Growing Pine Nuts is Straightforward, with Patience and Space

Dan Specialty Crops, This Land of Ours, Tree Nuts

How to grow your own nutty treat that’s been used in kitchens for thousands of years. That’s coming up on This Land of Ours. 

pine nuts
Photo by Leila Issa on Unsplash

Growing your own pine nuts is straightforward, and with patience and plenty of space, you’ll be able to harvest a large amount of those nutty little treats.

It will take a few years to start producing, but you will get pine nuts for generations once you have productive trees. There are about 20 varieties of Pine Nut trees, but these are most common:  Mexican Stone Pine, Colorado Pinion, Korean Nut Pine, and Italian Stone Pine.

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Due to their size, pine nut trees don’t suit containers. They have very long taproots. Plant in full sun to partial shade. Seedlings and saplings need more sun than shade and will grow slower if they don’t get enough. Pines make good windbreaks and suit permaculture and food forests. They also require little care in the form of watering, fertilizing, and pruning. When your tree produces large cones, and they are beginning to dry it’s time to harvest.

Listen to Cathy Isom’s This Land of Ours program here.

Growing Your Own Pine Nuts is Straightforward