walnuts

[qahtan]

 I have a walnut tree that is about 20 years old,,, it was started by the squirrels in a friends hanging basket... every year it has these sort of wriggly
bits on it in the spring, I suppose it's some sort of blossom, lots of them, but they all drop off. my query being, is it blossom if so why does it not fruit /nut. does it need a mate or what should I do to make it fruit/nut..
thanks... qahtan.
by the way this is in Ontario Canada...   

[qahtan]

[artichoke]

Walnuts have male and female flowers on the same tree, so it shouldn't need a mate. Your wriggly bits could be the male catkin, and there should be tiny lumps with a 2 prong stigma for the female bit. But I don't know why yours doesn't set fruit.

http://www.wildmanstevebrill.com/Plants.Folder/BlackWalnut.html

http://www.extension.umn.edu/distribution/naturalresources/dd0505.html

[qahtan]

 Thanks for the info.....
if it makes any difference mine is not the black walnut, it';s the English walnut. but I suppose they are all basically the  same with regards to growth habits,      qahtan

[artichoke]

Yes, I don't know why all the refs were for the "black walnut" but as an illustrator I have done the "English" walnut for a book, and the "flowers" are identical. Friends of mine have young fruiting walnut trees (forget how old, though, maybe 10 years?)