Fall, Its Hard-Hat Season!

Fall Walnuts

One of the most appealing things to me when looking at buying our home, was the ability to sit outside on a nice day and enjoy the weather. On many days throughout the spring and summer, this is easy enough to do.

I generally grab a cigar and beverage before making my way out into the yard. On occasion, I’ll bring my iTouch or a book along as I sit outside. Being back up against the woods, I sometimes have to battle with the occasional swarm of gnats or mosquitoes throughout the day, and a few bats hunting when the sun begins to set. Overall its nice to have a quiet place to sit and think.

Even in late winter, when the air has a stiff chill to it, I still enjoy sitting out in my yard. By wearing a sweatshirt and limiting myself to hanging out during daylight hours, it isn’t bad at all. The only problem comes in the fall.

Each year, when the season changes and cooler weather creeps in, I find myself chased into the house from my chair in the yard. It isn’t the chill in the air or a pesky insect which ruins the experience, it is the sudden drop of hefty walnuts from above my seat.

In my relatively small seating area, I have a walnut tree. During the warmer months it does a great job shading me from the sun. In the fall it not only drops leaves, it drops hefty walnuts on anything down below.

While I have never been hit by one of these walnuts, I have seen the hurting it has put on one of my plastic adorandak chairs. It seems that one day a walnut was let loose from the tree. As it began its descent to the ground, it began picking up speed. By the time the walnut reached the chair, it had picked up enough momentum to separate the arm from the seat back.

While I do enjoy puffing on a cigar, sipping a beer, and sitting out under my walnut tree, that pleasure has officially been put on hold for the next few months. While the addition of a hard hat wouldn’t be all that difficult to manage, I do think it would put a slight damper on the mood.

Walt

Hi There, My name is Walt White and as the name of this blog suggests, I am a Pennsylvania resident. In addition to having numerous hobbies that I discuss on my blog - Iā€™m also the father of three little girls and a pitbull.

2 thoughts on “Fall, Its Hard-Hat Season!

  1. Nice šŸ˜‰

    put a sign out front offering free Black Walnuts – someone might clean up your yard for you!!

    They are a BITCH to get out of the thick green shell, then the titanium encased inner layer, but some people absolutely love those things!

    Mike

    Oh, dont try and remove the shell without wearing gloves šŸ˜‰ They will stain for WEEKS!!

  2. Mike,
    If I knew someone that was interested in taking them off my hands, I’d be all for them cleaning up my yard in exchange for several dozen black walnuts. Rather not put up a sign, with my dog I would be concerned about some random person coming into my yard for the walnuts.

    If they weren’t so much work, I’d harvest them myself. With all that is involved in husking them, then storing them to dry, it just isn’t worth the effort to me. I like walnuts, but not so much that I would forgo buying them from the store and taking on the work myself.

    Unfortunately, I have learned the hard way about the purple stains from the walnuts. The first year we were in our house I started cleaning them up without wearing gloves. Some of the husks were broken and I would up with purple spots on my hands for about a week.

    -Walt

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