By Shannon Dooley, October 3, 2019
Oregon is all about its nuts – hazelnuts!
Call them filberts or what you will, but drive almost anywhere in the Willamette Valley and you’ll pass hazelnut orchards. According to the Statesman Journal some 70,000 acres of Willamette Valley farmland are planted in hazelnuts trees and farmers are expected to plant 8,000 more acres each year. The 2018 harvest yielded about 47,000 tons, but by 2025, the yield is expected to be 90,000 tons annually.
I guess I shouldn’t have been surprised when I found out my client worked in the hazelnut industry, I mean, 47K tons is a lot of nuts to deal with. As many of us do, I had forgotten that when I reach for my favorite agricultural products, hazelnuts or otherwise, that a lot of people have worked very hard to make those available to me.
It made sense that he found the perfect house in Salem as it’s centrally located in the Willamette Valley and I hope he’s going to love his new home for a good long time.
Fun Facts from the Oregon Hazelnut industry:
- The hazelnut became Oregon’s official State Nut in 1989.
- About 800 Oregon farm families grow hazelnuts on 70,000 acres.
- The total value growers received for their hazelnut crop has averaged nearly $70 million during the last five years. This translates into a total economic impact of more than $150 million in Oregon.
- Hazelnut trees can produce until over 100 years of age.
- The hazelnut is unique in that it blooms and pollinates in the middle of winter. Wind carries the pollen from yellow catkins to a tiny red flower, where it stays dormant until June, when the nut begins to form.
- The nuts mature during the summer months, turning from green to shades of hazel nestled in a protective husk, and are harvested in late September or October after they have fallen to the ground.
- In 1858, the first cultured hazelnut tree was planted in Oregon by retired Hudson’s Bay Company employee, Sam Strictland in Scottsburg.
- In 1903, George Dorris of Springfield started the first commercial orchard with more than 200 Barcelona hazelnut trees. Barcelona is the most prominent variety grown in Oregon today. The Dorris Ranch is now a living history filbert farm with thousands of visitors annually.
Also, if you made it this far and love to bake please make some of these cookies and write to me about how darn delicious they are!
Shannon Dooley
Principal Broker in OR | Broker in WA | Earth Advantage | ADU Specialist
She/Her
Long before I lived here I was enamored with the Pacific Northwest. Growing up in the high desert of Nevada I found the dichotomy of the moisture and associated life in the PNW incredibly appealing. As a teenager I was certain I wanted to live in Seattle, then one trip to Portland changed my mind. I was in love with this city instantly and knew this is where I wanted to grow and where I wanted to raise my daughter. That was 20 years ago and I’m still enamored. I have gotten to know this city inside and out and am continually grateful that my job is also my passion.
As a third generation REALTOR® I truly feel like real estate is in my DNA. Unlike many generational Realtors my business is built from the ground up. I started in 2016 and haven’t stopped yet. I believe in perpetual growth and am continually seeking knowledge and experience that will benefit my clients. I learned a lot about basic construction principles growing up with a father who could, and would, take on any home renovation project. More recently I took lessons from my former spouse who was a general contractor and home inspector. Those experiences provided a great base, but the most significant learning has happened since becoming a general contractor myself and starting a small construction company in 2019.
I love our communities, neighborhoods, and especially our houses. We are lucky to live in an architecturally diverse city where you can find almost any style of home and many vintage homes, some dating back to the 1800s. This can prove overwhelming for a lot of people, but I love these old houses and have an abundance of knowledge to help my clients navigate without fear.
I believe in real estate as the most important investment we can make for longitudinal wealth and want to help everyone realize that potential. For this reason first time homebuyers hold a special place in my heart, I love getting people started on that journey. The truth is I love it all. Seasoned investors who just want to talk numbers? Great. Coordinating with empathy and kindness to handle an estate? Yes please. Working with sellers to prepare their homes and finding the right way to say goodbye? Absolutely. I love it all.
When I’m not obsessing over houses or helping my clients prepare for their next move you can find me hiding out in the mountains or at the beach, traveling internationally, re-learning the piano, meeting new people, attempting to keep house plants alive, exploring Portland neighborhoods, and supporting local businesses. I bought my dream house in North Portland where I live with my dog Arnold and the worlds most talkative cat John Meowkovich. I’m always taking on some sort of life endeavor and have been part of starting a food truck, owning and developing a small farm property, and writing a children’s book. “Can’t Stop - Won’t Stop” should probably be my motto. My adult daughter is an amazing human that brings me great joy. I couldn’t be more proud.
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- T: 503-201-2345
- shannondooley@livingroomre.com
