Feature Tree – November 2005
Pecan
(click here for Tree of the Month archives)

Pecan, Carya illinoinensis (Juglandaceae family)

Habit:  Tree has an irregular rounded crown as a mature tree.  Native to the eastern and southern states it is found growing as a native tree in Eastern Kansas and throughout central Texas.  There are no native pecan stands in Colorado.     

Hardiness:  Zone 5 to 7    

Leaves:  Bright green pinnately compound leaf is 12 to 18 inches long.   The narrow lance-shaped leaflets are 3 to 6 inches long on a pale green petiole.

Twigs:  On young branches light gray to brown in color eventually turning gray with maturity.         

Bark:  The bark is brownish gray and slightly furrowed on mature trees.

Flowers:  Male and female flowers are borne on the same tree in catkins.  Flowers are not showy in appearance.   

Fruit:  A nut contained in a four-winged husk.  As fruit matures the husk turns dark brown in color.  The nut has a dark brown thin shell and can have a sweet seed inside.  Seed production begins once the tree is 20 years old.    

Landscape Value:   The current state champion is located north of Delta about a block east of the Ute Council Cottonwood.   There are numerous specimens located in Delta and Grand Junction.  The literature states that the tree needs well-drained loamy soils but the soil where the Colorado specimens are growing is clay-like and alkaline.  This tree species has a substantial taproot, which make transplanting a difficult proposition.   Any attempts to establish this tree should be done when the trees are seedlings.  Preferably less than two years old.  

Diseases/Insects:  Have not observed significant pests other than aphids on Colorado specimens.    

Information Sources: 

            Trees of Utah and the Intermountain West, Michael Kuhns
            Fire Effects Information System, USDA Forest Service  http://www.fs.fed.us/database/feis/index.html