A walk through a park that you theoretically know by heart can be surprising. It was the same this time. It was no accident that I stopped by a group of trees growing very close together. They look and grow differently than the trees in the area, and several of them grew in almost the same place.

I was also intrigued by the unusual activity of squirrels in these trees. I looked up and saw nothing interesting until a suspicious-looking object fell down next to me.

When I picked it up, I had no doubt it was a hazelnut. It looks different though, and what's more, the tree it fell from didn't look like a hazelnut, but as it turned out later - it was a hazelnut.

Hazel reminds me of a low tree, more like a bush with many branches growing out of the ground. This is different, because the tree I met is a Turkish hazel.

This tree can grow to over 20 m, has a straight thick trunk and has a dense conical crown. The structure of the tree is not a surprise here, but the hazelnuts that the tree bears.

The walnut is very tightly wrapped in a cover with very jagged ends resembling fringes.

The nut is therefore hidden in a casing somewhat resembling the closed shell of an exotic clam. The nut reminded me of some kind of cocoon in which an alien is found.

To get the nut out I had to do some serious gymnastics and use my teeth. It turned out that the casing was very juicy and also terribly sour in taste.

After many attempts I finally reached the nut, which I also cracked open with my teeth. The nut's flesh was already formed, slightly hard and very tasty.

Turkish hazel was brought to Poland from southern Europe, but it is not cultivated on an industrial scale. It serves mainly an ornamental function in gardens and parks. This tree can be found in several places in Poland, including Racibórz, where there is a beautiful alley shaded by Turkish hazel.