Large tree up to 150 feet tall; trunk diameter up to 5 feet; crown broadly rounded; trunk straight, columnar, not but­tressed at the base.

 Black, thick, deeply furrowed.

 Stout, greenish or orange‑brown, hairy, smooth and gray; pith brown, divided by partitions; leaf scars alternate, shield­shaped, elevated, with 3 bundle traces.

 More or less rounded at the tip, pale brown, soft, hairy, up to V2 inch long.

 Alternate, pirmately compound, with 15‑23 leaflets; leaflets up to 3V2 inches long and 11h inches wide, broadly lance‑shaped, pointed at the tip, rounded at the asymmetrical base, toothed along the edges, yellow‑green and smooth on the upper surface, paler and hairy on the lower surface, turning yellow in the autumn.

 Borne separately but on the same tree, appearing when the leaves are partly grown, the staminate several in thick, yellow‑green, hairy catkins, the pistillate much fewer in small spikes, neither of them with petals.

 In groups of I or 2, spherical, up to 2 inches in diameter, green or yellow‑green, slightly roughened, the husk thick, the nut very hard, oval, dark brown, deeply ridged, the seed sweet. 

 Rich woodlands.

Black Walnut has been planted in stands in various areas of the park.  The larger specimens are east of Walnut Hill shelter.

The Black Walnut is recognized by its characteristic buds, its cambered pith, and its fruits.  The crushed leaves have a distinctive odor.

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  Tree species facts from Robert Mohlenbrock , Forest Trees of Illinois , 1996