Walnut History & Cultivation

The Royal Nut

For more than two millennia, medical practitioners have known that the walnut has healthgiving qualities; using contemporary theories, they surmised why this was so. Nevertheless, it would take twentieth- and twenty-first-century science to assess and analyze the nutritional assets and medicinal benefits of the walnut—and they are many, including omega-3 fatty acids, antioxidants, fiber, and numerous vitamins and minerals. Researchers have shown the diverse benefits of the walnut through many clinical studies. Because of the strong evidence of the walnut’s potential role in cardiovascular health, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved one of the first qualified health claim for a whole food in March of 2004: “Supportive but not conclusive research shows that eating 1.5 ounces of walnuts per day, as part of a low saturated fat and low cholesterol diet, and not resulting in increased caloric intake, may reduce the risk of coronary heart disease.” In addition to heart health, studies have shown walnut consumption to benefit people with diabetes and cancer, promote bone health, assist with weight management, improve cognitive performance, and counteract some effects of aging.

10 fun facts about walnuts:

Did you know that:

• Walnuts are the oldest known tree food — they date back to 10,000 BC!
• English walnuts (also known as Persian walnuts) originate in Central Asia and were introduced to California in the 1700s.
• 99% of the commercial U.S. supply and 3/4 of the world trade of walnuts now come from California.
• Walnuts have always been considered important for their medicinal properties, including curing bad breath, reducing inflammation, and healing wounds.
• More recently the nutritional benefits of walnuts have become well-known, especially their omega-3 fatty acid content.
• The Greeks called walnuts karyon, meaning “head,” because the shell resembles a human skull and the walnut kernel itself looks like a brain!
• Like today, a common culinary use of walnuts in the 17th-19th centuries was in salads.
• Walnuts are only harvested once a year, between September and November.
• Walnuts aren’t nuts. They are also drupes. Their name in Old English, walhnutu, meant “foreign nut”, from wealh, “foreign” (also the root for Wales). This was because they were introduced from Gaul and needed to be distinguished from the native hazelnut.
• There are more than 30 varieties of commercially produced walnuts!