Walnut trees are important because of their attractive wood, which is hard, dense tight-grained and polishes to a smooth finish. This all occurs in walnut trees, except the wood in young walnut trees. The colors in a walnut tree wood ranges, from a creamy white in sapwood to a dark brown in the heartwood. When the wood of a walnut tree is dried in a kiln the walnut wood tends to turn a dull brownish color, but when dried in the air becomes a purplish brown. This is the wood that is liked and is used in furniture and used as carving wood.
Walnut Trees are very attractive trees that are grown in parks and large gardens. A particular walnut tree known as the Japanese Walnut is grown for its huge leaves, this giving the appearance of a “tropical” plant.
Walnut tree’s, are not particularly a good tree, for smaller urban gardens. This is because they drop numerous leaves, twigs, branches or nuts, so they are considered to be a messy tree, by some landscapers. The nuts that fall from a walnut tree in the late summer, early fall can be quite dangerous. The leaves and root system of a walnut tree secretes a substance that is quite harmful to different garden plants and other trees. This substance is known as juglone. Depending on the type of walnut tree, the amounts of secreted juglone will vary. The juglone appears to be the walnut trees defense against other potential competitors for water and sunlight sources. The juglone can affect an area up most strongly within the drip line zone. The drip line is the circle in which the outer most branches reach, vertical to the ground. Even though some have indicated that plants that are outside of the drip line have been affected because the juglone can stay in the soil for many years after the walnut tree has been removed, this due to the roots systems slow decay process.
