Ripe walnuts are rich in vitamin C and omega-3 fatty acids. In order to use the excellent nutrients in the best possible way, it is important to choose the right harvest time. This guide tells you in detail when you should harvest your walnuts.

Walnuts are harvested in autumn

All information about the harvest time for walnuts

Basically, the harvest time for walnuts extends over the months of September and October. Among other things, it also depends on the variety of walnut tree when you can harvest the fruit. Here are some examples:

  • Spreewald walnut: early to late September
  • Weinheim walnut: Mid to late September
  • Red Danube Nut: end of September
  • Weinsberger walnut: late September to early October
  • Geisenheim walnut: early October

Note: It takes about two to five years for a walnut tree to bear fruit for the first time, depending on the specific species.

How ripe walnuts show and behave

You can recognize fully ripe walnuts by their green-brown discoloration and a burst, wrinkled, cracked outer shell. Conveniently, the fruits fall off the tree by themselves when ripe.

Important: Leave the walnuts on the tree for as long as possible. Early frosts do not harm them. Avoid plucking the fruit from the tree (often damaging the tree shoots and affecting next year's harvest).

Walnuts that have fallen to the ground by themselves indicate the ideal ripeness. They have developed the full flavor and can be stored for a long time (if you clean and dry them immediately after harvest).

Walnut Harvest - Schedule for the home gardener

  • Mow the area around the walnut tree generously before the start of the harvest season. By keeping the grass short, you make the harvest much easier.
  • Pick up fallen walnuts every day (even mornings AND afternoons on rainy days). This will prevent the nuts from rotting in damp grass.
  • Freshly picked walnuts taste best. Before consumption, remove the thin white skin that lies around the fruit body under the peel (bitter taste).

Note: You don't need to do this step for dried walnuts. With the loss of moisture, the skin also loses its bitter substances.

Category:

Vegetable garden