American Hazelnuts?

I got a seed catalog the other day, and found in it an "American Hazelnut". I have never heard of such a thing. I have been wanting to grow hazelnuts for some time now, but have never tried because it in a non-native tree, and I didn't want to cause an invasion. I have a friend who swears that he grew some from a bag of mixed nuts like you get at Christmas time.

Anyway, have any of you ever tried American Hazelnuts? Are they as good as the British ones we get at Christmas? Have you ever grown them?

The catalog said they were good from HZ-5 to HZ-10, so they should grow fine here in HZ-6.

God bless,
Chad

My mistake I just looked again, and it says hardness zones 4-8, sorry for the mistake.

It is on my list.  I have a hilly strip beside my driveway and I am planning on planting some American Hazelnuts (aka Filberts) there as well as a few hardy almonds.  

http://mdc.mo.gov/discover-nature/field-guide/american-hazelnut 

They will form thickets if allowed, so they actually make good screens and good windbreaks in addition to providing nuts for the table and for wild life.  If I can put them where I have planned they will help hold the bank, screen us from the neighbors and help direct blowing snow away from the driveway.

Thanks Farmfresh.

I have been wanting to slowly add fruiting trees, and bushes to the homestead. I have never planted any kind of tree, and I have noticed that bare root trees are more expensive than potted trees. This seems backwards to me. Is there a reason why? Is it harder on the tree to transplant for a pot than from bare root plants?

Oh, and do you recommend any nursery over others? I will likely have to order online, I don't know of any nursery near here.

I'll chime in here and say I like Miller Nurseries and Stark Brothers Nurseries. I've ordered from both and been very satisfied with both companies.

Thank you Patrice. It looks like they are the same company now. I went to Miller Nurseries, and was redirected to Stark Brothers with a message that they are one now.

Yes, I think they merged last year after one of the owners either died or retired.

I planted some from Stark last year, I can't remember now what they were. One is a grafted tree of their making, the other three were not grafted, but had been specially pollinated to be pollinators for most other hazelnut or filbert trees. The survival rate has yet to be determined, but if they make it through to this spring they should be fine.

Trees sold bare root are usually bigger and grow well.  Trees that are potted give you a wider planting time since they can be planted at any time of the year instead of only when the trees would naturally be dormant like the bare root ones. 

One important lesson that I have learned, especially with tree starts is you get what you pay for.  A tree may cost $30 or even more, but if it lives and produces it is an amazingly fast recovery of your money.  Think about how much fruit or how many pounds of nuts you would get for the same price.  After that first pay off day you still have years of production.  They are well worth the price.

yes they absolutely are worth the investment, not just for the fruits and nuts. They add beauty which by itself is also worth the investment. Consider also that trees, even the most fragile grafted dwarf shade an area and slow the wind. With enough trees, placed carefully, you can lower the temperature of a house, barn or shed without using any energy, or spending any money beyond the price of the trees

My plan for if I'm ever able to build is to have trees planted in such a way that they'll shade the house in the summer, allow the sun to heat it in the winter, and block the wind from the north. Since I can't really do that here, I'm planning on planting some tall flowers to block the sun to a point this summer.

Have any of you ordered anything from Gurney's Seed and Nursery? They sent me a catalog and 50% of coupon in the mail the other day. With the coupon the prices are really good, but like you said FF you get what you pay for most of the time. The price still makes it tempting.

I ordered seeds from them last year. They all grew well, definitely worth the $$ when combined with the coupon deal.

nope, too many family members have told me to not waste my money with them.

Don't remember now why, but it's an ingrained habit to not order from them.

Seeds yes.  Trees no.  I have ordered from them and the trees are second rate.  You are better to order from a real nursery that actually grows their own trees.

Thanks guys I was thinking it was strange that several people in my town got a 50% off coupon. I think I will buy from someone else.

Even with going through Stark, I have three of four survivors of my Filberts...I could claim a warranty, but I've decided not to. I think we will have plenty of nuts from these trees. Besides if you order an extra or two you can absorb a loss or two and not worry about it.