Which nuts to harvest in autumn?

The essentials: walnuts, hazelnuts and kernels

When we talk about nuts, some are absolutely indispensable and found on every table.

Walnuts, harvested almost everywhere

The common walnut (Juglans regia) is often a majestic tree, a symbol of longevity and hardiness. But you need a little patience before harvesting your first walnuts, as it starts fruiting around its tenth year. Walnuts are harvested in the first days of autumn, generally from September to October, depending on the variety and geographical location.

Walnuts are harvested in the first days of autumn, generally from September to October

Harvesting is relatively straightforward. The walnut, enclosed in a green, fleshy husk that eventually splits and dries on the tree, naturally becomes detached when the fruit has finished developing. Traditionally, walnuts are harvested from the ground by hand, which allows you to make an initial collection. Others prefer using a pole to shake or tap the branches of the walnut tree (gently, of course!), with a long pole known as a nutting pole. This technique is more suited to large walnut trees.

Walnuts can be eaten fresh or dried. Fresh, they have a milky texture and delicate flavour. If you want to eat them dried throughout the winter, it is essential to dry them thoroughly in the open air, protected from damp.

To ensure regular production and excellent flavour, you can opt for local varieties that adapt particularly well to all regions. ‘Franquette’ and ‘Parisienne’ are recognised varieties used for the Grenoble walnut AOP. The variety ‘Mayette’ is self-fertile, while ‘Fernor’ is a later variety.

Hazelnuts, a choice nut

Hazelnuts can be picked from September

Compared with the walnut tree, the hazel (Corylus avellana) does not reach the same size. It is a rather unassuming shrub, but an extremely generous one. A monoecious fruit tree, hazel produces its male flowers, the catkins, at the end of winter, between February and March, and its female flowers in March-April. This is why it is preferable to plant two different varieties close to one another to achieve effective cross-pollination.

Often found growing naturally in country hedges, hazel produces hazelnuts, enclosed in a fringed involucre that turns yellow as autumn approaches. Picked from September, when the shell takes on a characteristic brown colour and the fruit comes away easily from its attachment, hazelnuts also require a drying period. Widely used in confectionery and baking, hazelnuts are notable for their high content of monounsaturated fatty acids and vitamin E, making them an excellent food for seeing you through the winter.

Varieties such as ‘Longue d’Espagne’, ‘Merveille de Bollwiller’ or ‘Fertile de Coutard’ ensure abundant harvests.

Almonds, the star of sunny regions

Almonds are harvested relatively early, between the end of summer and the beginning of autumn, from August to September

The almond tree (Prunus dulcis) completes this trio of essential nuts, although its climatic requirements make it particularly suited to southern regions. Although the almond tree is fairly hardy, its flowering is sensitive to late spring frosts. The almond tree is indeed known for being the first fruit tree to flower (its flowers smell wonderfully sweet, too!), so almonds are harvested relatively early, between the end of summer and the beginning of autumn, from August to September. Harvested earlier, at the beginning of summer, they are eaten fresh.

The almond develops inside a green, velvety, downy fruit that dries and opens to reveal the hard, alveolate shell containing the precious kernel. It is a nut rich in plant proteins, calcium and magnesium, and is typically Mediterranean.

Varieties such as ‘Ferragnès’, ‘Lauranne’ or ‘Aï’ offer excellent resistance to late frosts and guarantee good harvests. Although some varieties are self-fertile, it is always preferable to plant two almond trees close to one another.

New species that can be grown in our territory

With climate change, species of nut trees that have so far been little grown at our latitudes are beginning to reach our soils. Some professional fruit growers are trying rather encouraging experiments, mainly in the southern and south-western regions, known for their maximum sunshine. Elsewhere, these crops are still too unpredictable…

Pistachios: the new Mediterranean favourite?

Pistachios are harvested in autumn.

Once imported exclusively from the arid regions of the Middle East or California, the pistachio tree (Pistacia vera) is gradually making its way into French fruit growing, particularly in Mediterranean areas and the Rhône Valley. Planting trials carried out in the south of France are producing fresh pistachios with an undeniably excellent flavour, quite different from standardised varieties. The pistachio tree is a hardy tree, extremely resistant to drought and able to thrive in poor, chalky soils, and it appreciates long, hot, dry summers. Growing pistachios nevertheless requires male and female plants to ensure wind pollination. This is why we offer a pollinating duo of two pistachio trees that complement each other perfectly.

Pistachios are harvested in autumn, as soon as the fleshy outer covering changes colour, becoming pinkish or yellowish, and naturally detaches. The inner shell then partially splits open, revealing the bright green kernel.

Pecans for different flavours

Pecans are harvested between October and November.

The pecan tree (Carya illinoinensis), a large tree native to North America belonging to the same family as walnut trees, is increasingly finding a place in private gardens and professional orchards in the south and west of France. Requiring hot, sunny summers for its fruit to reach full ripeness, the pecan tree produces elongated pecans with a smoother, thinner shell than the European walnut, containing a lipid-rich kernel with a particularly delicate, buttery flavour. It begins producing fruit between the 4th and 5th year after planting.

Its harvest generally takes place a little later in autumn, between October and November, when the husks split open and allow the fruits to fall to the ground. It is advisable to plant two trees to enable cross-pollination and better fruiting.

Is a chestnut a nut or not?

From a botanical point of view, the chestnut, produced by the common chestnut (Castanea sativa), is not a nut but an achene. Moreover, unlike true walnuts, hazelnuts and almonds, which are dried fruits rich in fat, the chestnut is a fruit mainly formed of carbohydrates, making it nutritionally more similar to potatoes or cereals than to oil-yielding nuts.

The common chestnut (Castanea sativa) does not produce nuts but achenes.

Enclosed in a husk covered with fearsome prickles that protects two or three fruits, the chestnut falls to the ground in autumn, between September and November. This is why it tends to be classified among nuts. It is an emblematic tree of upland forests, particularly in the Cévennes, Ardèche and Corsica.

Our summary calendar for nut harvests

Even though harvest periods may vary by a few weeks depending on the region and weather conditions, the following harvest calendar can be established.

How to harvest and store nuts?

The success of a nut harvest does not end with simply gathering the nuts! Particular care must be taken after harvesting to ensure perfect storage and exceptional flavour quality:

• The first essential is getting the timing of the harvest right. It is advisable to gather the nuts regularly, ideally every two or three days, to prevent them from remaining too long on damp soil, which would encourage the development of mould and rot, or attacks by pests such as weevils and codling moths;
• Once harvested, the nuts must be removed from their outer coverings without delay, such as walnut husks or hazelnut involucres. This cleaning stage removes impurities and gets the drying process started;
• The nuts must be spread out in a single layer in a dry, well-ventilated room, protected from direct sunlight and rodents, so that they dry under suitable conditions. An air circulator or fan can be used to speed up the process during the first few days. As a guide, walnuts and hazelnuts take around four weeks to dry;
• Once dry, the nuts should be stored in hessian sacks, slatted wooden trays or perforated cardboard boxes to ensure good air circulation. The storage room must be cool, ideally between 8 °C and 15 °C, dry and free from strong odours.