Nuts as cash crop, and Home-Made Husker

I just read the article, "He Makes Money After 'Going Nuts,'" in Farm Show (Vol. 34, No. 6). Mark Shepard has a 100 acre farm in WI where he grows as many perennial crops as possible for his weather and soil conditions. So, in addition to nuts, he has lots of fruit and is getting into hard-cider fermentation. He is currently working on hazelnuts for biodiesel, which he uses for all of his powered farm equipment, (and also just to eat). He is also selecting varieties of pine nuts, Japanese walnuts (heart nuts), and pecans that can make it through the cold. He is working on reviving the American chestnut, and butternuts by working to recognize disease-resistant strains. He's crossing butternuts with Japanese walnuts to make a hybrid: butterhearts. He is also making his own equipment for husking and cleaning the nuts, which are very efficient, and he will be patenting and selling.

I like the idea of getting to harvest a perennial for generations like this that is a real feeder (good protein). And he is doing so well.

Sounds like a great article.  There was a thread about another article covering his farm a few weeks or months back.  Sounds like an interesting man and a very interesting set up.

Think we could convice Paul to try and interview him or invite him to the site?

That would be awesome!

anyone have experience with dealing with  nut grubs?

yeah we should have a permaculture informed questioning round. Especially the money he needed for setting up would be interesting

Here is a handy, back-saving way to harvest walnuts:
(Link to http://www.mitzenmacher.net/blog/wp-content/uploads/2006/09/Walnuts_004.jpg)



Wouldn't be difficult to duplicate.

  We had a veterinarian who sold cattle testicles to a European deli. I guess those nuts were a cash crop for him .

    I'm going to have to check to see if squirrels are legally vermin where I live. If I'm unable to control squirrels then I won't grow many nuts. On the other hand if I'm allowed to capture squirrels then I guess I'm going to be serving up organic squirrel meat. I'm surrounded by forest that isn't sprayed with anything so this could be a renewable resource. There's also a good chance that raccoons would go after nuts but I suspect people will be more comfortable eating squirrels then they would be with raccoons.

We eat raccoons in Detroit. Srsly.

hamtownfarms wrote:
We eat raccoons in Detroit. Srsly.

Huh, must be a new thing. Still, when I was living there (River Rouge) there was a butcher there that sold musk rat, for my cousins who were missing them after catching them around the Saginaw Bay, I suspect. 

dale hodgins wrote:I'm going to have to check to see if squirrels are legally vermin where I live. If I'm unable to control squirrels then I won't grow many nuts. On the other hand if I'm allowed to capture squirrels then I guess I'm going to be serving up organic squirrel meat. I'm surrounded by forest that isn't sprayed with anything so this could be a renewable resource. There's also a good chance that raccoons would go after nuts but I suspect people will be more comfortable eating squirrels then they would be with raccoons.

Raccoon has become quite a gourmet item, and fairly high priced.  Why not do both?

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