68 Nature Notes Lots to enjoy in the Great Outdoors


As the seasons turn and the leaves begin to change colour, the fruit, berries and nuts on trees and in hedgerows start ripening. Nature’s harvest is in full swing and it’s time to get out and forage before anyone or anything else gets to them.


Nature nuts! Nuts have long held superfood status providing a good source of fat,


fibre and protein as well as being packed with a number of vitamins and minerals. There are five edible nuts that grow in the UK including hazel nuts,


sweet chestnuts and walnuts. Beech nuts and acorns are also aplenty though they are mostly more popular fodder for our animal friends.


WALNUT – Hard wrinkled walnuts are contained within a green husk. The nut can be eaten immediately – these are known as wet walnuts. The harder walnuts you more commonly buy in the shops are dried walnuts.


SWEET CHESTNUT - wrapped in a spiky, green casing and often roasted as a festive treat. The best and easiest harvest is after a windy day in October when the ground under the tree is cov- ered in nuts.


HAZELNUT - Most hazelnuts you find in the wild will be young and green. Birds and animals tend to eat them before they can mature into the brown nuts which are edible for humans.


HORSE CHESTNUT – (not edible) - commonly known as the conker tree. Its shiny, brown seeds appear in their spiny cases in autumn dropping naturally when ripe.


BEECH – Woody cups enclose one or 2 beech nuts. Best eaten cooked.


Did you know humans can eat acorns? Raw acorns contain tannins which can be toxic to humans and cause an unpleasant bitter taste. They are also poisonous to horses, cattle and dogs. But by leaching acorns to remove the tannin, they can be made safe for human consumption! See www.woodlandtrust.org.uk for recipes!


NUT FACTS Did you know?


• Nuts are defined as a “simple, dry fruit with one seed (occa- sionally 2) in which the seed case wall becomes very hard at maturity.”


• Nasa used pulverised walnut shells as thermal insulation in the nose cones of its rockets.


• The game of Conkers was first recorded in the Isle of Wight in 1848. The world conker championships are held annually in October in Oundle, Northamptonshire.


• Squirrels are one of the most important animals for helping the spread of oak trees. They store acorns in the ground but only recover around 70 per cent of them, allowing the forgotten acorns to grow into healthy trees.


• Only female pine cones have seeds. As the seeds mature the scales open up and the seeds are released.


• Peanuts aren’t nuts - they’re legumes and they grow underground.


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