Osage Orange/ Carpathian Walnut Germ.

[TheSeedObsesser]

Pa brought home a whole wagon-load of Osage Orange fruits yesterday that he had gotten from a clients house. Upon closer inspection (and asking my dad) there is also a layer of Carpathian Walnuts underneath the Osages. Being the gardener of the family, my first thought when seeing both the walnuts and "oranges" was - trees!
So how do I germinate them?

Plant the oranges now before everything freezes over, or plant in the spring? Do the Osages require/can handle a cold period before germination? Can I plant the walnuts in the ground right now, without cracking the shells, and have a good amount of them pop up in the spring?

How do I grow and maintain a hedge of Osage Oranges? Just like any other hedge?
(Hoping I finally found a way to keep the ducks away from the road. )

 

[catjac1975]

Those osage oranges are new to me. Cool. What do they taste like?

 

[TheSeedObsesser]

The only part that is edible to humans are the seeds, and you have to clean to covering off before you can eat them. They're also a pain to remove from the fruits if you want large numbers of them. Squirrels literally go nuts over Osage Orange seeds. I have never tried the seeds myself.

They get their name from their scent - they smell like oranges! Perfect for perfuming a room.

 

[Ridgerunner]

I have not germinated either one. If someone on here does not have experience with them I’d suggest on online search.

Osage oranges, also called hedge apples, are not edible. One use I’ve heard for them is to scatter them around the attic to keep roaches out. I don’t know if that works or not. They have thorns, can make a really thick nasty hedge, and are really hardy. They might be considered invasive, I’m not sure about that. I have a couple growing but I got them as whips, not started from seeds. They are still pretty young.

Carpathian walnuts, also called English walnuts, are pretty thin shelled. I have germinated the thick shelled black walnuts with great success. I took the walnuts real soon after they fell off the tree and certainly before they dried out and soaked them in water for two days after taking the hull off but not cracking the nut. I then put them in the freezer for a couple of months, then buried them in the ground. I got 8 out of 8 to germinate. From what I read you do not want black walnuts to dry out. That’s a big no-no. I’d expect the same for the Carpathian walnuts. I’ve done hickory nuts the same way with success but not that great a success.

I don’t know if the Osage orange seeds need to dry out or not. From their native range I’d expect they would need cold weather before they germinate so I’d freeze then for a couple of months before I planted them, but as I said, I don’t have any experience with them.

 

[canesisters]

Seed-O, you get into the MOST interesting things!

 

[Ridgerunner]

I didn't know you could eat the seeds of an Osage orange. How do you do that?

 

[bobm]

As for growing English Walnuts for best results. ... it is recommended that you grow a Black Walnut to about a 2" diameter trunk, cut the top off at about a 5' height then graft 4 English Walnut cuttings onto it. In Cal. , the English Walnut orchards with thousands of producing trees are grown this way . When you buy a English Walnut tree from the nursery for home planting, this is what you get too.

 

[baymule]

Found it for 'ya @TheSeedObsesser !!!

http://www.permies.com/t/29905/trees/purchase-Osage-Orange-Honey-Locust#232560

We don't call them Osage Orange here. The French name is Bois de' Arc, but naturally we Texan-ize and mangle the pronunciation into Bodark. If cut into fence posts, they last forever.

 

[Pulsegleaner]

Given the French name I'd assume it is also a good wood to use if you want to make a bow (much as the English swear by yew.)

 

[thistlebloom]

The walnuts the squirrels bury never fail to germinate. So just be your inner squirrel SeedO.