The Black Walnut Tree, as a member of the second order of Creation after the Four Sacred Elements, brings human beings tremendous gifts. The medicine of the Walnut Tree includes oral remedies such as the ability to reverse small cavities, as well as the ability to encourage the growth of enamel over cracks in teeth.
The Walnut Tree also has anti-parasitic properties and is an excellent source of the iodine needed for healthy thyroid functioning.
Further to these medicines, the Walnut Tree can be tapped just as the Maple Tree can, but it is said the syrup yield is less in comparison. The Walnut Tree also drops nuts, but they are harder to open in comparison to the English walnut and as such require more time to harvest the nut meat. Regardless of these matters, it is important to value that a lesser yield and more time for harvesting are pitiful barriers to the gifts the Walnut Tree offers.
I offer here eight photographs of my process thus far of harvesting Walnuts from the Black Walnut Tree.
First Photo: I collected walnuts that had the green husks intact and where the husks were not broken.
Second Photo: I placed a few dozen into several plastic shopping bags, tied them up, and then stepped on them as my process of breaking the green husks.
Third Photo: Wearing heavy duty gloves to avoid staining my fingers I then peeled off the green husks. During this process I inspected for creature invasions discarding the necessary walnuts.
Fourth Photo: I placed them in the kitchen sink for rinsing.
Fifth Photo: Then I rubbed the nuts together to remove trace husk.
Sixth Photo: A second rinse is applied.
Seventh Photo: The water is drained.
Eight Photo: The cleaned walnuts were then placed on a dehydrator in the sun. They will remain here for several weeks.
Miigwetch for witnessing my learning process about the gifts of the Black Walnut Tree.
The Walnut Tree also has anti-parasitic properties and is an excellent source of the iodine needed for healthy thyroid functioning.
Further to these medicines, the Walnut Tree can be tapped just as the Maple Tree can, but it is said the syrup yield is less in comparison. The Walnut Tree also drops nuts, but they are harder to open in comparison to the English walnut and as such require more time to harvest the nut meat. Regardless of these matters, it is important to value that a lesser yield and more time for harvesting are pitiful barriers to the gifts the Walnut Tree offers.
I offer here eight photographs of my process thus far of harvesting Walnuts from the Black Walnut Tree.
First Photo: I collected walnuts that had the green husks intact and where the husks were not broken.
Second Photo: I placed a few dozen into several plastic shopping bags, tied them up, and then stepped on them as my process of breaking the green husks.
Third Photo: Wearing heavy duty gloves to avoid staining my fingers I then peeled off the green husks. During this process I inspected for creature invasions discarding the necessary walnuts.
Fourth Photo: I placed them in the kitchen sink for rinsing.
Fifth Photo: Then I rubbed the nuts together to remove trace husk.
Sixth Photo: A second rinse is applied.
Seventh Photo: The water is drained.
Eight Photo: The cleaned walnuts were then placed on a dehydrator in the sun. They will remain here for several weeks.
Miigwetch for witnessing my learning process about the gifts of the Black Walnut Tree.
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Lynn Gehl, Ph.D. is an Algonquin Anishinaabe-kwe from the Ottawa River Valley. She has a section 15 Charter challenge regarding the continued sex discrimination in The Indian Act, and is an outspoken critic of the Ontario Algonquin land claims and self-government process. She has three books: Anishinaabeg Stories: Featuring Petroglyphs, Petrographs, and Wampum Belts, The Truth that Wampum Tells: My Debwewin of the Algonquin Land Claims Process, and Mkadengwe: Sharing Canada's Colonial Process through Black Face Methodology. You can reach her at lynngehl@gmail.com and see more of her work at www.lynngehl.com.
