Valuable black walnut trees have doubled in Wisconsin over past 10 years

The volume of black walnut trees have skyrocketed in Wisconsin over the past 30 years, reaching about 124 million cubic feet in the state, according to a recent report.

Most of the black walnut is found in the southern part of the state, with roughly 60 percent of the state’s total volume in the southwest area. Freshly- planted black walnut stands can be seen in Vernon County forests.

The state produced about 1.3 million cubic feet of black walnut roundwood in 2013.

Stumpage prices per thousand board feet of the wood have risen recently in the state to as high as $1,440 after dropping below $1,000 for several years.

The weighted average for one south central region of the state of sold black walnut logs in 2017 was $3,000, according to FDN pricing information.

The fine grain pattern in the wood makes it popular for use in high-end furniture, interior finishes, gunstocks and car interiors.