I’m finally posting an update about our fall harvest! Hazelnuts started to be picked starting in mid to late-August and ending by mid-September. The ripening varies because of the wide variety of plants that are planted in our “test” orchard. Dan collecting hazelnuts Each bunch is picked and put in a bag. Drying out the […]
If you recently bought one of our plants. Here is a fact sheet that will help in planting. You can always contact us at riverbendhazelnuts@gmail.com for more detailed planting information. HYBRID HAZELNUTS from Dan Johnson at Riverbend Hazelnuts Grows as a shrub 6 to 10 feet tall, and will make a wonderful edible hedge. Has […]
After we taste test the hazelnuts, and look at all its various characteristics (non-suckering, thin-shelled nut, good taste ect.), we choose the best ones and plant them. To grow hazelnuts from seed, they need to be stratified (undergo a period of cold temperature) in order to germinate. This can be done in two ways. You […]
After the hazelnuts are all picked, they need to be dried down for a few weeks. For the best varieties of hazelnuts the nuts will fall right out of the husks, so those nuts can just be put in a paper bag and set in a cool, dry location. For the hazelnuts that don’t drop […]
OK. I am finally updating. I meant to update during harvest, but things just got busy. We had a very good crop this year! Lots of nuts from lots of trees. I think the hot pepper spray is working its magic on the squirrels. On the last post I talked about how to tell if […]
The hazelnuts are just starting to ripen! Now we just need to collect them before the squirrels can get to them. We started spraying them last week with our hot pepper spray, (see August 17, 2012 post for recipe), which seems to help deter the squirrels from completely wiping out he hazelnut crop. My dad has also […]
I’d thought I would update with some fall color pictures. The fall color seems to vary with the variety/species. The american hazelnuts (native) Corylus americana, have a nice red color. The european hazelnuts, Corylus avellana, have a yellow fall color. For the hybrids, you can see which has more genes from the american or european […]
I’m finally getting around to updating the blog about the field day in October! It was very informative and good to meet all the other people interested in growing hazelnuts! My parents (Dan and Nancy) and I probably came the farthest!The field day was at Norm Erickson’s Hazelnut Valley Farm, where he had quite a […]
Norm Erickson Farm – 1186 W. Lakewood Avenue – Lake City, MNJoin the Minnesota Hazelnut Foundation, Rural Advantage, and University of Minnesota for a Hazelnut Walk-n-Talk field day on Saturday, October 6, 2012, from 10am to 4pm just outside of Lake City, Minnesota at Norm Erickson’s Hazelnut Valley Farm. Hazelnuts are a multi-functional crop that […]
My parents attended a field day hosted by the University of Minnesota on propagating hazelnuts on July 26. They were quoted in the following article!US: The rise of Minnesota hazelnutsIt was very interesting to learn how they are propagating hazelnuts. They have been successfully propagating by layering and also soft-wood cuttings (which was previously very […]