{"id":1062,"date":"2019-08-31T04:55:22","date_gmt":"2019-08-31T04:55:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/greenmanpublishing.com\/?p=1062"},"modified":"2019-09-17T23:00:25","modified_gmt":"2019-09-17T23:00:25","slug":"hazelnut","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/greenmanpublishing.com\/index.php\/2019\/08\/31\/hazelnut\/","title":{"rendered":"Hazelnut"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Corylus<\/em> avellana<\/em> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

These attractive shrubs are\nnotable as the smallest plants to produce a significant commercial nut crop.\nBecause of their compact size they can even be fitted in small gardens.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

About Filbert<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hours of winter chill:\n500-1000 <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Size \u2013 10-20 feet x 10-20ft\nwide<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Zone: 5-9 <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Blooming period: Late\nwinter\/early spring <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Fruiting period: September –\nOctober<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Life expectancy: 50 years <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Bearing age: 2-4years<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Yield: 5-20lb<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Spacing: 10-20ft apart<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ease\nof growing: Filberts are fairly\nundemanding, but have a major pest in the form of squirrels. If you have\nsquirrels in your area they can make growing filberts quite frustrating (unless\nyou cage the bushes). There is also a significant disease, the Eastern Filbert\nBlight, though resistant varieties are now available.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Another potential problem is\nthat the flowers appear in late winter and can be damaged by severe cold (-15\u00b0F).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Climate:\nThe Filbert thrives in colder conditions\nthan any other commercial nut crop and is an important nut producer in Northern\nEurope. They actually prefer cool weather and don\u2019t like very hot summers. They\nhave a fairly high chill requirement and can tolerate temperatures as low as\n-25\u00b0F.\nThe flowers appear in late winter and can be damaged by severe cold (-15\u00b0F).\nThey grow best in interior Washington and Oregon and may have problems when\ngrown elsewhere.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Soil.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

pH 6.5 -7.5<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Filberts prefer a deep,\nfertile, well drained soil that is neutral or slightly alkaline. However they\nwill grow in most soils, even quite poor, rocky ones.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Site<\/p>\n\n\n\n

These species will grow in\nlight shade but prefer full sun for a good part of the day. They are quite\ndrought tolerant, but produce better with regular moisture. In nature they grow\nin the understory layer protected by larger trees. In hot climates they benefit\nfrom light shade. If your soil isn\u2019t very well drained you might consider\nplanting on a hillside, or on a mound.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Planting:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In mild climates filberts can\nbe planted at any time from late fall to early spring. In colder climates they\nare usually planted in spring. As with most other plants a small tree\ntransplants better than a large tree and will do better in the long run. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

When you get your plants home\nit is a good idea to get them in the ground as soon as possible, but if this\nisn\u2019t possible you should heel them in, which means placing them in a trench\n(this trench has one vertical side and one at 45 degrees, the trees being laid\nin at 45 degrees and soil is firmed over them to fill the trench). If you buy\nplants mail order you should unwrap them immediately and soak the roots in\nwater overnight before planting or heeling in.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How: Dig the planting hole 2\u20113 times as wide as the root\nball, to give the roots plenty of loose soil to grow into. You want the hole to\nbe the same depth as the root ball (or roots if bare root), so it can be set\ninto the ground at the same depth it was growing in the nursery. This is most\neasily measured by laying a stick across the hole to get the right height. The\ngraft union should be 3-6\u201d above the soil.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Start planting by throwing a\ncouple of shovels of soil (possibly mixed with some organic matter if the soil\nis poor \u2013 to help it hold moisture) into the bottom of the hole. Make this into\na slight mound and then spread the roots out evenly over it. You then put some\nsoil in the hole to anchor the tree in place and firm it down. Then re-fill the\nhole with the rest of the soil (make sure the tree remains vertical). You may\nalso want to add some rock phosphate to the soil as you go. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

When you have finished\nplanting the tree should be on a slight mound, so as the soil settles it\nbecomes flat. If it starts out flat it may end up as a slight depression where\nwater can collect (which can be a problem on poorly drained soils).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You then water the tree\nthoroughly, not only to supply water to the plant, but also to settle the soil\nand establish contact between roots and soil. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The final step is to spread\nout a mulch to conserve water, and keep down weed competition (keep this six\ninches away from the trunk). <\/p>\n\n\n\n

