How-to Guide
How to Grow Hazelnuts (Filberts)
The short answer
Hazelnuts, also called filberts, are hardy roughly in USDA zones 5 to 9 and grow in many soil types as long as drainage is good. They begin bearing after about four years and reach full production around seven years or more.
They are not self-fertile: a tree cannot set nuts with its own pollen, so plant at least one different, compatible variety as a pollenizer, generally within about 50 feet and with a clear wind path. Hazelnuts are wind-pollinated and shed pollen in mid-winter, so bloom timing and frost during pollen shed both matter.
Site and planting
Choose well-drained, loamy soil and a site with good air movement for wind pollination. Space plants so pollen can travel between varieties.
- 1Select two varieties — Pick a main variety plus a compatible pollenizer; confirm the pair is cross-compatible before buying.
- 2Space for wind — Keep pollenizers within roughly 50 feet with no line-of-sight obstruction so wind carries pollen.
- 3Be patient — Expect first nuts around year four and peak yields after about seven years.
Pollination requirement
Hazelnuts are self-incompatible and some variety combinations are also cross-incompatible, so variety choice is critical. Pollen sheds in mid-winter, and cold damage to catkins or flowers during that window reduces nut set.
→ Check a compatibility chart when choosing a pollenizer; not all filbert varieties pollinate one another.
Sources
Reviewed 2026-07-18. We cite university Extension, government, and established horticultural sources — and never invent pesticide rates or dangerous treatments.
- Utah State University Extension — Hazelnuts in the Home Orchard — Hazelnuts are not self-fertile and need a different variety as pollenizer; hardy about zones 5-9 in well-drained soil.
- OSU Extension — Growing Hazelnuts in the Pacific Northwest: Pollination and Nut Development (EM 9074) — Hazelnuts are wind-pollinated, self-incompatible, and require compatible cross-pollenizers.
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Reference