COLUMBUS, OH - Homeowners in the Marietta and Chillicothe areas are being asked by the Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR) to donate their backyard walnut seeds to help in the state's reforestation efforts.
The collection program helps landowners reduce yard waste while providing valuable seed for the ODNR Division of Forestry's Marietta State Tree Nursery. In the previous 10 years, more than 100,000 pounds of black walnuts have been collected through the program, saving the state an estimated $150,000.
Marietta State Nursery is located at 27515 State Route 7, 3.5 miles north of Interstate 77; phone 740-373-6574. The ODNR Forestry Office in Chillicothe is located at 345 Allen Avenue; phone 740-774-1596.
These sites will have collection containers available throughout October to receive seeds. The Division of Forestry's Chillicothe office also has a limited number of nut-collecting hand tools, which can be loaned to homeowners who schedule a date in advance. These hand-held tools enable a person to pick up nuts without bending over.
Walnuts may be planted on well-drained, loamy soils as a future timber crop. For information about planting walnuts on a large scale, contact the ODNR Division of Forestry at 877-247-8733.
More than 3,000,000 seedlings of various tree species are sold each year by ODNR for use in reforestation, wildlife habitat development, erosion control, windbreaks and other conservation projects across the state.
A variety of tree seedlings will be available for sale to the public beginning October 1 for delivery in the spring of 2005. Over the past 80 years, the ODNR Division of Forestry has planted more than a half-billion trees in Ohio, helping the state increase its forested land from 2,500,000 acres in the early 1900s, to more than 8,000,000 acres today.