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nafex - Re: [NAFEX] Pecans

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  • From: Lucky Pittman <lucky.pittman@murraystate.edu>
  • To: North American Fruit Explorers <nafex@lists.ibiblio.org>
  • Subject: Re: [NAFEX] Pecans
  • Date: Wed, 04 Jan 2006 08:16:29 -0600

At 10:03 PM 1/3/2006, Topgun wrote:
Some commercial nurserymen just soak the intact nuts in water for 5 days. One says he does not change the water but I would recommend it.

That is what I do - I don't even bother stratifying pecans anymore; I just store them in the barn, then when I'm ready to plant in the spring, I soak the nuts for 4-5 days, changing the water daily.  I get good germination rates - well over 90% . 
For whatever reason, though, shagbark hickory nuts handled in the same manner usually give me very low germination rates - it seems that they really need cold, moist stratification.

Dylan,
Your seedlings will be a crapshoot, of sorts, with regard to nut quality &/or disease resistance - and you'll likely be waiting somewhere between 12-20 years(or possibly more) for your seedling pecans to come into production.  You could, however, plant them out, grow them for 2-3 years, then graft to named varieties that have been proven to be productive in your area.  Doing this would give you nuts of know quality in about half the time you'd have to wait for a seedling to bear.
I have a friend in NJ who's got a big collection of pecans, hickories, and walnuts.  He could give you good advice as to which varieties would be your best bet for production on LI, as I wouldn't anticipate his climate to be radically different from your own.

Lucky Pittman
USDA Cold Zone 6
AHS Heat Zone 7
Hopkinsville, KY



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