Nutty Trees Trivia Quiz

Answer: Black Walnut

The black walnut tree (Juglans nigra) is native to North America. The hardwood from the tree has been used for many years by cabinet and furniture makers. If the trees grow in forests, the trunks tend to grow tall and very straight due to the competition for light with other trees. If they grow out in the open, the black walnut trees will have more lower branches. The fruit from these trees are known as drupes because the seed, or nut, grows inside a husk. The drupes can be picked up in the fall when they drop, husked, and the nuts eaten in soups and stews, or baked in cakes and cookies. The husks around the nuts will stain your hands black or dark brown, so if you plan to harvest the nuts, you should wear gloves.

The roots, leaves, and husks of the black walnut tree contain a natural herbicide known as juglone. It prevents some plants from growing too close to the tree since the roots can extend up to 50 feet from the trunk. The juglone inhibits the growth of many other plants, which leaves more water and nutrients for the tree. If you have a black walnut tree on your property, you should plan your landscaping carefully because plants such as tomatoes, potatoes, apples, pears, berries, rhododendrons, azaleas, and lilacs may be killed or stunted if they are grown too close to black walnut roots or under the tree's canopy.

Answer: Macadamia

Macadamia is a genus of trees that was originally native to New South Wales and Queensland in Australia. The evergreen tree grows edible nuts that were an important food source for Australian Aboriginal people who first populated the areas where the tree grew. Seeds from the Macadamia tree have since been introduced to other countries, including Hawaii in the US, and South Africa.

The macadamia nut is relatively high in fat and low in protein when compared to other nuts such as almonds. The nuts from macadamia trees are toxic to dogs. Depending on the size of the dog and the amount of nuts that they eat, symptoms can range from relatively minor weakness in the back legs to severe stomach pain, joint pain, and muscle tremors. If your dog eats macadamia nuts, you should contact your vet ASAP.

Answer: Brazil nut

Brazil nut trees are very common throughout the Amazon rainforest. They typically grow to 50 m (160 ft) tall with trunks that are 1 to 2 m (3 ft 3 in to 6 ft 7 in) in diameter. Brazil nut trees have been found that are over 1,000 years old. The Brazil nut is a deciduous tree that loses its leaves in the dry season. They usually grow very straight with no branches on the trunk until they appear near the top of the tree. The nuts that most of us are familiar with actually grow inside a fruit that is known as a drupe. The drupe is relatively large. It can grow to 2 kg (4 lb 7 oz). The Brazil nuts grow inside the woody fruit. There are usually 8-24 nuts inside each fruit.

The wood from Brazil nut trees is a very high quality that is sought after for flooring, furniture, and heavy construction. However, it is illegal to cut down Brazil nut trees in Brazil without government permission. This is one attempt to protect the rainforest from illegal forestry.

Answer: Pistachio

The pistachio (Pistacia vera) was originally native to the Middle East and Asia. As trade and conflict opened up those areas, the trees were exported to southern Europe and northern Africa by the 1st century AD. The trees then moved to Australia and the southern US by the 19th century.

The pistachio prefers desert-like conditions, with temperatures between −10 degrees Celsius (14 Fahrenheit) in winter and 48 degrees Celsius (118 Fahrenheit) in summer The tree grows to about ten metres (33 feet).

The pistachio tree is deciduous (loses its leaves in winter). They also produce more nuts every other year. The pistachio is a member of the Anacardiaceae family which also includes poison ivy and sumac. They contain urushiol, an irritant that can cause allergic reactions, so care should be taken when trying them for the first time.

Answer: Pine

A variety of pine trees that produce edible seeds or nuts grow on every continent except Antarctica. The nuts are known as piñón in Spanish, pinoli in Italian, and pignoli or chilgoza in Urdu. In many cases, the pine trees that grow nuts for harvesting are considered sacred by indigenous people. In the US, some treaties allow only Native American tribes to harvest pine nuts in certain areas.

There are around thirty different species of pine trees that produce nuts that are harvested for food. To harvest, the pine cones are removed from the tree before they open so that the seeds don't drop out before the nuts are harvested. The cones are gathered and placed in a drying area, either spread out on the ground on a tarp, or hoisted in a burlap bag. Once dry, the cones are processed by cracking them, then sorting the seeds from the dried cones. The actual nut is inside a husk that protects the nut during processing. Pine nuts are used for soups, stews, cookies, or biscuits. There is also a coffee made from pine nuts that is quite popular in New Mexico in the US.

