Nuts!

I love all nuts, but if I had to choose just one, it would be the hazel.  It is the favourite food of dormice too and essential for the survival of several species of moth and a rare fungus. 

The tree is beautiful at all times of the year: during the winter s/he goes into hibernation along with the dormouse; the spring gives you the little catkins dangling on barely budding branches; s/he is in full leaf during the summer and the autumn brings the fruit.  

That is, s/he should!  I opened one up – nothing.  I opened a second – that was also completely empty. A third, fourth, fifth… I can’t believe it!  Not a single nut and they looked so promising with their heads poking through their Elizabethan ruffs…  What a swizz!

We asked the agronomo.  The first question he asked was, “How many have you got?”  “Just the one.”  “Well, that’s the problem. You need two to fertilise it.”

We will plant another, because the expert said so, and now is the perfect time to do it, but I always thought the hazel was bisexual (or whatever the botanical name is). 

Thank goodness the almonds cheered me up.  Not a dud amongst them and every one as sweet as…a nut, actually.

Just to cheer me up further, here is a picture of the almond in blossom:

 

And here is a lovely link providing some history and folklore on the hazel (Coryllus Avellana), plus information on its relationship with moths, dormice and other flora and fauna important for the biodiversity of our planet.  (Did you really think I knew all that stuff off the top of my head?) 

Apparently the twigs make excellent magic wands.  Who am I going to cast a spell on?  Without hesitation, it’s my new computer.  It’s literally driving me nuts and is so sensitive that I can’t read some of my favourite sites.   I’ll try to fix the problem from here, but I’m not exactly sure what needs fixing.

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