One cannot leave a discussion of black walnuts without reflecting on the
furniture which has been possible only through the use of vast forests
of black walnut timber. Beautiful veneers have come from the burl
walnut, being formed by protuberances on the trunks of the trees near
the surface of the ground. There is a variety of black walnut which we
have been experimenting with for quite a few years, called the Lamb,
which has a beautifully figured grain. As this appears only in mature
timber, ours is not yet old enough to show it.

I have found that the Ohio black walnut is prone to hybridize with
butternut trees in its vicinity and others have told me of its
hybridizing with English walnut trees near it, which shows it to be
almost as vacillating in character as our Japanese walnuts or heartnuts.
Ohio black walnuts, when planted, usually produce vigorous stocks, many
of which show hybridity of some sort. If one examines the nuts of the
Ohio and finds them dwarfed or deformed, he may be sure that they have
been pollinized by something other than a black walnut. Planting such
nuts, then, will grow hybrid trees. Most of us have enough curiosity to
want to try this as an experiment.

Thomas walnut seedlings have produced more thrifty trees than Ohio nuts
have. However, the best understocks are those produced from seeds of
native grown trees. It is well understood that rarely does a specific
type such as the Ohio, Thomas or Stabler reproduce itself exactly from
seeds. In raising black walnut seedlings, my experience has taught me
that the nuts should be planted in the fall and not too deep, one to two
inches below the surface being all the depth necessary. They may never
sprout if they are four to six inches under ground. The black walnut
tree is a glutton for food seemingly, it will use all the fertilizer
that it is given although, no doubt, there is a practical limit. It must