In this Issue...

• A Nut Growers Manual for Eastern Ontario
• George Joiner's Diary on the Baxter Nut Grove
• Irene Woolford updates the South Nation Plantation
• Dealing with Wild Parsnip
• CBC Radio Noon's Annual Gardening Week
• Professional Contacts
• Diane's Black Walnut Sauce
• Doug Campbell offers congratulations
• Removing Walnut Husks
• Bob Scally reports on his pecans
• Coordinating the Chapter Seed Exchanges

The 1988 South Nation Plantation Field Day will be held on Saturday, May 14th starting about9:30 AM. Bring shovels, rakes, gloves, lunch etc. and spend all or part of the day learning sitepreparation for new plantings and other horticultural skills from Chapter experts. For moreinformation, see the Nuttery article, or call Irene Woolford in Winchester.

A Nut Growers Manual for Eastern Ontario

Mark Schaefer, the editor for this manual, is pushing ahead quickly and enthusiastically tocompile all the wisdom he can find about nut growing in our region.

He is tackling the problem on several fronts simultaneously. The Chapter's unique Inventree file,which now lists some 70 to 100 sites where interesting nut trees are already growing in easternOntario, is being analysed for Class 1 sites. One of our professional members, Peter Janas,developed a special five-level classification scheme for eastern Ontario nut tree sites, which ratedthe potential quality of seed and progeny that could be gotten from the site. Class 1 sites producethe best. Mark now has identified a number of potential Class 1 sites from both Inventree andfrom newly found sites not yet documented in Inventree. This work will prove invaluable for thegrowers manual because it could make large amounts of highest quality seed and stock widelyavailable to individual members and to the Chapter for its community plantings and scientificdevelopment work. The Inventree file will be expanded and much better documented as a result.Mark is looking for all the best sites of any species of nuts. If you know any potential sites, tellMark as soon as possible, preferably by phone to save time. If you are not sure what speciesmight qualify, consult the following proposed Table of Contents for the Manual for the list ofspecies it will cover.

Mark is also studying the Chapter's growing collection of scientific and technical information onnut culture that is contained in our Technical Library. There are some 100 articles already in thelibrary. The library is in the care of Alec Jones, who is helping sort out the information for themanual. A bibliography of the library waspublishedin the Nuttery. If you have any material not listed there, please pass a copy to Alec as soon aspossible.

In order to organize the incoming information so as to speed up its compilation, Mark hasprepared a draft Table of Contents for the manual. Please read the table carefully, so as to seewhat kinds of information are wanted. Pay close attention to the species that have been selectedfor full treatment in the manual: these are the species for which your personal experiences aresolicited. Call Mark to let him know that you have information, and he will help you to submit it.

Mark can be reached at 27 McKitrick Dr., Kanata ON K2L 2J7; 836-3703.

George Joiner's Diary on the Baxter Nut Grove

Monday April 11th, up at 6 AM, the prospect of a beautiful day, light clouds, the sun strugglingto break through, very cool. Picked up Fil Park at 7 AM, enjoyed the motor trip along theRideau, turning out to be a perfect day. Arrived at the Baxter Nut Grove 8 AM. Within minutes,Alex Jones joined us. Fil and Alec made a thorough appraisal of the nut grove, noting conditionsof the trees, their comments to follow. Picked up my loppers at the Rideau Conservation area.Apparently last fall after working at the grove, I had left them in the field. Later learned that CliffCraig or one of his men found them and brought them back to their workplace, a little rusted butstill serviceable. Before starting my work on the clearing of the brush, north side, I took a goodlook at the grove and noted how beautiful our area was, with the vivid green of the perimetercedars and how sturdy and healthy our large trees appeared.

We do need help to make our nut grove a show place. Please note the date of our 1988 Field Day,May 7th, Saturday, starting as early as possible. Bring along Gloves, pointed shovels,loppers, rakes and lunches. Note the map that gives directions to the nut grove.

