A black walnut is a black walnut regardless of where it is grown :-) Yes, they grow here in the PNW ( I once considered buying a property that had a state record tree growing on it) but they are rarely grown here for any edible features. They are essentially a timber tree.

The walnuts grown in California are an entirely different species - English walnuts or Juglans regia. These are the walnuts predominately sold in stores, used in baking and in mixed nuts and they ARE a cash crop - 99% of the walnuts produced in this country are grown in CA orchards.

AFAIK, there is no significant commercial market for black walnuts - they are messy, harder to remove from their husks and they are bitter and lack the taste that make English walnuts so popular.

I agree with all the above except the taste of black walnuts. I have eaten many from a neighbor’s tree and they were delicious but man oh man what a pita to process.

tj

Thank you both. I remember thinking they were foul and was always disappointed to find them included in baked goods.

So you think they are mistaken about California Black Walnuts in that thread and are talking about English Walnuts?

Maybe. I know I find the black walnuts here more flavorful than English walnuts. Perhaps our more reliable midwest summer rains compared to PNW summer dryness does affect flavor.

tj

IMO the taste of black walnuts is better than English walnuts, certainly stronger. You can buy the nut-pieces in specialty aisles/stores, tho very expensive because so labor-intensive to extract/process. Walnut cake and ice-cream uses these, I'd say because they do taste better/stronger.

The question pertained specifically to the walnuts grown here in the PNW. And while there may be some English walnuts grown here as well, most walnut trees in this area are black walnuts.

There is no unique species known as a "California black walnut". it is the same Juglans nigra grown anywhere else in this country. And is NOT a crop that is grown for market in CA. That is restricted to English (or more accurately, Persian) walnuts, Juglans regia, of which CA is the major US supplier.

There IS a taste difference but the overwhelming popularity of English walnuts would indicate that the milder, sweeter flavor of the English walnuts is preferred for most purposes.

Oh Gardengal, I beg to difer: here in California we have the native Juglans californica.

I would agree the flavor of the ones I have tasted is not as good as the best clones of J. nigra, but they are worth the shelling PITA.

If you haven’t tasted the California black walnut, you should try one sometime.

@gardengal48 (PNW Z8/9) No one was taking issue with your statement that your local walnuts were Juglans nigra, nor that they are different from what is grown commercially in CA. You answered the question quite well. I was correcting your misconception that black walnuts were not a commercial crop and that they were somehow less desirable than English walnuts. The opposite is true. Though I've tasted rancid walnuts (like any other nut, they go bad), I've NEVER encountered a "bitter" black walnut. They are rich, dark, and even slightly fruity. Black walnuts are considered a delicacy, and are absolutely commercially available, if expensive...and not grown in CA. Beside Hammons, and Diamond, Heartland Nuts ‘N More in Valparaiso, Nebraska is a co-op that processes and markets only high-quality cultivar black walnuts. Also, at least six named varieties are grown on "plantations" in IA. In other states, black walnuts are mostly wild harvested, but none the less a commercial crop. The (exorbitant) price is a reflection of both the high demand, and the difficulty of processing them, although the cultivars tend to be much easier to shell.

And also, there IS a unique species of black walnut native to California: Juglans hindsii. And its common name is "Northern California black walnut". Its main importance, other than for its wood, is that it is quite commonly used as understock for grafting English walnuts.

EDIT: and I stand corrected by @iochroma, lol. She (oops..."he"...I stand doubly corrected) posted while I was typing. I didn't realize there was a "SOUTHERN CA black walnut", Juglans californica, as well. That makes two black walnuts native to CA, both edible, neither commercially grown except as a rootstock.

And for the record, Iochroma is a ”he”, at least on this forum.

It is a bit of a question whether we have two species, or one with two subspecies...

Thank you, all! This is really informative. I think I still am not a fan of black walnuts and would assume those grown in the PNW that I've had are not the California species.

@iochroma. I don't think I've ever run across anyone using your (given) name or gender. Oops. My genuine apologies. I corrected my post.

I guess the number depends on whether you're a lumper or splitter, lol. Reading up on J. californica, it seems like it tends to be a smaller tree, or even shrub-like? Are there other major discernible differences?

The availability may be more common in the midwest but I have NEVER, ever seen black walnut meats OR whole nuts for sale anywhere in the PNW.

And I can't justify the two native California species of walnut being referred to in the discussion that prompted this thread as being confused with those grown in the eastern half of the country. They are very unalike and the fruit of the California trees is barely palatable.

Gardengal, the reason the two California species were referred to at ALL is because you categorically, emphatically stated there WERE no black walnut species native to CA. No one tried to assume an equivalency between the CA species and the eastern species. No one. No suggestion was ever made that said species were an option for ID-ing Olychick's childhood encounter. At this point, you're merely being defensive, where there was no attack made.

There's a reason why English walnuts are the preferred type for commercial walnut crop. Black walnuts, on the other hand, are actually easier to grow than English (Black walnuts could grow in the wild). I think the English walnuts taste better, but not everyone agrees. With black walnuts you also have to be more careful about where the tree is planted because it can kill surrounding plants with the juglone it releases from its roots.

There's a reason why English walnuts are the preferred type for commercial walnut crop. Black walnuts, on the other hand, are actually easier to grow than English. I think the English walnuts taste better, but not everyone agrees. With black walnuts you also have to be more careful about where the tree is planted because it can kill surrounding plants with the juglone it releases from its roots. English walnuts have much lower levels.

Juglans in Flora of North America @ efloras.org

Embothrium, would you care to translate for us non-scientific types?