Food from the Wild

Nuts

Walnut Juglans regia
The walnut tree, though a native of Persia, was well established in Britain by the sixteenth century. The wood was much used for furniture and the leaves, if gathered in June and July, were used fresh or dried in the treatment of skin diseases or as a dye, recommended by Evelyn 'to colour wooll, woods and hair'. Green walnuts-a valuable source of vitamin C containing even more than rose hips-were used to make a nut liquor.

The unripe nuts were beaten down from the trees, a custom which probably gave rise to the old rhyme, 'A dog, a wife and a walnut tree: The more you beat them, the better they be.' Ripe nuts, generally ready by the end of September, should be collected as soon as they begin to fall and spread out in a dry place until the husks fall away. Then, if they are to be stored, clean them well with a brush and water to remove any traces of the husk which otherwise will grow mould. Spread out to dry again and store in airtight earthenware containers, alternating layers of nuts with a mixture of common salt and sand.

Sweet Chestnut
Castenea sativa
The sweet chestnut was brought to Britain by the Romans. The trees are very long-lived; there is one in Gloucestershire called the Tortworth Chestnut thought to be the same as one mentioned in 1150 in the deeds of King John and King Stephen. Unfortunately, unless there is a warm spring enabling the tree to flower early and so give the nuts a long enough summer to mature properly, chestnuts do not often ripen in Britain.

If they have ripened, they should be collected in October and dried and packed in crocks like walnuts. Chestnuts contain more carbohydrates than other nuts and can be made into all kinds of puddings, bread and stuffings, soup, the famous dessert marron glace, or best, roasted in the embers of the fire.

Beechnut Fagus sylvatica
The beech only bears nuts every third or fourth year and throughout history the nuts have generally been thought of as food for pigs-the Saxons estimated the worth of a tree by the number of hogs that could 'lie under it'. However, in times of poverty or famine, they have been eaten, roasted and salted, and make good substitutes for almonds.

Collect in September and October and roast in an oven until the skin comes off. Then they should be rubbed between two cloths and shaken in a coarse sieve to remove all the hairy down which can cause discomfort if eaten. When quite clean, dry in a cool oven, sprinkle lightly with salt and keep in crocks with well-fitting lids. Beechnut oil is used commercially. 4.5kg (10lb) nuts yield 1.1l (2 pt) oil.

Hazel Corylus ave/lava
The hazel and its cultivated cousin the filbert are the commonest nuts in Britain, found growing as bushes in many hedgerows and as trees in woodlands and in many gardens. Nut walks consisting mainly of hazel and walnut trees were a popular feature in many gardens; a good recent example is at Sissinghurst in Kent.

Hazelnuts are rich in protein, fat and minerals and are usually ripe and ready for picking by September or October when the husks and shells are quite brown. Squirrels, nuthatches and dormice are all interested in hazels and you may have to race them to get there first. Hazelnuts are best eaten fresh, but also keep well. To store, pick on a dry day, spread on sacking, or in a dry place, turning occasionally until the husks fall off easily. Then store the nuts packed in bran, sand or sawdust in airtight containers. They make good additions to salads and fruit dishes and can be used in making sweets and biscuits.