Walnut

Native Americans and early settlers prized the walnut tree for its practicality. They derived medicines from the leaves and the husks of the tree’s fruit. When the fruit ripened, they found a rich and flavorful nut inside. And they used the nut’s shell to create inks and dyes. They also discovered the tree’s interior beauty, its wood, for which people still swoon. But tempting as love-at-first-sight may be, let’s look “under the hood” at walnut flooring’s other qualities.

When grown in sustainable woodlots with healthy forest competition, walnuts develop a tall and straight trunk. Upon reaching full maturity, Vermont Plank Flooring mills those trees into the widest and longest boards available on the market—up to 12+ inches wide and up to 12+ feet in length.

Though dark woods like walnut can make a room feel somewhat smaller, our impressive dimensions help to offset that and offer a feeling of expansiveness. Walnut’s dark color and relative dimensional stability means the seams between those wide boards will remain inconspicuous, further aiding the sense of spaciousness this flooring can provide.

Walnut is a moderately dense, medium-hard flooring option. It rates a 1010 on the Janka scale of hardness, which places it below red oak and birch, and above cherry. That means walnut is somewhat susceptible to dents and scratches, so you will need to consider measures to maintain it in good condition, such as avoiding sharp heeled shoes, and utilizing area rugs and doormats in high traffic areas.

However, walnut accepts stain and finish beautifully, which adds a critical layer of security. Vermont Plank Flooring’s finish shop can help you determine the best finish to both protect and amplify the beauty of your walnut floor.

The walnut tree draws sensory attention from both the tongue and the eye. In the culinary arena, the creamy, savory nuts are enjoyed fresh while also retaining their flavor and texture during cooking. The tree’s wood, meanwhile, provides a visual treat treasured by the finest woodworkers and held in the highest esteem by wood connoisseurs. It is characterized by a luminous, coffee bean-brown color with purplish overtones and swirling golden sapwood patterns. Its predominant straight grain sometimes teases the eye with some waviness, or even, on occasion, playfully veers into a decorative curly figure.

Vermont Plank Flooring offers walnut in both select and character grades. The select leans toward straighter grain and uniformity of color, whereas the character grade welcomes sapwood color variations and playful grain implications incurred by knots.

With either option, walnut’s richness provides an elegance to any room. Whether used in combination with other dark tones, or as a contrast to lighter-colored species or decorative elements, walnut makes a refined, sophisticated statement.

Walnut’s stylish appeal make it a great choice for spaces that beckon for attention, such as living rooms, dining rooms, and master bedrooms. Its relative softness makes it somewhat less desirable in high-traffic areas such as kitchens, entryways, and family rooms, though a quality finish, a shoes-off policy, or well-placed rugs can mitigate that. Its dark hue may be too heavy for very small rooms or those with little or no natural light.

And although walnut is relatively stable to expansion and contraction due to seasonal climatic fluctuations, in rooms that hold the potential for moisture and wetness, such as bathrooms and any locations below grade, we recommend Vermont Plank Flooring’s high-quality engineered walnut.

Our engineered wide plank walnut is your answer if your project includes below-grade family rooms and basements, or is in a location where flooring will be laid on concrete or where moisture is likely to be present.