TRADITIONAL AND MODERN USES OF WALNUT

The walnut is an old tree cultivated before the Greek age and appreciated for centuries for its fruits, wood and other parts utilized in several ways. Before the discovery of the phenomena of allelopathy, someone considered the walnut an un-healthful tree, since peasants used to wake up with migraine or fever after they had slept under a walnut tree. Some others considered the walnut a cursed tree, and in fact in Italy an old walnut tree growing in Benevento, has long been considered the place where the witches used to dance during the night of Saint John and, therefore, that tree was named Tree of the Witches. However, the fruit has always been considered a precious nut for its positive proprieties. Traditionally, as a gift, the nuts announced richness and health. By the way the modern studies confirmed the healthful propriety of this nut and the dietologist recommends the use of walnut because it is cholesterol free and rich in omega-3 fatty acids. This lecture describes the past and modern uses of leaves and hull (as cosmetics or insect control), wood for furniture and craft work, and of nuts used as food in several ways from Western to Eastern countries, wherever the walnut is growing.