Wednesday, October 28, 2020

Cultivating Pecan Trees





 
Pecan Production Guidelines For Small Orchards And Home Yards

Dear Squeeze and Boo,

Good News!

For the first time, my front yard pecan tree is producing an abundance of edible nuts this year!

I planted this tree about 20 years ago in memory of grampa.

Lately, I have been thinking about the "wisdom saying" that urges us to "plant a tree in whose shade we will never sit...  but upcoming generations will."

On one of our walks Maria, I mentioned to you that I'm thinking of planting new apple trees in the spring.

Now I'm even more enthusiastic about planting pecan trees.

Pecans have a number of notable advantages.

1.) Typically pecans begin production in 12 to 15 years. And then they are very long lived - often attaining an age of 300 years!

Arizona's Department of Agricultural Extension reports that if you tend pecans well during their early years, they will produce some nuts before age 5.

(An aside... always remember that the local agricultural extension agent is your FREIND. Pick His or her brain - and not only for specific targeted purposes but whenever you move into a new environment in order to find out what horticultural species - and "named varieties" - grow best there.

2.) A mature pecan tree will, on average, yield 40 to 50 pounds of pecan.

That's nearly a pound of pecans per week - probably enough to keep a person alive.

3.) The pecan is a beautiful - even majestic - tree, with the following notable advantage (at least from a professional landscaper's point of view).

The trunk of the pecan rises directly from the ground, while the ENTIRE root system remains TOTALLY underground.

Homeowners consider this a tremendous boon for three reasons: 1.)  this characteristic is aesthetically pleasing, 2.) above ground roots make mowing difficult. and 3.) an entirely subsurface root system  will not damage nearby asphalt, concrete or stone/brick work.

What's not to like?

Yuuuvvvvvooooooo!!!

D(addy)man


Pecan Tree
Wikipedia

Recently, I had opportunity to "taste test" Great Value and Breyer's Butter Pecan Ice Cream side by side.
Not only was Great Value clearly superior, I found Breyer's - in comparison - nearly inedible!?!

  (Great Value ice creams are available at Walmart for less than half the cost of Breyer's whose "Mint Chip" was,  for decades, my "go-to" ice cream choice.)   


No comments:

Post a Comment