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   There are two species of walnuts native to Alabama, black walnut, Juglans nigra L., and butternut, J. cinerea L., which is also known as white walnut.  The translation of the generic name is roughly Jove’s or Jupiter’s nut, which refers to a Roman god, and because the Latin alphabet does not have a J the pronunciation of the J is silent.  When nuts are mentioned it the Bible it is either English/Carpathian/Persian walnut J. regia L., or pistachios, Pistacia vera L., while almonds, Prunus dulcis (Mill.) D.A.Webb, are called by name.

   A key difference between black walnut and butternut is the shape of the nut where the later is oblong and the former is closer to spherical although it is actually oblate.  The alternate pinnately compound leaves usually have an odd number of leaflets as on butternut, but an even number of leaflets are on black walnut leaves except for some rabidly growing shoots such as those caused by improper pruning. 

   Butternuts are high in oil content and can turn rancid quickly.  They need ample moisture considering how all of the wild ones I have seen are within sight of a stream, and at least one planted one on a hill succumbed to a prolonged drought after producing only one crop of nuts. At least most of the nuts were planted, and most sprouted only to await transplantation to a better site.  There is some sort of disease that has been killing off butternut trees, including population where I had planned on nominating one for the Alabama state champion especially since there is no current champion. 

   Black walnuts have a superior flavor over that of English walnuts, but some people consider black walnut to be to strongly flavored.  The kernels of black walnut are notoriously difficult to extract.  First the husk has to be removed and one way is to put them in a gravel driveway about one layer deep then drive over them until the husk are loose and dry.  I've heard that a putting them in a cement mixer with water and perhaps some aggregate will work quicker, and in that case the liquid could then be used for a dye or walnut stain.  I occasionally have fun getting naive individuals to peel them, and so far they have all been a Yankee or at least from north of the Tennessee River.  After the hulls are removed a sharp blow from a hammer is one way to crack the shell, but there are specialty walnut crackers that are worth the price if you have lots of walnuts.  The shells and meat of the cracked nuts must then be separated, which requires a pick and sometimes recracking.  The last thing you want to do is bite down on an overlooked walnut shell hidden in a brownie.  If the person picking out walnuts is careless most of the remaining pieces of hull and shell can be removed by sifting in a fine mesh produce bag such as what onions may come in, although the smallest pieces of walnut meats also fall through.

   If walnuts are not enjoyed for the nuts they are otherwise considered to be a messy nuisance where I have heard of entire walnut groves being destroyed, including needlessly wasting the valuable wood by hauling it to a landfill and then grinding the potentially more valuable stumps  This is about my best an example of an Inconceivable De-Beautification Award being done ignorantly.