It is also a very good idea\nto put a permanent label on the tree saying the variety and rootstock (and\nwrite it down in your garden journal).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Support: Newly planted trees were once routinely supplied\nwith a stake to support them, but it is now thought that trees become stronger\nmore rapidly if not staked. Staking is only usually necessary on very windy\nsites (especially for dwarf trees which grow on weak rootstocks).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Protection: If gophers live in your area you will have to plant\nyour trees in gopher wire baskets (I make my own to whatever size I need). If\nother rodents are a problem (they may chew on the bark, stunting or even\nkilling the tree) you may have to use various kinds of metal or plastic mouse\nguards. These should go several inches into the ground and should have gravel\naround them to deter digging.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Maintenance: Filberts are easy to grow if you give them the right\nconditions, but squirrels can be a major pest.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mulch: Filberts appreciate a deep mulch of leaf mold or\ncompost. It keeps the ground moist and supplies necessary nutrients. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Fertilizing: Filberts aren\u2019t heavy feeders and if growth is good\nit isn\u2019t necessary to fertilize (the mulch will supply all they need). If\ngrowth is poor you may want to give extra nitrogen in\nthe form of.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Watering: The plants are quite drought tolerant, but for best\nproduction you should keep the soil somewhat moist.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Pruning: Filberts are usually trained to grow as shrubs, with\nseveral stems, but they can also be trained to grow as trees with one long main\ntrunk. They bear on the previous years wood and once established need little\npruning. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Pollination:\nFilberts are monoecious (the long male\ncatkins and small red female flowers are found on the same plant) and can\nself-pollinate. However the two kinds of flowers aren\u2019t always open at the same\ntime, so you will get much better fruiting if you plant two varieties.\nObviously the male flowers on one must be open at the same time as female\nflowers on the other.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Flowers are cross-pollinated\nby the wind and wet or cold winter weather can adversely affect this. They sometimes\nbecome alternate bearing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Propagation: Filbert is fairly easy to grow from fresh (not\ndried) seed. This can be stratified indoors, though it\u2019s easier to just plant\nthe fresh nuts outside in the fall to stratify naturally. They can also be\npropagated by separating suckers from the parent plant, layering (bend a branch\nover and cover it with soil) or root cuttings (each with 2 buds). Improved\ncultivars may be grafted on to seedling rootstocks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Pests: Squirrels were born to eat hazelnuts and if there\nare any in your garden (are any gardens without them?) you won\u2019t get many nuts\nunless you take precautions. In extreme cases this may have to be a complete\ncage (this have to be very complete, otherwise these intelligent animals will\nfind a way in).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Birds:\nSome birds adore the nuts also and they too can be kept out by netting.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Aphids:\n<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Eastern\nFilbert Blight \u2013 This fatal fungal\ndisease can be a serious problem for gardeners in the eastern part of the\ncountry. Fortunately newer varieties are immune.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Harvest: The nuts should be left on the plant until they\nmature fully and fall from the plants. If you pick too early they are okay to\neat immediately, but don\u2019t keep for very long. It is essential to pick the\nfallen nuts promptly otherwise birds, squirrels or other rodents will.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You\ncan tell if a nut is ripe by turning it in the husk, if it moves it is pretty\nmuch ripe.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Storage: Dry the nuts in the sun, turning occasionally until\nthe kernel is brittle. They will then store for months in a cool (below 50\u00b0F) dry\nplace. The shelled nuts can be frozen for longer storage.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Landscape\nuses: Filbert is a very attractive,\nvigorous and densely growing shrub and can be used as a hedge, screen or\nspecimen plant. They sucker vigorously and can grow into dense thickets. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In England Hazel is commonly\ncoppiced to produce long thin poles, which are split and woven into wattle\nfence panels. These poles can also be used for garden supports and other uses.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Unusual\ngrowing ideas: Filbert can be grown as a\nproductive hedge by spacing the plants 4-5ft apart.. They also work well as an\nunderstory layer in a forest garden.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Rootstock: Filberts\nusually grow on their own roots or on seedlings.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Varieties   Food uses\nTree Hazel <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Corylus avellana These attractive shrubs are notable as the smallest plants to produce a significant commercial nut crop. Because of their compact size they can even be fitted in small … Read More<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":1742,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1062","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-nuts","entry"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/greenmanpublishing.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/08\/Hazelnut.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/greenmanpublishing.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1062","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/greenmanpublishing.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/greenmanpublishing.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/greenmanpublishing.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/greenmanpublishing.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1062"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/greenmanpublishing.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1062\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1743,"href":"https:\/\/greenmanpublishing.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1062\/revisions\/1743"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/greenmanpublishing.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1742"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/greenmanpublishing.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1062"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/greenmanpublishing.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1062"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/greenmanpublishing.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1062"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}