FAQs

Are the walnuts this season’s?

Our new season walnuts were harvested in April 2024

Are the walnuts and  kernels gluten free, low GI and preservative free?

Yes

Are your trees genetically modified?

No, we graft onto a black walnut tree the fruiting stock of a Californian variety or a French variety for good walnuts.

Are you organic and what sprays etc. do you use on your trees?

We are not organic,  however this is how we manage our orchards:-

• We spray the trees when they are coming out into leaf in Spring and into Summer with a fungicide mix of mancozeb, phosphonic acid and Kocide for walnut blight.  They are used in combination to be more effective than a single one.
• We fertilise our trees and the orchard with a mix of old walnut husks, chicken manure and sawdust that has been composted to 6 to 8 months.
• We use the liquid fertiliser Rustica Plus which is an NPK feed and has essential trace elements in the solution in the irrigation water in the Summer to get to the roots of the trees.
• We use weedicide for the weeds around the base of the trees and between the rows if our sheep don’t clean them up beforehand.
  
  

What Food Safety and Quality Control do you use?

Our food kitchen is registered with the Rural City of Wangaratta council.

What variety of walnuts do you have?

We grow three varieties: Howard and Chandler are thin shelled, easy cracking nuts (known as Californian varieties) and Franquette is a longer lasting, thicker shell walnut.

Why do I have some nuts that have nothing or are dried up on the inside and are not all the same size?

We sort our nuts by using 2 air legs to blow off light weight nuts, as well as being inspected by hand three times and inferior looking nuts are discarded. Unfortunately we can’t see inside the shell, and with each kg having about 90 nuts and our total crop being over 2 million nuts passing over these tables, some are bound to be missed. 
We follow the Australian Walnut Industry guidelines that allow for 4% by weight of blank or inferior nuts per package, and 5% can be of a grade either side the one that is being graded.
We accommodate this by always adding extra to each individual pack.

When is the best time to buy walnuts in shell?

Walnuts are harvested once a year in April, so the freshest time to buy is soon after that. Walnuts will gradually age over the year.

To reduce this natural process, we take every care in harvest and storage and keep all our nuts in a cool store.

How long will walnuts keep?

Walnuts in their shells will taste good until January, if kept in a cool place and in a covered container.
Kernel keeps well for up to 12 months in an air tight container, preferably in the fridge.
Our kernel is packed in vacuum sealed- air, excluded fresh packs to ensure long life. You can freeze both in shell and kernel, but it should be used straight after thawing.

How long do walnuts keep  in warmer parts of Australia like NSW and QLD?

Two things age walnuts: heat and exposure to oxygen.
So, it is best if you can to keep them in an air tight container either in the fridge or in a cool cupboard. And watch out for those little pantry moths that will also love our walnuts...another reason to keep them airtight.

Can you send walnuts to Western Australia?

WA’s quarantine regulations prohibit us from sending walnuts in shell to WA. However kernel, oil, pickled and other processed products are ok to send.

How long will my order take to reach me?

We ship by either Australia Post or by Toll for larger items.
Although we take every care with packing and getting a tracking order for you, once the order leaves our farm we have no control over how long it will take to reach you. 

Do you send walnuts overseas?

No, at this time we only do sales within Australia.

Can I come and self pick walnuts?

Sorry, due to biosecurity and safety, we can not allow individuals onto the farm to pick their own walnuts. 

Sorry, we do not sell Green Walnuts.

 Why do you vacuum pack your kernel?

To ensure that our nuts are stored as fresh as possible our vacuum packaging machine allows us to add inert nitrogen gas (commonly used in many packaged products) to the vacuum sealing process. In this way, the kernel is not crushed by the vacuum process and the gas displaces any oxygen gas (air) that may have been in the package and the kernel is then in an air free package to maximize its storage life. Kernel packed this way has a shelf life of 12 months.