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[EarthNSky <erthnsky AT bellsouth.net>]

Rob, I talked to a pecan expert from UGA a couple of years ago and he 
recommended Kanza as a variety for my colder zone.  You might consider 
that, too.  Dr. Conner pointed me to this page for variety comparison.
http://sacs.cpes.peachnet.edu/pecan/Cultivar%20Intro.htm
You can link out from there to read more about pollinators, disease 
resistance and such.  Conner made sense. I am a homeowner and being so, 
I have different considerations than a commercial op and that should 
guide my decision. I don't have the equipment nor inclination to spray 
for disease.
I bought my Kanza and planted it in Dec of 2006.  I also bought two 
Pawnees for pollination.  One of the Pawnees was DOA, never broke 
dormancy, but the other two trees are doing great, especially my Kanza, 
which is a picture perfect 7 foot tree.  Yeah, it was expensive, but I 
hope the extra I paid to special order it will be a good investment.
That northern pecan is a closer cross to a hickory....genetically.  It 
still looks like a pecan, of course.  Basically, they are pollinators.
A word of advice from someone who spent weeks on this issue a few years 
back.  Don't be too swayed by the raves and reviews of commercial 
growers.  I know you are like me in that you don't care if you don't 
have maximum yield or the largest kernel size...what you want is a 
reliable pecan that tastes good and is relatively easy to shell and a 
tree that will be disease resistant in our zone 7 humidity and cold.
When I get a first crop from my Kanza, I'll send you some...had I bought 
the tree when I first 'met' ya, I'd already have the nuts for 
you...lol..but what you would get is a Kanza/Pawnee cross..no telling 
what kind of tree that would produce or what might pollinate it.
Oh and I have planted from seed,,,last year in fact, but a squirrel 
apparently robbed my stash.  I did plant about 4 inches deep.  Forgot 
the hardware cloth.

Bev

Robert Walton wrote:
> I went to Chase City today. It's a town 20 miles from here and there
> are lots of Pecan trees growing there. They are smaller Pecans than
> the ones you get from far south. I bought a couple of  trees a couple
> of years ago, Stuart and Desirable. I'm hoping that they will ripen
> nuts here.
>
> I'd like some more trees, but I'm just fine with the Chase City
> smaller pecans. They taste great and crack well enough. I'm thinking
> to plant some trees from seed. I stole a few today growing in front of
> a church (in the swale). But I've got a friend that lives there and
> will give me some seeds.
>
> I was reading a web page that talks about stratification and not
> freezing the seeds, that would kill them. Now, I'm thinking if I bury
> the seeds 4 inches, they should be just fine. But maybe I'm wrong. The
> ground freezes here but not that deep in a normal year. Anyone planted
> pecans from seed?
>
> Also, what is a northern or hardy pecan? I understand it's a variety
> for northern reaches, but what zone? Are they grafts or seedlings? I'm
> thinking that growing from local seed has to get me a pecan that would
> bear here. If they don't give lots of nuts or big ones, they still
> make nice trees.