Tales Of Our Times

By JOHN BARTLIT
New Mexico Citizens
for Clean Air & Water

Hazelnuts turn up in credible stories about ancient times and the journey to now. 

A better look back to ancient times came in 1995. In 1995, evidence of large-scale Mesolithic (aka Middle Stone Age) nut processing was found on the island of Colonsay in Scotland. The discovery was an unusual, large, shallow pit full of the remains of hundreds of thousands of burned hazelnut shells.

Radioactive carbon dating evolved in the 1960s. So, it was used in the mid-1990s to date the Scottish pit materials back about 8,000 years to 6,000 BC. The hefty use of hazelnuts likely relates to the lack of large game on the little island that now has a few hundred residents.

Like most trees, hazel trees come in different types. The European Hazel is common in Europe and Asia, while the American Hazel is native to North America. Hazel wood is remarkably bendy—in spring a branch can be tied in a knot without breaking it. In history, the wood’s extreme flexibility has sparked ideas that were good enough to linger on in picture books. Hazel wood still finds a place in woven fences, vintage baskets, shepherd’s crooks, walking sticks, and in thatching roofs.

Mythology is the dreamy side of history. Hazel wood also does well in magic wands. The hazel tree is said to be a tree of wisdom and learning; its forked branches suggest decision points. Long ago, the idea spread that meditating beneath a hazel tree brings clarity in any dilemma. The hazel nut is a repository of knowledge in Celtic folklore, and the origin of the phrase “in a nutshell”.

But back to the business side of the hazel tree story. Hazel coppice is an important part of historic woodland management. I confess that “coppice” is a brand-new word to me. “Coppicing” is an early method of sustainable forestry on a local scale. Folks learned that cutting down a tree to a stump, in many species, encourages new shoots to grow from the stump or roots. From there, folks figured out the cycle of coppicing. A “copse” or “coppice” is a forest or grove where young tree stems are repeatedly cut down to near ground level. New growth emerges and, after several years, the coppiced trees are harvested for wood products. And the cycle begins anew. More details, benefits, and effects on wildlife are at wikipedia on coppicing.

Native American tribes occupied lands now in Eastern and Central U.S. that were populated with American hazel trees. As people do, the tribes found many good uses of local supplies of hazel nuts and wood.

“Local” food options continually expand. Think how the origins of “local” food supplies extend out thousands of miles and fill store shelves with a wide variety of foods and flavors. Today, a TV piece about joys of hazelnuts might zero in on German bakery goods aplenty at Christmastime. You well could learn about German Nusskuchen (hazelnut cake). Enclaves of a few thousand residents back in the 14th century have built distinctive recipes for the yuletide season. Nuernberger Lebkuchen (gingerbread) by local decree has remained exact for centuries. The cozy winter treat is made from a paste of ground hazelnuts and almonds, citrus zest, honey, and a must-have mix of spices unique to tropical Asia—cinnamon, ginger, cardamom, cloves, nutmeg, and mace. Indeed, on the world’s long road of trading and cultures! 

Comes December and Lebkuchen cookies newly-baked in Germany from an old, old recipe are shipped off to buyers and friends as far and wide as the U.S.