By Patti Jo Peterson
Managing Editor

Patti Jo Peterson

Managing editor

Wouldn’t it be great if farmers could plant a crop and not have to replant for 25-30 years?

And what if this crop could bear Nebraska’s frigid winters and scalding summers yet still produce a tasty and nutritious product that could be used as a biofuel as well?

A consortium comprised of Nebraska Arbor Day Foundation (NADF), Nebraska Forest Service, Rutgers University, University of Nebraska and Oregon State University are working to do just that with a test plot of hazelnut shrubs planted May 20 at Horning Farm outside of Plattsmouth.

The purpose of this consortium is to create a world-leading research and breeding program to develop hazelnuts as a widely adapted, high-yielding and low-input sustainable crop that is competitive with annual crops for food, feed or bio-energy.

“The goal is to develop a crop that can be grown throughout the United States and Canada,” said Ben Cohoon, NADF Related Business Ventures Analyst.

Even though hazelnuts are native to America, higher quality commercial varieties are mainly grown in Europe.

“Oregon has a commercial hazelnut industry and it produces 3 to 5 percent of the world’s hazelnuts at an average value of $160 million. It hasn’t expanded much beyond that because the European varieties are very susceptible to the Eastern Filbert Blight. It kills non-native commercial varieties,” Cohoon explained.

By crossbreeding native hazelnut shrubs with European varieties, they hope to produce a marketable crop that is disease resistant and climate adaptable.

“We initially planted hazelnuts at Arbor Day Farm in 1996. The data has been compiled with University of Nebraska-Lincoln and the forest service for the past 10 to 12 years,” Cohoon said.

Each shrub planted was a different variety, so data could be compiled.

Data included  oil content, number of nuts per shrub, disease resistance and growth factors.

Data included  oil content, number of nuts per shrub, disease resistance and growth factors.

“The best plants are then sent to Rutgers and tested for disease resistance to Eastern Filbert Blight,” Cohoon said. “We’re planting the best from Arbor Day Farm crossbred with the best from Oregon State and Rutgers to come up with a good commercial variety plant.”

Cohoon said another seven to 14 years of research needs to be completed before the best crossbreed is found.

And research has been ongoing between the four consortium institutions for a cumulative 70 years.

“It took quite a bit of time to get to that planting at Horning Farm,” Cohoon said.

Horning Farm was chosen as a test site because it is owned by Nebraska Forest Service and it experiences extreme heat and cold climates.

“It’s a good chance to look at plants in both climates,” Cohoon said. “We’ll be able to see which ones can adapt to a wide range of climates and Horning Farm is a great place for that.”

Hazelnuts have many benefits for the grower and consumer.

“As a food they are high in protein, nutrients and vitamins. They have the good fats and the Federal Drug Administration gave them the Heart Healthy approval in 2003,” Cohoon said.

With oil content as high as 75 percent, UN-L is also looking at their potential as a biofuel.

“They are like the soybean but produce twice as much per acre and the oil content is better from a flashpoint perspective,” Cohoon said.

“Hazelnuts are also perennial crops. They have a 25-30 year production life so you don’t have the soil erosion. They sequester more carbon dioxide and reduce nitrogen and phosphate runoff. They could be used to repair buffer zones.”

While the initial expense of planting hazelnuts may be more than an annual row crop, the ongoing maintenance costs are less, Cohoon said.

While the test plot in Nebraska City is hand-harvested, blueberry pickers have been successful in gathering a crop.

“In Oregon and Europe, the nuts fall to the ground. Then, they just go and vacuum them up,” Cohoon said.

In a biofuel process, hazelnuts could also prove an excellent food source for livestock.

“Once the oil is extracted, you’re left with mulch that is very high in protein,” he said.

Some hazelnut shrubs make for colorful landscapes. “Some can have a nice orange to reddish color and some are green or brown,” Cohoon said. “At Arbor Day Farm there is a wide variety. Some are gorgeous red and orange.”

Hazelnut shrubs create wildlife habitats and food sources.

“Squirrels eat a lot of acorns but the protein content in a hazelnut is much higher.”

Cohoon said the planting at Horning Farm last week was truly a milestone.

“We not there yet but we’re moving slowly forward,” Cohoon said.