The 1988 Baxter Spring Field Program:

1. Small trees - need tender loving care, cultivation
   • compost or stable dressing
   • artificial fertilizer with thecompost
   • mulching
   • rabbit wire guards and staking
2. Large trees:
   • more mulching
   • fall pruning
   • fertilizing
3. Specifics:
   • Hackberry area due for site cleaning
   • Horse Chestnut area due for site cleaning
   • Japanese Walnut area due for site cleaning
   • Stratification pit needs site cleaning, removalof walnut seedlings to South Nation Plantation
4. Perimeter clearing:
   • remove dead trees
   • clean rock piles
   • trim cedars
   • clear alders at SE end(fall?)
5. New or replacement trees:
   • Shagbark Hickory (?George Christie)
   • Shagbark, Shellbark, Pin Oak (DougCampbell)
   • Bur Oak (?Alec Jones)
   • possibly others

Irene Woolford updates the South Nation Plantation

Well, the skiddoos have taken out one row of pines along the river bank, but luckily the tallweeds have kept them out of the rest of the plantation. Five foot high stalks of wild parsnip andthistles have discouraged the winter fun-seekers from destroying the lot. So neglect has served itwell!

On Wednesday, 30th March, on a fine clear day, Mark Schaefer and I looked over the situation totry and find the trees. Many of the little pines had been pushed over by the weight of the deadgrasses and needed help, but the majority are fine and the survival rate is very high. Where theparsnips shaded the pines, there is not grass - a benefit I would think.

In the black walnut area the tree guards were in place and there was no apparent damage fromrabbit or rodents. Perhaps a visiting Snowy Owl in the neighbourhood helped. The three yearwalnuts are up to 30" tall and there are still seeds germinating in the rows and these are about 8"tall. Probably 50 need to be transplanted. I have written to the South Nation ConservationAuthority to ask for their help on our 1988 Plantation Field Day and to tell them of our plans.

On our 1988 Plantation Field Day May 14th I expect to see you all out with your shovelssharpened up, your bug repellent, lunch and suntan oil. If it rains, we will try for the followingweekend, as Dundas clay is impossible to work when wet. Note that the facilities at theplantation are primitive. Call me, Irene Woolford, at Winchester 774-3385 to RSVP or for moreinformation or directions.(continued)

Dealing with Wild Parsnip

The South Nation site is populated with a plant called the cow parsnip which can grow 2-3 mtall. This plant will be removed before tree planting begins. Special precautions are necessarybecause the plant is toxic and causes photodermatitis, a severe reaction on skin exposed to theplant and strong sunlight simultaneously. The toxin, furanocoumarin, can cause painful blisteringand browning in the presence of long-wave ultraviolet light. Do not allow the plant to contactskin during handling. Wear gloves, long sleeves and trousers. On the plus side, the cow parsnipis an edible plant. The young shoots in April and May, while only half unfurled, can be used inseveral cooked dishes and for beer. The tubers, collected well before the late spring flowering, orin the fall well after flowering, are also edible. The shoots and tubers should be peeled and boiledin several waters. The dried seeds ground can be used as seasoning. The flavour is reported to bestrong. The plant is in the family Apiaceae or Umbelliferae and is related to poison hemlock andwater hemlock, which it resembles. There are several edible species of the parsnip, includingHeracleum lanatum, H. maximum, H sphondylium and H. mattegazzianum.

References: Middleton, Ray. "Eating Out" in Outdoor Canada 16(3):68 (1988); Szczawinski,A.F. & Tumer, N.J. Wild Green Vegetables of Canada: Edible Wild Plants of Canada no.4.National Museum of Natural Sciences, 1980.

CBC Radio Noon's Annual Gardening Week

The Chapter has been invited to participate in the special show on Friday May 6th between 12and 2 PM on CBO Radio as part of this special week. This annual show gives the variousgardening groups in the area an opportunity to meet the public in person and on the air to explaintheir activities and how to get in touch.

Bob Scally and Alec Jones will be looking after our booth on the Freiman Mall in the RideauCenter. The booth will show Fil and George's excellent poster on how the Baxter Nut Grove istended, exhibit nut samples, our cookbook and this issue of the Nuttery. The Chapter's brochureand membership application will be handed out.

