I have 45 or so macadamias, about 5 are seedlings. The rest are grafted with around 15 varieties. Some seedlings do well, have good taste, good production, etc. Some do not. Lots of time invested in these trees to experience the final outcome as to whether it is a good tree or not. Some have been cut down (shell does not close completely leaving opening for bacteria/fungal infection...happened twice). Nuts fall, dry, and are easy to crack. Fresh nuts are edible, tasting somewhat like coconut, not firm in texture. Fresh nuts are more difficult to crack as the shell yields to pressure. Dry, no problem. A vise, vise grips, hammer works well. There are special crackers with leverage due to the hard shell. In no way are they like a black walnut as the round kernal comes out in one piece. Don't know how or why you would use a dental pick. Hard shell is a fact, but crack easily if they are dry, or roasted. A very nice evergreen tree with few pests. My biggest problem is tree rats that also enjoy the nuts being able to gnaw into the shell when it is soft. Screened (for birds) rat traps in the trees are effective.