The modern name for filberts has evolved from European folklore. The original name was connected with Saint Philberts Day (Saint Filbert), the day that harvesting the nuts began, August 22nd, the day of observing the Saints day of celebration. The famous Roman historian, Pliny, recorded that hazels (filberts) were frequently gathered by the Romans as food. Pliny believed that filberts (hazelnuts) had originated in Damascus, Syria, where they grew naturally in forests; however, archeological records have shown some fossilized remains of filberts (hazelnuts) that were 5000 years old in prehistoric excavations from China. Almonds are found growing wild today in many European countries and Asia Minor. There, the climates are mild during winter with cool summers near moist soils and large bodies of water like the Black Sea boundaries around Turkey and near the Mediterranean Sea surrounding Sicily and Italy.
The first commercial nursery in the U.S. was established by Robert Prince in 1737 in Flushing, N.Y. George Washington visited this nursery by river barge in the spring of 1789 just after being elected the nations first President. During the Revolutionary War, General...