We grow and sell seedling nut trees. These trees grow directly from the nut rather than being grafted onto a rootstock.  Like children, seedlings are each genetically different. They will not be an exact copy of either parent. The parents of our nut tree seedlings are selected for superior hardiness, nut quality and straight, timber-type growth. Traits like upright growth habit and hardiness have become relatively ``fixed'' over the generations and are present in almost all seedlings of these parents. (Those that do not measure up are eliminated.) Ease of cracking, size of nuts, and time of ripening will be more variable. Because of the genetic diversity inherent in seedlings, a small percentage will actually exceed the performance of both parents. Keep your eyes open for the ``exceptional child!''
 
 

American Chestnut — Castanea dentata 8 to 18 in. trees $15.00 each Restoring the American Chestnut, which was wiped out in the 1930's by the blight, has been the focus of groups like the American Chestnut Foundation. In the early 1970's, Fred Ashworth found three trees in the Watertown, NY area which, although blighted, healed over their cankers and continued to produce seed for many years. These are fourth-generation seedlings of those Watertown trees, and are likely to exhibit even more resistance than their predecessors. Plant more than one for pollination. Protect from rodents and deer!

Black Walnut — Juglans nigra 2 to 4 ft. trees $9.00 each, 25 or more $8.00 each, 100 or more $7.00 each Without question, our nut trees are far hardier than those offered by any other nursery in the country. Our black walnut seedlings are the results of Fred Ashworth's 50-odd years of breeding for hardiness, timber quality, and cracking quality of nuts. We also collect seed from a few exceptional local parent trees which meet our standard for hardiness and quality. Black walnuts yield a beautiful dark-grained lumber, as well as rare and flavorful nutmeats that retail for $10 to $15/lb. Plant a few for your retirement — or for your grandchildren!

Buartnut (Butternut X Heartnut), Pierce selection — Juglans cinerea X Juglans ailantifolia 8 to 18 in. trees $9.00 each These seedlings exhibit the strongest growth we have ever seen in a nut tree, probably the result of hybrid vigor. While pure heartnuts are not hardy here, these hybrid nut trees have the hardiness of the butternut and the precocity (nuts in clusters of 10-15) of the heartnut. The nuts are exactly like a butternut.   Butternut — Juglans cinerea 8 to 18 in.  trees $9.00 each The most northern hardy of the walnut family, butternuts are prized both for the quality of their nutmeats and for their lumber (also called "white walnut," and noted for its "chatoiance," or shimmering quality.) These are seedlings of locally grown, hardy butternuts. In good soil they are extremely fast growers.

Hazelbert — Corylus sp.  2 to 4 ft. plants $8.00 each, $130 package of 20 The best of many crosses made by Fred Ashworth in the 1920's. All of the seedlings are of Skinner (Hazelnut) X Graham and Winkler (Filbert). The former is known for its extreme hardiness and resistance to catkin freezeback; the latter has size and quality of nuts. Hazelberts grow as a tall shrub (8 to12 ft.), and make a wonderful edible hedge. The nut clusters in their fringed husks are very ornamental, and in the Fall the leaves turn a striking mixture of red, yellow, orange and green.

Korean Nut Pine — Pinus koraiensis  6 to 12 in. plants $10.00 each An extremely hardy tree that produces edible pine nuts. Notorious for its slow growth rate, this beautiful tree has long soft needles like those of white pine. The large cones will yield an extremely nutritous and edible "pignolia" type nut. Their growth might be helped along by supplying approriate soil microbes in the form of humus from underneath other pine trees. Protect with a bit of shade when they are young. Does not require a pollinator.

Bur Oak — Quercus macrocarpa— Ashworth selection 3 to 5 ft. trees $9.00 each, $75 package of 10 Discovered by the late Fred Ashworth, the mother tree is a precocious producer of high quality acorns containing nearly no tannic acid (no bitter taste). These seedlings are somewhat slow growing but unequaled for their beauty and ability to last through generations of bad weather and abuse. They are strong, with a straight trunk and gnarly branches that give the oak its ``spooky old tree'' silhouette. The bur oak is the hardiest of all the oaks, and Ashworth's ``sweet'' acorns make it a favorite with wildlife.

Shagbark Hickory — Carya ovata 1 to 2 ft. trees $8.00 each These are seedlings of an extremely cold-hardy local shagbark from the Ashworth plantings. The nuts fill well, are sweet and have relatively thin shells. Hickories put most of their beginning growth into their very substantial taproot, so many of these have a longer root than top!

HARDSHELL NUT CRACKER

This high-leverage heavy duty cracker is designed so that even kids can crack the most difficult nuts. Black walnuts, butternuts, hickory and hazelbert all crack rapidly and easily. Nut size adjustment is simple and the unit may be mounted either horizontally (on a homemade wooden tray) or vertically (wall, etc.) Shells break outward from the kernel yielding chunks instead of bits. Now you can have your own freshly-cracked nuts in breads, cakes, cookies and candy.   Wt. 5 lb., Price: $52.00

NUT WIZARD HANDY PICK UP TOOL

Perfect for picking up black walnuts and butternuts, but also works for tennis balls, drop apples, oranges, sweet gum fruits, almost anything that is round or oval and between 1 1/4 inch and 4 inches. Comes with its own handle and wire frame unloading bracket, which can be mounted on a standard 5-gallon bucket. Simply place flexible tines down over  the "hump" of the bracket, twist, and voila — the nuts or other gathered objects fall easily into the bucket! Nut Wizard Tool $50.00, Shipping $15.00: Total = $65.00

CHOOSING A SITE FOR YOUR NUT TREES

Pollination and spacing in nut trees

Deer Protection

How soon will they yield nuts?