I came upon this tree sixteen years ago while cutting the field beside my house. It was about three feet tall then, well-shaped, and healthy. I guessed it was about two years old and most likely an offspring of the large walnut tree located in the center of the field at the top of the creek bank. while I admired it, the idea came to me to develop a Black Walnut orchard in this field. After all, Black Walnut is the wood I carved my first pieces from and it has remained the wood of choice throughout my career.

And besides, this is the Walnut Creek Valley, Walnut Creek borders the property to the east, and both are named for the abundance of Black Walnut trees that grow here. It seemed only logical to have a Black Walnut orchard as part of the studio.

I cleared the other plants away in a wide circle and marked the tree with pink surveyor's tape. From then on I cut the field carefully, isolating and marking other Walnut saplings, that I came across that summer and continued to do so for the next several summers. I also transplanted saplings into the areas of the orchard where none came up on their own. Over the years, I've come to refer to the tree that got it started as "First Tree" and now, sixteen years later, it continues to thrive as a founding member of the orchard.

First Tree sixteen years on.   (+)    

First Tree in late September.    (+)    

I trim the branches of the walnut trees during the winter and my rule of thumb is to cut off any from the trunk that I can reach while standing underneath. Come the growing season, the weight of new wood and leaf growth will sag the branches somewhat, but never to the extent that the profusion of fresh walnuts did this year on First Tree. In some places the ends of the branches went from a foot above my head before growth began to touching the ground by the time the walnuts were ripe. A walking path around the orchard passes right underneath the tree and by midsummer, I had to weave my way through a tangle of branches. Standing underneath, hundreds of fresh walnuts were hanging in all directions.