Walnut, English

(Juglans regia)

England

English Walnut is in fact Persian Walnut (Juglans regia) and is a walnut native from the Balkans in southeast Europe east through southwest and central Asia and the Himalayas to southwest China. The Persian Walnut was introduced into western and northern Europe very early, by Roman times or earlier, and to the Americas by the 17th century. The name Persian indicates its origins in Persia (southwest Asia); 'walnut' derives from the Germanic word wal for "foreign", recognizing that it is not native in northern Europe. The scientific name Juglans is from the Latin jovis glans for "Jupiter's nut", and regia for "royal". The heartwood varies from a light grayish brown to deep chocolate brown to an almost black purplish brown and the sapwood is pale straw to whitish and well defined. The texture is moderate to coarse with an interlocked grain and is prized for it’s marble appearance.