How do we produce these exquisite balls of flavour filled goodness for you?
When shape matters.
Hazelnuts are grouped into the tree nut family, although the natural state of a hazelnut is more like a shrub than a tree. We grow them commercially with a single trunk and raised canopy so that air flow under the canopy minimises fungal growth, while also ensuring that our harvester can get close to the tree to collect the nuts. By keeping the under story clear of debris we have little need for fungicides and pesticides making the growing conditions more natural, and our nuts deliciously pure and super tasty for you!
Numbers
Hazelnuts grow in clusters, with numbers often determined by tree variety and growing conditions. The nuts themselves are encased by a leafy husk, which holds the nut until autumn when they fall from the tree ready for harvesting. Our orchard contains mostly TBC, Barcelona & Lewis varieties, which are all compatible with each other and generally have 3-5 nuts per cluster.
Cross Pollination
Catkins & flowers grow during Autumn and pollinate via wind during Winter. All flowers are female, and catkins male, but pollen must be shared from one tree variety, to the flowers buds of another tree variety in order for successful pollination to occur. The nuts then grow through Spring and Summer, drop naturally to the ground, and are harvested by machine during Autumn.
These amazing trees are often multitasking throughout the seasons... with a crop cycle taking almost 18 months to complete despite an annual harvest!