Title: Black Walnut at the Hardwood Tree Improvement and Regeneration Center (HTIRC)

Author: Woeste, Keith

Year: 2002

Publication: In: Smalley, Bryan, ed. Proceedings of the 29^th Annual Hardwood Symposium: Sustaining Natural Resources on Private Lands in the Central Hardwood Region; French Lick, IN: Proceedings of the 30^th Annual Hardwood Symposium: Current Topics in the Processing and Utilization of Hardwood Lumber; Fall Creek Falls, TN. [Memphis, TN: National Lumber Association]: 49-51

Abstract: Black walnut research at the Hardwood Tree Improvement and Regenation Center (HTIRC) is focused on genetic improvement but our ultimate goal is much broader. Simply put, our goal is more and better black walnut for the Central Hardwoods Region (CHR). To reach this goal, our research has to be both very basic and practical, long and short term. If landowners are to make use of outstanding new selections that we develop, the tree must have a reasonable cost, they must be adapted to a diverse growing region or have clearly defined zones in which they can be expected to do well, nurseries must have had a chance to work with them to develop the technologies to produce a large number of high quality plants, and we need to be able to recommend procedures for establishing plantings and best management practices to maximize their value. Thus, we are performing research on everything from the application of herbicides to the latest molecular genetic techniques. This paper will present an overview of the current black walnut improvement program at the HTIRC, with a focus on the practical implications and applications.