black walnut

Reply to: I, too have issues with the Evil trees - I have neighbors on either side who have 2 full grown trees each! I only have space for one dwarf peach tree because of all the shade (I do have several bushes & small trees like Rose of Sharon). I've been here 18 years now and have learned a thing or two about gardening under these trees since it's either the roots putting out the poison or the dripline killing my plants. It took me years to figure out the rain barrels I was using for the veggie garden was truly wiping out my tomatoes & cucumbers every season by the 4th of July & now I use straw bales to grow them so the poison doesn't touch them. I've found a lot of plants they say will work, don't & a lot that do. It's a matter of trial & error. I remove the plants asap when I notice them succumbing to poison & rinse off the roots thoroughly, then plant in new soil elsewhere (If I can save them in time). Sometimes it works, sometimes not. Ive lost all my Columbine except the wild Michigan ones that are protected- my Mom's friend received permission to take some, & I got her "extras", too! So, I'm helping save a protected species while getting columbines in my gardens! Yay!!! Feel free to contact me to ask any questions. Here's a great link to get you started (tho I have plants growing that here say no & plants that should but don't...): https://www.oakgov.com/msu/Documents/publications/oc0280_black_walnut.pdf

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Reply to: Our neighborhood was a native BW grove years ago & there are many types of Honeysuckle growing wild under BW trees here. I have a 5 yr old Lonicera Sempervirens & periclymenum growing great maybe 25' from a BW dripline. Last fall I moved a different bush that was growing 4' from the sempervirens, and found only 1 tiny walnut root, so not sure how 'exposed' it's been, but I believe they are tolerant. I tried growing crocus & Lily of the Valley in these spots, but they didn't survive, so I'd assume there's juglone in this dirt. Aphids are a much bigger problem than juglone... About the Hollies - I have Ilex meserveae at the drip line among BW roots, and they're doing great in very moist acid dirt. I'm no expert, but I know BW trees suck-up alot of water - and hollies need alot of water. One of my neighbors uphill from me was just commenting how his yard is getting drier each year as his BW trees grow.

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Reply to: My two holly bushes were on life support over a four-year period under a BW, and after discovering the toxicity of the BW I moved them far away- three years later they are thriving. I have arborvitae, a burning bush, and a verigaged dogwood (what I replaced the holly with) that do well, along with day lillies and russian sage. I was looking at a dwarf long-blooming lilac or rainbow butterfly bushes to plant near (but not under) the BW, and after reading above and other sites, may try the lilacs.

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Reply to: We clean up our yard to a certain degree. But it makes NO difference. If a plant is anywhere in contact with the roots of the tree, it's going to be affected. Although as of now plants in our garden are few (we're newbies), some plants we've successfully grown under the dripline are 'Autumn Fire' Sedum, canna lilies, red hot poker plants, spearmint, shasta daisies, gaillardia, and 'Silver Mound' artemisia. We have also planted two winterberry hollies and one american beautyberry bush this past week. They have yet to show signs of wilt. Time will tell...

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Reply to: Viburnums, smokebush (cotinus), spirea, butterfly bush, and roses don't do well under black walnuts. But under my huge trees I grow a wide range of hostas, lilies (tiger, Oriental, regal, (but NOT Madonna), astilbe, coral bells, daylilies, passion vine, echinaceas, spiderworts, irises (tall bearded dwarf, Siberian, wild crested, Louisiana), sedums, monarda, ferns, tall phlox, violets, gingers, lots of spring wildflowers and bulbs, hibiscus, nicotiana, dicentras, Virginia bluebells, Solomon's seal, saxifragia, hydrangeas, ajuga, goldenrod, asters, and many others. Redbuds, vitex, golden rain tree, mimosa, lilacs all do well within range of the walnut roots. Tomatoes, potatoes and other members of the nightshade family wilt and die almost immediatly when exposed to juglone, however. Hackberry trees, also somewhat alleopathic, refuse to allow snow on the mountain or any kind of lamium within the dripline of their branches while both plants do fine under black walnuts. Go figure.

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