Talk:Juglans

Wood Strength

The following text was removed, because I don't believe it is true, at least in Europe. It is the common (English) walnut that is slow growing and hardwooded. The black walnut grows at a much faster rate, and its timber is less valuable. If it is not so in the US, this section ought to be modified accordingly.

<quote> The English walnut is a fast-growing tree compared to other trees in its family. Therefore, walnut wood is a soft material compared to oak. The black walnut is slower-growing and the wood harder, is highly valued for its durability and unique colour. The American butternut, Juglans cinerea, is similar to black walnut in many ways, but the wood is much weaker. <end quote>

In my yard in the US, the English walnuts (Juglans regia) grow faster than the black walnuts (Juglans nigra). Jay L09 (talk) 21:06, 6 November 2008 (UTC)

Compared to Pecans

Has anyone noticed that walnuts basically look like lighter-colored, more corrugated pecans? Even the taste, while not identical, has similarities. Is this purely coincidental, or are these trees related?ThVa (talk) 09:32, 12 October 2008 (UTC)

Answer posted to ThVa's talk page:  They are all members of the family Juglandaceae. Jay L09 (talk) 21:02, 6 November 2008 (UTC)

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I came here wondering why a walnut is shaped the way it is. Extensive Google searching yielded nothing helpful. Are their any good theories?

Storage

"They need to be kept dry and refrigerated to store well; in warm conditions they become rancid in a few weeks, particularly after shelling." I keep 'm shelled in a vacuum container; they are perfectly edible after well over a year of storage. 83.160.162.119 18:25, 6 January 2006 (UTC)

Keeping oxygen out will certainly reduce the rate of deterioration. But they still won't be as good as fresh walnuts; try germinating one to see if it will grow (that's the best test for quality) - MPF 10:10, 12 January 2006 (UTC)

• [Well, DUH.] Danny Lilithborne 08:12, 7 January 2006 (UTC)

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does anyone know how to harvest them? I just moved into a house that has a beautiful tree and I would like to take advantage of it.

Nutrition?

I came to this page looking for nutritional information, but found nothing significant. Octothorn 12:49, 11 January 2006 (UTC)

This page covers the entire genus Juglans. Nuts from different species in the genus have different nutritional profiles. In particular, the tropical members of Juglans have a higher proportion of palmitate (a/k/a "saturated fat") in their seed oil than the temperate ones. A nutritional profile for the English walnut can be found on the Juglans regia page, where it belongs. Jay L09 (talk) 08:34, 19 December 2008 (UTC)

omega-3

"Walnuts are also an excellent source of omega-3 fatty acids, and have been shown as helpful in lowering cholesterol." This is in direct contradiction with Omega-3_fatty_acids, which states: "Walnuts (Juglans regia) contain small amounts of omega-3 yet high amounts of omega-6, so are likely to be detrimental in a diet already rich in omega-6.[3] Black walnuts (Juglans nigra) have a marginally more favorable omega-3:omega-6 ratio, but are still a poor means of improving the omega-3:omega-6 dietary ratio." 83.160.162.119 18:25, 6 January 2006 (UTC)

If the common ratio in people's diets overall can be as high at 30:1 in favor of omega-6, and walnuts offer a 4:1 ratio, that's an improvement. If you ate nothing but 4:1 foods you'd be shrinking that enormous gap. It's still a diet with more omega-6 than omega-3, but given that it's a far larger proportion of the whole than other foods (say, a food that's 26:1)you're receiving more 3s and less 6s in terms of the nutritional density. At the very least, then, it's logical to say they are an excellent source of the acid, at least in relative terms. I can't speak to the second half about cholesterol. I couldn't find the quote or source any longer in the article you mentioned, so I can't be sure what they're referencing when referring to walnuts as a detriment, but semantically the argument doesn't wash unless it's substantiated somehow.

aphrodisiac effects ?

The link alleging aphrodisiac effects[1] was placed here without a signature. The article, which seems to be suggesting that (English) walnuts are some sort magical cure for erectile dysfunction (ED) actually shows that extreme malnutrition can cause ED, and that walnuts contain protein—no news. Jay L09 (talk) 08:34, 19 December 2008 (UTC)

Pruning

I came to find the right time in the year to prune a walnut tree and can't find anything.

http://www.walnutcouncil.org/pruning.htm-69.87.204.105 (talk) 11:18, 2 September 2008 (UTC)

Sourcing

This needs a cite: ;Herbal Treatment

In Italy, the outer green shell is taken off the walnut skins while they are growing, and made into a tonic. Used for intestinal disorders, various symtpoms we call diseases, ie IBS, etc, as part of various bitters, or appertifs, the tonic is known for its anti-parastic value.

