     At first i had th' tendency to pound them too hard, reducing them to bits and mixing up th' shells with smashed nuts. Trust me, you don't want to bite a shell

same picture with nut in place

when you think you're eating a nice soft nut. Anyway, once they're cracked, i use a small flathead screwdriver, or a nutpick to help break th' inner shell apart more and pry th' nutmeat out. Do this for a while and you have a nice bowl of black walnuts to eat. I've also cracked some by placing them in a vise with th' seams towards each jaw, and that works pretty well too, but being th' primitivist that i am, i prefer pounding them with a rock. 

a good cup of tea aids th' cracking process

cracked nuts, showing meat and shell

     I've read that black walnuts make excellent additions to baked goods, and we do have plans to try them, but so far we can't seem to stop eating them long enough to have any left over for baking. They have a very exotic flavor, nothing at all like an english or persian walnut. It's similar to a pecan, yet so vastly different as to defy all attempts at comparing it to any other nut. Give it a shot, it just may be th'  best thing you've ever tasted.   ~Rico 

Mama Squirrel

You are what you eat!

    
On our family tree our ancestors are th' roots. Children are th' flowers. We are th' leaves. Our Spirits' th' fruits.  

fallen apple tree laden with fruit

  Foraging has become for us a way of life. It is an ancient way, almost hidden, almost lost, but it found us. (Maybe we were almost lost?) Gradually, slowly, we are learning to eat th' food that grows all around us. It is a long process, and we've only just begun. It's not apocalyptical. It's not in preparation for any catastrophe, or end of civilization or any of that business. It's a re-connection to our past. It's a tribute to those who've gone before us. To those who didn't need trucks and petroleum to get their dinner. It's a way of saying Thank you. It's a way of acknowledging and honoring th' life styles that have all but vanished. It's a way of saying, We see that there is value in th' way you lived. And we're sorry that we've let th' good things go. We will try to pick them back up again.

burdock in late summer

day lily bulbs and garden potatoes

When we forage, and eat locally grown food, our bodies are literally made up of th' dirt we trod upon. Of th' land we live on. Of the air we breathe and th' water we drink. We are at home. When all th' food we eat comes from distant lands, distant places, then our bodies are made of those distant lands. We are strangers to th' land we live on. We are restless without knowing why. You are what you eat. But there is good food growing all around us, in abundance. Some of it wild, grown with loving care by a Creator who loves his Creation. Some of it grown by farmers who care about th' food they grow, the animals they raise, and th' people whose lives are nourished thereby.

sow thistle, aka my lunch salad throughout th' summer

Most indigenous cultures have foraged their own food since th' beginning of time. Their bodies were made up of th' dust of their ancestors. They were alive in them in a very real way. They also lived in a world without pollution. A world where you could drink of th' rivers and streams, lakes and ponds. Are we really so sure that our ways are better than theirs? Has our technology lived up to it's claims of improving our lives?

ground cherries

dandelion and shallots 

black walnut hands

When you begin looking at all th' plants around you as food and medicine, th' world starts to look different. Where before you saw "plants", or weeds, you begin to see Sow Thistle, Mallow, Dandelion, Yarrow, etc...
In other words, you know what you are looking at. You know th' plants and animals individually, not as vague abstractions. It's not botany, it's being aware of your world. And when you become aware of what's around you, you realize that there's a whole new world that you never knew existed, and you've lived amongst it all th' time. Gradually you come to realize that every plant has a purpose, and when you know it's purpose, you also know that it's good. Some plants feed and nourish you, some will heal you, some will prepare th' way for others to come in, some will reclaim ruined land.

wild garlic

black locust beans

Nature is not here for our entertainment and convenience, it is our home. A sacred place. And when we find our place in it, which may be some where between the ant and the mountain, we realize that we too are sacred. We become living temples along with th' rest of creation. Foraging is helping us to find our place in this world. I used to believe that this world is not my home, that i'm just passing through, but i'm not so sure anymore. This world is my home. It's just been destroyed, that's all. It's time i start to appreciate it for what it is, and was meant to be, and stop trying to change it. It is a gift to us, and we are responsible for it. We are it's stewards. It will feed us. Take care of us. Heal us. From the earth have our bodies come, and to the earth shall they go. Why be a stranger all th' time in between.

giant burdock leaf

poudre river stinging nettle

Our food is one of our most direct connections to the earth, and th' sharing of it one of humanities most common delights. There are flavors out there which i never imagined possible, like milkweed pods, and black locust blossoms, and black walnuts, and th' stalk of a large wet thistle leaf, and sumac tea. There are others that i still haven't discovered yet. There is mystery in foraging. There is adventure, excitement, and sometimes disappointment, like when i spent a whole day cooking up a wild stew, of which i spent over a week gathering for, only to have it ruined by too many evening primrose roots. But my family and i picked the ingredients together, we cooked it together, we ate it together. We disliked it together. Do you see th' common theme there?

black elderberries

     People love food, and they love to find it and eat it, and they love something fabulous made from seemingly simple ingredients, and they love to share it with other people they love. So don't let th' wisdom of our ancestors go th' way of th' dinosaur. Never stop learning. And share all th' good that you've found.

yum plums!

