Florida Forest Trees

Pecan hickory (Carya illinoensis)

Pecan hickory trees are most widely known for their sweet, edible nuts, which are cultivated for commercial resources throughout much of the southeastern United States.

The nuts are widely used in ice cream, candies, pastries, and desserts. They also have a high protein and fat content, which makes them a useful supplement to both human and animal diets. Many species of wildlife utilize the fruits and vegetation for food. The nuts are particularly popular with squirrels, fox, opossum and raccoons, as well as numerous birds.White-tailed deer will frequently browse on the twigs and leaves of the tree.		  

Twigs and leaves


Pecan wood is enhanced by its fine-grained beauty, strength, and durability. Uses include paneling, cabinetry, furniture and veneer, but its "good machining properties" make it a popular source of flooring and fuel wood as well.

Pecan trees grow mainly in the southern Mississippi valley, as far west as central Texas and Kansas and east into southern Georgia and north Florida.

 Identifying Characteristics
Size/Form:
 Pecan hickory is a large tree that may grow up to 100' to 140' tall and has a buttressed trunk. When grown in the open, it may begin branching just several feet above the ground.
Leaves:
 Leaves are alternately arranged, deciduous, and pinnately compound with 9 to 17 lanceolate leaflets that are 4" to 8" long and 1" to 2" wide. Leaflets have pointed tips and leaf bases that are often unequally rounded or wedge-shaped. Leaves are dark, yellowish-green, and smooth above with pale, often hairy undersides. Leaf midribs are off-center, giving the leaflets a sickle like shape. Leaf margins are singly or doubly serrate.
Fruit:
 The fruit is an elliptical-shaped, edible nut, which is about 1½" to 2½" long. It is enclosed in a thin, dark brown husk.
Bark:
 The bark is light brownish-gray and shaggy. Narrow fissures divide the bark into scaly, interlacing ridges.
Habitat:
 Pecan hickory grows best in rich, moist, well-drained soils, often in river bottomlands.

Photos
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Bark
Leaf
 Fruit

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