How to Grow Walnut
Walnut At a Glance
Difficulty
Easy
Category
Nut
Sun Exposure
Full Sun
Frost Tolerance
Frost Hardy
Cold Hardiness
Survives to -29°C
Plant Family
Juglandaceae
Growing Season
Warm Season
Plant Lifecycle
Perennial
How to Start It
★ Recommended for beginners
Buy a young grafted tree of a named variety chosen for your area: it starts bearing in about 5 years and the nuts match the parent. Plant it in early spring, about 3 weeks before your last frost, while it is still bare and asleep, in full sun with about 12 m of room all around.
A walnut is a big, long-lived shade tree for a large growing space, not a balcony. Its roots and leaves give off a natural substance called juglone that stunts many plants, like tomatoes, potatoes and blueberries, so keep vegetable beds well away from it. Most walnuts can bear on their own, but a second walnut nearby gives a bigger crop.
When To Start
Walnut needs warmth. Wait until your last frost has passed and the soil has warmed before sowing.
We do not have exact sowing dates for this one yet.
When should you plant Walnut?
Your planting dates depend on your local climate. Sign up and add your location to unlock personalized dates.
Your Walnut Planting Window
Start planting
May 15, 2026
Last chance
Sep 10, 2026
Your Walnut Calendar
Set your location to turn these into exact dates and reminders.
Plant your walnut tree where it has lots of room
3 weeks before your last frost
Prune your walnut now, not in spring when it bleeds sap
30 days before your first frost· every year· optional
Gather walnuts as the husks split, and wear gloves
2 weeks before your first frost· every year
Water your new walnut plants well while they settle in. Deep and slow is best.
About 1 days after you plant it
How is your young walnut tree settling in? Water deeply once a week while the roots take hold.
About 30 days after you plant it
Checking in on your walnut tree. Keep grass and weeds pulled back from the base.
About 90 days after you plant it
The Journey Ahead
Walnut's Lifecycle
Seedling
Mature Plant
Seed Production
Step 1
Prepare Your Space
1200 cm
Plant Spacing
1400 cm
Row Spacing
Vertical Growing
No.
Succession Planting
No.
Good Companions
Bad Companions
Step 2
Planting & Sprouting
Growing Tips
- 1Plant walnuts in full sun, where they have room to grow into large trees.
- 2They need deep soil that drains well, and they struggle in heavy, wet ground.
- 3Water young trees deeply once a week in their first 2 to 3 summers, then they can mostly fend for themselves.
- 4Spread compost and a ring of mulch around the base each spring, keeping it a hand's width from the trunk.
- 5Prune only in late summer or early fall, since walnuts bleed a lot of sap when cut in late winter or spring.
- 6Compost walnut leaves and husks in their own pile for several months so the juglone breaks down before you use it.
- 7Mouldy walnuts and husks can make dogs very sick, so pick up fallen nuts often.
Seedling Phase
Step 3
Growth & Maturity
1500 cm
Mature Height
1200 cm
Mature Width
Pests to Watch For
Diseases to Watch For
Mature Plant
Step 4
Harvesting
Harvest Window
30 days
When to Pick
Gather in autumn as the green husks split and the nuts fall
How to Harvest
- 1Walnuts are ready in fall, when the green husks start to split and the nuts drop.
- 2Gather them every day or two, before squirrels do.
- 3Wear gloves to pull off the husks right away, since they stain skin and everything else dark brown.
- 4Wash the nuts, then spread them out somewhere airy to dry in their shells for 2 to 3 weeks.
- 5They are dry when the kernel snaps cleanly instead of bending.
- 6Store dry walnuts in their shells in a cool, dry place, or shelled in the freezer, for up to a year.
Step 5
Saving Seeds
Seed Production
Still have a question?
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