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Post by diane on Sept 21, 2012 21:39:27 GMT -5
Forty years ago when I was developing my half acre, I thought about nut trees including pine nuts. I planted half a dozen filberts but never got around to the pine trees.
Now I shudder when I look at pesto recipes - a handful of pine nuts - at more than $8 for 100g (around $40 for a pound). I just sprinkle a few on top just before I serve.
WHY didn't I plant those pine trees?
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Post by steev on Sept 21, 2012 23:16:43 GMT -5
Woulda, coulda, shoulda, didn't! That's my mantra. I've finally started working on establishing a scattered stand of Italian Stone Pines, mostly for beauty and shade, but I might live to harvest nuts from them, though I'll be repaid if I live to walk in their shade.
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Post by castanea on Sept 22, 2012 0:16:33 GMT -5
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Post by 12540dumont on Sept 22, 2012 0:29:04 GMT -5
Every year I have planted our Xmas tree....all pines...now maybe one of them will someday make pine nuts? That Italian Stone Pine is getting cones this year.
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Post by steev on Sept 23, 2012 22:35:19 GMT -5
Mazeltov! Merry pesto to you, to you!
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Post by richardw on Sept 24, 2012 0:55:02 GMT -5
I thought of planting pine nut trees but my neighbours all ready planted some 15 years ago so are already growing over on our side,so no need to plant some now. ;D
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Post by atash on Sept 24, 2012 2:16:35 GMT -5
I stopped thinking I could afford them before they got THAT expensive, but now I wonder what the price is locally?! I use almonds to make pesto anymore; pine nuts are to luxuriant for us. But even if I was willing to foot the bill, I also noticed that the quality had deteriorated. The ones in our markets are often rancid.
I've got a bunch of nut trees sitting in pots in my back yard, waiting to get established enough to take to the farm. We eat lots of nuts at our house.
I've thought about pines for nuts. It would be nice to have a shorter species though, like dwarf Korean pine. For easier picking if nothing else.
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Post by mnjrutherford on Sept 24, 2012 5:48:42 GMT -5
I received some seed from a friend here on the forum several years ago. To date, only one has survived and is doing pretty well. I tend to hover over the wee little thing... =o) Unfortunately, a single tree is insufficient to produce nuts if I'm not mistaken. So I need a few more as well. They grow VERY slowly.
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Post by johninfla on Sept 24, 2012 8:05:18 GMT -5
We have tons of long leaf southern yellow pines....so I have two questions:
1) The seeds inside the cones are pretty small but are they edible?
2) Would the pine nut trees grow here? (Northern FLA)
Thanks,
John
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Post by Joseph Lofthouse on Sept 24, 2012 8:43:26 GMT -5
There are thousands of pinyon pine trees out at the ranch which I visit often. The problem is: Animals are very efficient predators of pine nuts.
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Post by diane on Sept 24, 2012 10:27:29 GMT -5
There are pines with cones that stay closed tightly until there is a forest fire.
Decades ago I amused the kids by putting a cone in the oven. I never thought about checking to see if the seeds were edible, though.
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Post by mnjrutherford on Sept 24, 2012 15:07:27 GMT -5
John, to the best of my pitiful knowledge the answer is no to both questions. Long leaf pines do not produce edible nuts. However, should you actually get hold of the seed and be brave enough to eat it then live to tell of the experience... well heck, I'd be delighted to know I'm incorrect!
When I did my study of the pinyon varieties, the only one that would grow here in NC was the Italian stone (I think?). All the rest require much colder climes. The greatest producer of commercial pine nuts is Russia? All my data is about 4 to 5 years old.
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Post by diane on Sept 24, 2012 20:06:06 GMT -5
I don't think any are poisonous, though some taste a bit like turpentine. According to Sturtevant's Edible Plants of the World, and Cornucopia II, the seeds vary in size, composition (varying proportions of protein, oil and carbohydrates) thickness of shell, and taste.
I don't think I'd want to shell very many of the size that are for sale here, but there are ones with larger seeds including a Mexican tree (P. maximartinezii) with seeds an inch long, a California one (P. coulteri) almond-sized, and a SW U.S. one (P. edulis) the size of a hazelnut.
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Post by ilex on Sept 25, 2012 3:10:34 GMT -5
We have tons of long leaf southern yellow pines....so I have two questions: 1) The seeds inside the cones are pretty small but are they edible? 2) Would the pine nut trees grow here? (Northern FLA) 1- As far as I know, all pine (Pinus) nuts are edible. Some have better taste than others, or are difficult to extract. 2- Probably |
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Post by ilex on Sept 25, 2012 3:17:13 GMT -5
I don't think I'd want to shell very many of the size that are for sale here, but there are ones with larger seeds including a Mexican tree (P. maximartinezii) with seeds an inch long, a California one (P. coulteri) almond-sized, and a SW U.S. one (P. edulis) the size of a hazelnut. Shelling most is difficult, including Pinus pinea. There are others that have smaller seeds, but with very thing shells that should be much easier to manage. Most pine trees will crop early if grafted. |
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