Our discussion here will focus on a fruit that’s not so commonplace in the nurseries, garden centers, and other outlets: the lovely American hazelnut. The American hazelnut is a really important factor for landscaping, especially if the inclusion of wildlife is considered. That’s just one of many important benefits you could derive from this shrub. Before we go on to digest the rest, let’s explain what American Hazelnuts really are. So what are American Hazelnuts? Let`s get talking.
Meet American Hazelnut!
The American hazelnut (Corylus Americana) is a deciduous and attractive shrub which is of great value to wildlife. It originated from the eastern and central parts of the United States to the extreme southern parts of eastern and central Canada. Despite that, today, it is relatively rare in gardens; it should be cultivated in natural-style gardens as a wildlife garden plant. American Hazelnuts are of two kinds: the beaked hazel and the American hazel. What’s more? It is one of the few shrubs which bear nuts and these nuts are a great addition to your diet!
Geographic Location and Habitat
As the name suggests, Hazelnuts are most usually found in America, with large amounts found in Chicago. Hazelnuts are also found in abundance almost all over North America, Europe and parts of Asia. The American hazelnuts differ in morphology from their counterparts from other areas of the world in that American hazelnuts are hard, often well-adapted, small (usually 1-2m long) and bushy, while other varieties are very much larger (often up to 3-4 m tall), with quite large, thin-shelled nuts.
Habitats that are most favorable for the growth of the American Hazelnut include upland forests and savannas, moist to dry-mesic woodlands, fence rows, and sand prairies.
Talk About Wildlife
American hazelnuts are extremely important for the survival of insects that inhabit the temperate regions of the world. For instance, beetles (especially leaf beetles), walking sticks, bugs, Luna moth, leafhoppers, moth caterpillars and many more live and feed on the leaf, stem, and nuts of American hazelnuts. But that’s not all there is to hazelnuts and wildlife.
Talking about birds, a wide variety of birds also feed on American hazelnuts (the fruit). These birds include the quail, the wild turkey, woodpeckers of various species, and, of course, the blue jay. In addition, the ruffed grouse and wild turkey find hazelnuts more beneficial, since they feed on their male flowers and buds during winter.
Mammals also find the nuts edible. For instance, foxes, and grey squirrels, White-footed mice and the eastern chipmunk all feed on the nuts produced by this fantastic shrub. What’s more? Higher mammals like rabbits and deers all chew on the leaves, being ruminants. Beavers, too, derive their food from American hazelnuts, if they are grown near aquatic environments.
If we talked about hazelnuts only as a source of food for mammals, we would be doing it a great disservice because, in addition to being a source of food, hazelnuts also provide shelter for mammals. American Hazelnuts have fine branching structures and really large leaves which make them suited for providing nests for birds.
American Hazelnuts are Great for Landscaping
Trying to do some landscaping? Then American Hazelnuts are one great addition to your list. American Hazelnuts are fantastic for hedgerows and spacing if you’re interested in a nature-inspired garden. Their leaf textures are perfectly suited for landscaping with a natural green color which changes to an adorable yellow (or orange) during autumn.
In addition, American hazelnuts are filler plants that spice up the landscape with the essential green color. They live considerably long — sometimes well over fifty to sixty years.
American hazelnuts are quite easy to cultivate and harvest. If you wish to cultivate, we’ll show you how to do so!
How to Cultivate American Hazelnuts
While there are many conditions under which Hazelnuts could be cultivated, in this section of this article, we shall be highlighting the conditions under which American Hazelnuts grow best. If followed religiously, you can be sure to enjoy a smooth ride from planting to harvesting and even throughout the lifespan of the shrub.
American Hazelnuts best grow in hardiness zones of between three and nine and can grow up to a height of about 6 to 11 feet. However, you must always take time out to prune its edges, else it could spread to about 6 to 12 feet, which could be too wide, depending on the purpose of cultivation.
You could choose to harness the ornamental benefits hazelnuts’ flowers too. If your main aim is to employ Hazelnuts as an ornamental plant, you should ensure to plant them in positions that will expose them to the full blare of sunlight. Medium sunlight isn’t bad either.
Confused about what kind of soil you should plant Hazelnuts? Well, they prefer soils that are well-drained and moist enough while they could also grow in clay soils with the aid of artificial fertilizers. During prolonged drought and when planted in slightly alkaline soils, they fare just as well too. However, when planted under really moist edaphic conditions, you should expect a lot of suckering from them. In drier soils, they sucker much less.
As we have mentioned earlier, the fruit of the American hazelnut plant is edible. More than that, it is so easy to harvest. It also requires little or no processing before you can begin to enjoy! American hazelnuts usually become productive a few years after planting. You should ensure to plant more than one to boost yield.
Pests and Diseases
Although American hazelnuts are not known to possess many pests, few insects trouble them once in a while — especially when not well nurtured. Japanese beetles and scale insects are the two insects — and pests — that affect the plant, while filbert blight is a major disease that affects American hazelnuts. You can rest assured that if you’ve one your homework well enough in taking care of your plant, nothing is going to come near it.
And… Hazelnuts are Good Financially Too!
From a financial standpoint, American hazelnuts are superb too. This is because, strangely, there is a great scarcity of hazelnuts in their native North America so they have high-profit margins. Retail prices for hazelnuts (especially in-shell) average about 6 dollars for every pound and raw, shelled hazelnuts in local grocery stores usually sell for about 15 dollars per pound. And, since Europeans consume far more (more than eight times) what Americans consume, there is a bright outlook for the future of hazelnuts’ consumption in the United States.
However, despite the fantastic income rates that accrue from the sales of hazelnuts, you must be ready to wait for a few years — usually four to six years — before any significant production and, of course, before any significant income.
How to Get Hazelnuts
The first paragraph of this article already acknowledged that it’s quite difficult to find American hazelnuts in nurseries and garden centers but in case you’re in need of them (and you don’t mind getting them cheap and easy), you could be on the lookout for the Soil and Water Conservation District Sales in early Spring. These sales are helpful for getting small and cheap Hazelnut plants which you could nurture on your own to the mature plant.
Final Words…
American hazelnuts are simply fantastic — from their tremendous ability to tolerate diseases to their adaptability to a wide range of edaphic conditions, to their environmental benefits and its suitability for food, you should start cultivating them today!
