In the fall and early winter, many people will eat their share of nuts. What are nuts, anyway? Ignoring that impostor, the peanut, real nuts grow on trees. In our part of the world, nutmeats are the energy- and nutrient-rich food supply for the seedlings normally planted by forgetful squirrels or bluejays. This is the evolutionary strategy of the trees to spread and perpetuate their kind. Nutmeats are enclosed in a tough shell or spiny bur so that they present a challenge to voracious fattening mammals and birds, and are not eaten all at once.

The walnut family includes the storebought walnut (often called English or Persian walnut), and our wild black walnuts and butternuts. Also, uncommon Japanese walnuts called heartnuts are in this group. They thrive in rich calcareous soil with a good moisture-holding capacity, but do not like wet feet. The Persian walnuts are subject to injury from cold winter temperatures or spring frosts, while butternuts are very hardy. Black walnuts and heartnuts are in between. Nuts of the wild ancestors of all these types have hard, thick shells, but the Persian walnuts and heartnuts have been selected over thousands of years for a thin shell. These nuts are delicious, especially in baked goods.

As the nuts fall in late September, pick them up and take their husks off. Probably the best way to handle small quantities of ripe walnuts in the husk is to kick off the husk with your heel. Then put them in a bucket with water and stir them to wash the husk remnants off. The nuts can then be air dried on a screen, one layer deep, in a breezy place protected from squirrels and rodents. After a month, they are ready to crack and use. If the nuts were picked up within a few days of falling the kernels will be light-colored and relatively mild. Crack them with a light blow from a hammer, standing the nut on end on a heavy stone. Then use a "nipper"-type wire cutter to cut away the nutshells from any nut pieces that are locked in (much easier than using a nutpick).

Closely related to walnuts are the hickories. We have several species in our area, but the best nuts for eating come from the shagbark hickory. Others from more southern climates include shellbark hickory and pecan. Many consider these to be the best-flavored nuts for eating out of hand. Shagbark hickories will tolerate drier soils than the walnut family, but grow best in rich, well-drained alluvial soils.

Hickory nuts can be air dried like the walnuts, but generally fall cleanly free of their husks. Crack the same way. Hickory trees may take 10 years or more to bear.

Hazelnuts or filberts grow on bushes and tend to ripen earlier than our other local nut species. They are a favorite of bluejays, so keep an eye on them or they may disappear quickly. When their husks start to turn brown, they can be harvested by pulling them right off the bush. It's pretty easy to remove the nuts from their husks. Let them cure (air dry) for a month, then enjoy them in holiday snacks. They are easy to crack with a hand-held nutcracker.

Hazelnut bushes are very hardy, but sometimes their male flowers are not. They may start blooming in March and get zapped by temperatures below 15 degrees F. So don't count on nuts from them every year. They will grow on a wide range of well-drained soil types.

Finally, the chestnut is a bit different. Whereas the nuts mentioned above are high in protein and oils, chestnuts are like "corn that grows on a tree." The nuts are high in carbohydrates, meaning they can be pretty sweet. Chestnut trees like somewhat acidic, fertile, well-drained soil. They are very sensitive to wet feet and will often die in wet soils.

When the nuts are ripe, the spiny bur splits open to drop them. Chestnuts have only a thin shell. They should be cured for a week to allow starches to turn to sugar, then refrigerated in a plastic bag. The nutshells can be scored to let steam out, then roasted in a pan for about 10-15 minutes. Cut the hot nuts in half, and it will be easy to pop the nutmeat out of its shell and inner skin. At this stage, chestnuts can be enjoyed on the spot, or put in the freezer, perhaps for Thanksgiving stuffing.

American chestnuts once covered many of the hillsides in our region. They provided great quantities of food for wildlife every fall. But in the first half of this century, they were decimated by a blight that came from Asia. The chestnuts we grow now are offspring of Asian chestnuts, and are resistant to chestnut blight. Most of the chestnuts in the store are from Europe. European chestnuts are susceptible to chestnut blight, so it is not a good idea to plant storebought nuts. Also, those often have weevil larvae in them, which can contaminate nearby bearing plantings. Many people throughout the country are working with American chestnut trees, trying to breed ones that will resist the blight. There have been no breakthroughs so far, but some promising results.

This fall, be sure to get your share of power-packed, delicious nuts!