    

With that in mind i've made a list of all th' food we've been able to forage this year. It is by no means an extensive list of what's available, there's much more. These are just foods that we've eaten this year from around Fort Collins and th' nearby mountains. Some of this food became regular fare in our house. Some of it we used and experimented with a little. Some we just tasted. But hopefully this will get you excited to go beyond your usual routine, to try new things, you will be well rewarded. You will have your favorites, and there may be much you don't like, it is food after all, you don't eat everything in th' grocery store do you?

orach and licorice root drying (and 2 peppers)

there's a black walnut in there somewhere

wild rose hips

black nightshade

     So go out and see what you can find. A good place to start is right in your own yard. You've at least got some dandelions i'll venture... and those are good, if you know how to eat them, and maybe th' most nutritious food on th' planet. We'll continue to post individual plant accounts as we get time, and i suppose since i'm telling you to eat dandelions, i'll soon get up some of th' ways we've found to enjoy (enjoy eating dandelions?, Yes.) them. And share your experiences - so that we can all learn together. Bring us a wild salad. Or take one to your friends. Post comments and send us pictures. We're only one family, with our own ideas, and i'm sure you've got different and perhaps better ideas than we do. That's th' beauty of learning, you don't have to be the expert, just a student, always open to th' truth, and ready always for a better way.

me and american licorice

late summer asparagus

Wild foods of Northern Colorado

Wild foods of northern Colorado,

specifically Ft. Collins and surrounding areas 

(Only food parts that we've actually eaten are listed.

There's more! There's more!)

Let Food be thy Medicine, and Medicine be thy Food.

Acorn                                                                           Elm - (seeds)

Salsify - (flower, stalks and buds, roots)                        Linden - (leaves, flowers, berries)

Black Locust (flowers, beans)                                       Burdock - (flower stalk, leaf petioles, root)

Dandelion - (leaves, flowers, root-eaten and brewed like coffee)     

Asparagus - (shoots)                                                     Thistle - (shoots, leaf petioles, root)

Sow Thistle - (leaves and stalks, flower buds)                Purslane - (all above ground parts)

Lamb's Quarters - (leaves, seeds)                                  Amaranth - (leaves, seeds)

Currant - (red, and at least 3 different black kinds)         Choke Cherry 

Autumn Berry or Silver Buffalo Berry                            Wild Strawberry - (berries, leaves dried and fresh)

Wild Raspberry - (berries, leaves dried and fresh)          Wild Plum - (at least 4 varieties) 

Apples - (who knows how many kinds?)                        Serviceberry

Highbush Cranberry - Crampbark (berries)                    Elderberry

Cow Parsnip - (stalks)                                                   Angelica - (stalks)

Wild onion - (whole plant)                                              Wild garlic - (whole plant)

Cattail - (hearts, shoots, rhizomes, pollen, rhizome fibers make good cordage...)                       

Bullrush - (rhizomes)

Evening Primrose - (roots, flowers, buds, seeds,stalk used for fiber)          

Wild mint(s) - (leaves, fresh and dried)

Milkweed - (shoots, flower buds, pods, young leaves, stalk also makes fiber, pod silk for stuffing)

Clover - (red and white, leaves and flowers fresh and dried) 

Black Walnut - (nuts, husks for dye)                               Sumac - (berries, cold brew tea)

Black Nightshade - (fruits, leaves)                                  Dock - (leaves, young stalk, young flower buds)

Prickly Pear, - (pads, fruit)                                             Common Mallow - (leaves, fruit)

Shepherd's Purse - (seeds, whole plant tops)                 Peppergrass - (seed pods, plant tops)

Day Lily - (tubers, flowers, dried flowers, buds)             Chamomile - (dried flowers for tea)

Pineapple Weed - Wild Chamomile (dried flowers)        American Licorice - (roots, chewed and dried)

Wild Rose - (hips, dried for tea)                                    Orach - (leaves, fresh and dried for spice)

Stinging Nettle - (leaves)

Conifers, Fir and Spruce - (young buds eaten fresh, added to water, needles used in tea)

Conifers, Pines - (needles used in tea)                            Juniper - (berries, used like peppercorns)

Ground Cherries - (fruits)                                               Wild Grape
Horseradish                                                                    Musk Mustard
Horehound                                                                     Bee Balm

Watercress                                                                      Oregano 

                   

 That's all i can remember now, but this list may grow over time. Feel free to inquire about more specific uses, or give us your own opinions. Happy Hunting. ~Rico