Walnuts. I have a love/hate relationship with them. They are a lovely addition to a salad. Sprinkled with a little salt and a squirt of oil before roasting in the oven they make a wonderful alternative to peanuts. As for coating them in honey and cinnamon before you roast them. Well that snack is sublime. So far so good. Yet everything is about lovely walnuts. So, what’s this about having a love/HATE relationship with them? Well to explain that I need to talk about why
I love this time of year.
Come September and October the intense heat of the summer has gone and yet the days are, or should still be, long and pleasantly warm. The thermometer no longer touches the heady heights of 40C (104F in “old money”) yet we reach a respectable 20-25c on a regular basis (68-77F). In fact yesterday we hit a record 28C (82F). When the nights are drawing in and the dogs are demanding blankets to snuggle under whilst watching Strictly, there’s nothing like the “Brucie Bonus” of an Indian Summer. With autumn in full swing the warmth of the sun that reaches the parts that our winter radiators or wood burners can’t. (You can read why it is called an “Indian Summer” here. It might surprise you. I know I was mistaken in the origins before doing this research.)
Anyway, I digress again …
So let’s get back to why I love this time of year. During September and October my idea of heaven is lazy days spent reading, or snoozing, in the dappled shade of a tree; absolutely perfect. As our house is called “Aux Abris des Arbres” (In The Shade of the Trees) I would have plenty of snoozing spots if only I had the time these days. My frustration at not having time for many lazy days at the moment is soon lessened as my perfect snoozing world starts to develop some serious imperfections.
You see I have one particular tree that is perfect for snoozing under. The position of the tree is spot on. Close to the house for trips back to the fridge. Far enough away from the lane not to be disturbed by the grape-laden tractors toing and froing for the Vendange. The tree is huge and old. Its high, open branches are great for shade, without feeling cave-like.
Sounds idyllic until you identify the tree as a walnut.
That’s where the problems start.
The problem starts when you mention walnuts to non walnut-tree owning people (NWTOP). Then the response is always the same. “Oh walnut trees, how lovely, how French!” However, I’m beginning to wonder if I’m a lone voice of reason in a desert of madness. For, by late September, I’ve developed an irrational hatred of walnuts. It’s not that I don’t like the taste; I do. I love them in fact. See reference above. It’s just the sheer number of the blimming things that I hate.
When you mention walnuts to the average NWTOP, usually back in blighty, they think of a small bowl of mixed nuts that only sees the light of day for a few weeks at Christmas. Female NWTOPs might envisage the conveniently shelled bags of 500grams, which is more than enough to see most families through the winter. What they cannot imagine is the number of nuts that three huge trees can produce in one season.
They’re also probably not aware that walnuts are toxic to dogs. To be fair I can’t really blame them for that. I didn’t know until both dogs were hooked. Mischief and Lanson (our previous pups) developed a taste for walnuts during our 4th years here. In the end this tasted verged on addiction.
At the beginning of September …
there is only the occasional ominous thud as a nut hits the floor. However, that soon changes. By mid-September we are not able to sit under the biggest tree without the protection of full body armour. In the height of the “chuck” Andrew and I can clear the lawn of nearly 1000 nuts in one day, whilst dodging the ones being chucked at us from a great height. Phone calls to friends are be interrupted by frequent shouts of
“Stopping chucking walnuts at me”
Whilst the dogs take advantage of our lack of concentration so hunt for a prime specimen. An action which adds more colour and variety to our conversations:
“Don’t eat the walnuts”
“Put the walnuts down”
“Step away from the walnuts.”
So yes, I stand by my earlier declaration of walnut hate and would even go as far as confessing that I am a self-diagnosed “noixaphobe”. There is more to the story than that: however, it is going to have to wait.
Andrew has been ill in bed all day and I’m running the risk of exhausting myself. So, I’m going to take my own advice and “take care of me” … I’ll finish my nutty blog next week.
Be kind to yourself …
In CANBACE friendship!
If anything I have written resonates I’d love to hear from you in the comments. I appreciate that this can be a difficult subject to speak openly about. If you don’t want me to publish your comment on the website, please let me know. I will keep your words private.
infertilityandlife
My mum and dad have a walnut tree…I can completely sympathise. This year a squirrel family took up residence. They ate all the nuts and left thousands of empty carcasses all over the garden, for my mum and dad to clear up. That’s even less fun than picking up the whole walnuts!! ??
Nicci Fletcher
If it was a family of red squirrels then “how lovely”. We’ve been sharing our walnuts with Serge, Simone and their relatives for years. Although when we cleared out the “bakery” so we could store the garden equipment inside we had to clear out decades of empty walnut husks. Another example of the love/hate relationships 🙂
infertilityandlife
? my dad dug over his veg plot the other day and dug up hundreds that they’d buried there! Little monkeys! ?
Nicci Fletcher
OH NO! Good job he has found them though as walnuts are not good for the soil and growing other things. We have three leaf mulch areas which we use in strict rotation. After we finishing putting walnut leaves into the “pen” we leave it for two years before adding the mulch compost. This gives the walnut toxins a chance to break down so they are no longer harmful.
infertilityandlife
Wow, I didn’t know it was so complicated or that they were so toxic! I’ll be passing this info on to my dad!! Sounds like you have a great system sorted ?