Health benefits

Stumbled upon this article: A Walnut Diet Improves Endothelial Function in Hypercholesterolemic Subjects. A Randomized Crossover Trial (PMID 15037535). If the information is true, it would be good to include the health claims of walnut consumption in the article.--CopperKettle 02:45, 11 September 2006 (UTC) P.S. A quote from the article: Nuts are fatty foods rich in unsaturated fatty acids.1 Epidemiological studies have shown that frequent nut consumption decreases the risk of coronary artery disease (CAD), with adjusted relative risk reductions approaching 50% for nut intakes of >4 to 5 servings per week compared with little or no intake.2–4 Feeding trials have demonstrated that healthy diets enriched with a variety of nuts consistently reduce total and LDL cholesterol by 5% to 15%.1,4–8 The lipid effects of nut intake only explain in part the CAD risk reduction observed in prospective studies, suggesting that nuts might have antiatherosclerotic effects beyond cholesterol lowering.

Besides having a favorable fatty acid profile, nuts are a rich source of bioactive compounds with potential benefit on CAD risk such as dietary fiber, folic acid, and antioxidants.1 Nuts also contain sizeable amounts of L-arginine, the precursor amino acid of the endogenous vasodilator nitric oxide (NO).9 Walnuts differ from all other nuts by a high content of -linolenic acid (ALA), a vegetable n-3 fatty acid,10 which might confer them additional antiatherogenic properties.11--CopperKettle 02:56, 11 September 2006 (UTC)

After reading the journal article referenced by CopperKettle, I have "cleaned" the treatment of this study, as follows:

• Replaced "unhealthy" with "saturated" fat.
• Replaced "researcher" with "researchers" in second mention to make the statements parallel.
• Replaced "8" with "40 g" shelled walnuts to follow the referenced journal article.
• Removed "the following week". The order of the meals was randomized.
• Changed statement about dangerous inflammation and oxidation to deny any changes, in accordance with the referenced journal article. Replaced the apparently claimed effects on the arteries with the concentrations in the blood samples, in accordance with the referenced journal article.
• Removed second mention of saturated fat.
• Removed "helped" phraseology which was typical of advertising copy: either there was an effect or there was not; the experimental conditions did not "help" to produce an effect.
• Increased detail in discussion of arterial flexibility discussion.
• Added professional connection between the lead researcher and the walnut industry.
• Changed "said" to "speculated that" to more accurately reflect the following content.
• Removed "plant-based" as unnecessary. Jay L09 (talk) 20:59, 6 November 2008 (UTC)

This entire section seems to deal with English walnuts (Juglans regia). I have moved the section on health benefits from the Juglans page to the Juglans regia page. Jay L09 (talk) 17:55, 17 November 2008 (UTC)

spiny hull or husk

I am not sure how to distinguish between the unshelled nuts of the walnut tree, butternut tree, pecan tree, and almond tree. Can anybody help me here? All I have to go on, is a big paper sack full of unhulled nuts, and they are encased in these thick spiny or thorny hulls. I think that there exist machines that can peel off the thorny hulls before revealing the nut within, but I am reluctant to do anything along those lines until I buy a pair of gloves. I don't have the slightest idea what the trees look like; all I have is the sack of unhulled nuts to go on.

Are the nuts of all of these trees characterized by thorny hulls or spiny husks?

The main article would be improved if somebody posted a picture of a nut inside its original spiny hull.

The nuts with spiny husks are possibly beechnuts or chestnuts. Walnuts, butternuts, pecans, and almonds do not have spiny or thorny hulls. -- Jay L09 (talk) 18:21, 12 November 2008 (UTC)

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It seems that all walnut husks are smooth on the outside.

The article needs pictures of real walnut husks, and what the nuts really look like inside. They seem to be green and yellow colors. -69.87.204.105 (talk) 11:55, 2 September 2008 (UTC)

Is walnut really a nut?

It might not be common knowledge, but it was at least hinted from the front page that there is a covering outside of the corrugated walnut shell. Wouldn't that be called the drupe, and technically (botanically) make walnut not really a nut? It would be the same as almonds, from the genus Prunus. - cymbol

The walnut nut is most certainly a nut—but not in the botanical sense of a kind of fruit. The walnut fruit (which includes the nut) is a Tryma, as explained under the heading Fruit. The walnut tree is not a nut. You may believe that I am a nut—that is a matter of opinion. Jay L09 (talk) 08:34, 19 December 2008 (UTC)

Resources relevant to the page

To avoid WP:OR we would have to come up with verifiable references. I found this one from Ohio State (and others);

"Butternuts and walnuts are deciduous trees with scaly, furrowed bark. Pith is chambered and colored. Buds have few scales. Flowers are monoecious. Male flowers are borne in long catkins. Female flowers are rounded and have conspicuous, red-fringed stigmas. Fruit is a large drupe with a two- to four-celled nut."

--ComplexEndeavors 18:18, 24 September 2007 (UTC)

This is a list for good resources. As they become incorporated, either strike them or cut them out. Feel free to add, but be brief.

• I noticed this highly cited paper from NEJM Effects of Walnuts on Serum Lipid Levels and Blood Pressure in Normal Men. Suggests good results for lipoproteins.

II | (t - c) 20:58, 13 July 2008 (UTC)