Bill Kehoe will be interviewing each booth live on the extended edition of Radio Noon'sgardening program. Listen in! Write your reactions to the Nuttery editor. Make a point ofstopping by our booth if you are downtown during the day. Call Alec or Bob for moreinformation.

Professional Contacts

In his travels, Marcel Boulet meets many interesting people. Recently, he met a man named TedJozwiak who is with Ottawa City Parks, possibly a foreman. Ted's number is 564-1944. Weshould get in touch with him, as we do not presently have any official contact with Ottawaarborists. Also, Marcel notes that he has met Maurice Michaud and Philip Scantland of Hull'senvironmental department. We should also contact them for the same reason. They are with theForêt Privé unit, and can be reached at 770-3487. Their address is suite 7-340, 170Hotel de Ville, Hull J8X 4C2.

There are undoubtedly other professionals in the region that our Chapter should be in touch with.If, like Marcel, you meet such people in your travels, please get their names and phone numbers,and let the Nuttery and the Chapter executive know.

Diane's Black Walnut Sauce

Diane Fraser and family, major contributors to the Chapter's cookbook, Recipes in a Nutshell,have done it again! Diane recently gave us a sample of the black walnut chocolate sauce she toldus about in the last issue of the Nuttery. If all goes well, this will be available for member testingat the Baxter Field Day on May 7th, and the South Nation Plantation Field Day on May 14th.This tasting is another reason you should show up for these two very important days in theChapter's annual program.

Thanks from all of us, Diane, and please keep the goodies coming as long as you can!

Doug Campbell offers congratulations

Doug is the editor of SONG, the newsletter of our parent organization.He writes to offer hiscongratulations to the Chapter on its tenth birthday. He commends us for our continuing highlevel of activity judging by the number of busy projects we have underway. He wishes us 10more years of successes... Thanks, Doug, for your kind thoughts from all of us in the OttawaChapter!

Removing Walnut Husks

The Nuttery recently received a letter from Fred Von Althen, who you will recall was the speakerat this year's Annual General Meeting, about using a cement mixer to clean black walnuts. Hetells of placing about one bushel of seed into the mixer, along with several large rocks each aboutthe size of two or three fists, and fill the mixer ¾ full of water. Let it run for about a halfhour. The nuts come out clean and undamaged. Thanks, Fred, for the tip!

Fred also invites members of the Chapter to visit his research plantations near Parkhill andHighway 81 about 50 km north of London during the month of July. If you think you might goand wish Fred to give you a guided tour, please contact him as soon as possible through hisoffice in Sault Ste.Marie: his address there is Great Lakes Forestry Center, P.O.Box 490, SaultSte.Marie ON P6A 5M7; (705)949-9461.

Also in his letter, Fred expressed his pleasure at having the chance to speak to the Chapter, whichhe feels has an exceptional appreciation of reforestation and management of hardwoods.Speaking for the membership, I believe I can assure Fred that everyone feels his presentation wasthe best we have ever had, and hopes that we all can keep in touch as nut growing blossoms ineastern Ontario.

Bob Scally reports on his pecans

Bob planted out a number of pecans that he is sure came from Georgia. Lo and behold, ten ofthem sprouted. He has offered three to be planted at the Baxter Nut Grove. If you have hadsimilar success with any species on the List of 77 that might grow in eastern Ontario, considerdonating some to the Chapter's planting efforts.

Coordinating the Chapter Seed Exchanges

One of the main raison d'être for having an Ottawa Chapter of SONG is to make as wide avariety of nut seed and stock available to members. Generally, we have attempted this by tryingto hold seed and stock exchanges at every Chapter meeting. The idea is that the best local sourcesfor acclimatized material would be from the possible surplus that members might have ofparticular species.

Lately, the exchanges have been few and far between. This is not because material is notavailable, but mostly because we do not have anyone to take on the job of coordinating andpublicising the exchanges. The job entails first canvassing members for what they might beprepared to trade and/or to get. This information would then be compiled, summarized andpublished in the Nuttery for example. The coordination would arrange for seed and stockexchanges to take place routinely at every Chapter meeting.

The Chapter needs a Seed & Stock Exchange Coordinator.

Provided by ECSONG. Feel free to copy with a credit.