Answer: Butternut

Butternut trees (Juglans cinerea) are a species of walnut tree that are also known as the white walnut. It is native to eastern North America. Historically, its bark was used to create a yellow/brown fabric dye. During the US Civil War, some Confederate soldiers were called "butternuts" which was a reference to the light brown uniforms that they wore. The wood has also been prized by wood carvers and furniture makers. The fruit of the butternut is a drupe, or seed that is surrounded by a husk. It is an oval shape that is made up of a hard-walled shell that is surrounded by a sticky husk.

Butternut trees are threatened by a fungal disease known as butternut canker. This disease was imported in a load of Japanese walnut trees early in the 20th century. The disease has devastated most butternut trees in their home range to the point that it is listed as endangered in Canada, and a species of concern in several states.

Answer: No

Almond trees were originally native to Iran. The trees grow to 4-12.2 metres (13-40 feet) high, and have trunks that can grow up to 30 centimetres (12 inches) in diameter. The almond trees blossoms in the spring with pale pink to white flowers. The fruit, which contains the nut, is oval in shape, and grows to 3.5-6 cm (1 3⁄8-2 3⁄8 in) long. The fruit is not the nut. Instead, it is a drupe, inside of which is the seed of the tree that is encased in a hard shell like a peach pit. The seed, or nut, can be found when the seed shell is cracked open.

Most of the world's almond trees now grow in California. In fact, some estimate that the state of California produces up to 80% of the world's almonds. Each almond requires up to three gallons of water to grow. The trees don't produce water for the immediate environment, so almonds have come under fire as a crop that is very difficult on the environment during drought years in California.

Answer: Snapping or bending new shoots

Hazelnuts are also known as filberts or cobnuts. The trees are grown in a number of countries, including Turkey, Italy, the United States, Azerbaijan, Chile, and Georgia. In a review conducted in the first quarter of the 21st century, it was found that Turkey produces over 60% of the world's hazelnuts. Hazelnuts are used to flavour the chocolate spread Nutella. It was reported in 2014 that the company that makes Nutella uses about 25% of the world's hazelnuts each year.

Hazelnuts grow on hazel trees which are classified in the Corylus genus. A number of species in this genus produce nuts that are known as hazelnuts, but the most popular one is the Corylus avellana. Hazel trees are deciduous, meaning that they lose their leaves when weather turns cool and light levels drop. The fruit of the hazel tree is known as a cob. It is a fibrous covering on the seed shell that will split open when ripe. The seed shell contains the nut that is edible and used as a snack, or in cooking and baking.

In order to encourage the growth of nuts on hazel trees, brutting is used to send more energy up to the blossoms the following spring. Brutting is done in the late summer. It involves counting up six or seven leaves on any new shoots that have formed that year. Then, snap (but don't break) that new shoot there. That will stop the tree from trying to make the new shoot grow and force it to make more flowers (and more nuts) below the snap the following spring.

Answer: Pecan

Pecan (Carya illinoinensis) trees are native to Mexico and the southern states in the US. They are large deciduous trees that typically grow between 20-40 m (66-131 ft) high. Their trunks are usually 2 m (6 ft 7 in) diameter. Like other nut trees, the fruit of the pecan tree is a drupe. That is, a seed that is surrounded by a hard shell is protected by a husk. The pecan tree is a member of the hickory family. The nuts that are produced are delicious, and used in baking, cooking, and snacking.

Pecan wood is prized for making furniture. It is also used in the flooring industry. Some also use pecan wood for flavouring when smoking meats. This gives the meat a sweet and nutty flavour when it is cooked. In the US, Alabama, Arkansas, California, and Texas have declared the pecan to be the state nut. Texas has also declared that the pecan is the state tree.

Answer: Hickory

Hickory trees fall in the genus Carya. A number of species exist, including the shagbark (Carya ovata), and the shellbark (Carya laciniosa). Like many other nuts, the nuts from the hickory are considered to be drupes. The nutmeat or seed grows inside a hard shell, which in turn grows inside a husk. The hickory nuts are delicious, but can be challenging to get to. The shell that surrounds the seed is extremely hard, and typically only about 2-5 cm (0.8-2.0 in) long and 1.5-3 cm (0.6-1.2 in) diameter. The best way to crack open the shells may be to hold them with pliers and smack them with a hammer. This keeps fingers and thumbs out of the force required to crack the shells.

Shagbark hickory bark is used to make an edible syrup, similar to maple syrup. The wood is also very strong and hard. It has been used for furniture, flooring, baseball bats (although most of those are made with ash in the 21st century), tool handles, skis and ski poles, drum sticks, and wagon wheels. Shagbark and shellbark trees are also prized as being some of the finest nut trees in the US by Native Americans (along with pecan). The wood of hickory trees is very dense, which makes it ideal for burning in stoves and barbecues because it takes a while to burn while adding a nutty flavour to meat that is cooked.