The cultural range of the pecan may be divided into two rather large belts, known as southern and northern. In fact, pecan culture is sometimes designated as "southern" and "northern" due to differences in size of nut, thickness of sh.e.l.l, and time required for maturity of nuts.
The approximate northern limit of the southern area is near the extreme southeastern boundary line between Missouri and Arkansas. The northern belt extends into Nebraska and Iowa and includes approximately the entire state of Missouri.
The chief difference between these areas is the length of the growing season. In general, the southern or "paper-sh.e.l.l" varieties require from 240 to 250 days to mature their nuts, while the northern varieties which produce usually nuts of smaller size with somewhat thicker sh.e.l.ls need from 180 to 200 days.
VARIETIES
There is no factor in pecan growing of greater importance than the proper selection of varieties for planting. Fertile soils and good culture will not make poor varieties profitable or low yielding kinds fruitful.
Only in southeast Missouri are the southern varieties such as Stuart, Pabst, Moneymaker, Success, Schley, and others a success. This is true because the fruit buds of these varieties in other sections of Missouri are generally killed by winter cold. Furthermore even if they escape the winter cold, the growing periods for all sections except southeast Missouri may not be long enough for the full maturity of the nuts.
Since none of the sorts adapted to the southern belt are sufficiently hardy to justify their planting in Missouri except in the southeastern section, growers in other parts of the state should confine their interests and selections to the so-called northern varieties. Some of the best of these are the Major, Niblack, Giles, Indiana, Busseron, Greenriver, and Posey.
Chance seedlings which have not been named are now and then found that may be equally as worthy or better for planting locally than any of the named varieties listed above. In fact, these suggested sorts were derived from chance seedling trees. Producers generally, therefore, should be on the lookout for seedling trees of merit. When so discovered, the Missouri Agricultural Experiment Station at Columbia will be glad to make tests free of charge and report upon the cracking percent, amount of kernel, appearance, flavor, texture, quality, oil content, etc.
The nuts produced by the hardy varieties adapted generally to Missouri conditions are usually smaller in size and have somewhat thicker sh.e.l.ls but may possess equally as high or even higher oil content and kernel quality than the southern sorts. The better varieties of this group, however, rank high enough to compete favorably on the markets of the country in both sh.e.l.led and unsh.e.l.led state with the southern varieties.
A full crop of pecans would run from 30 to 35 carloads, the majority of which are produced along the Mississippi river in the bottom lands from Ste. Genevieve southward. Heavy shipments are made in a good year especially from Ste. Genevieve, St. Mary"s, Menfro, Caruthersville and Hornersville, and in these sections are some of the largest and best nuts.
Pecans are found along the Mississippi river from St. Charles north to Hannibal, but too generally in that area the trees are scarce and the production smaller, with nuts of thicker sh.e.l.ls.
Pecan trees are also found growing wild along the Missouri river bottom as far west as Lexington, and up the Grand river bottoms to Chillicothe, and the nuts in this area are about the size of those in the north Mississippi valley section, but are sweet with high oil content.
There is a pecan production district along the Osage river and the Kansas border, with heavy shipping section at Rockville and Sch.e.l.l City.
Missouri pecans are cla.s.sed as Westerns in the commercial market. They are favored by the confectionery trade. A great many native trees are found in the south Mississippi section, but there is a growing interest in budded pecan trees, especially around Caruthersville.
The total of the budded varieties of pecan trees in Missouri does not const.i.tute more than approximately one per cent of the total of growing trees.
Many years ago a large acreage of the bottom lands along the Mississippi river were thick with immense, heavy-producing pecan trees--but most of this pecan timber was cut down either for fuel wood or saw timber.
Short-sighted people have been known to chop down trees simply to secure the nuts.
THE HICKORIES
The native hickories of Missouri have been held in high esteem since early settlements were established. They are notorious on account of their slow rate of growth yet they offer greater possibilities to nut growers than is usually believed. As shade trees they have a high ranking.
Promising varieties may now be had by obtaining scions from superior bearing seedling trees and from young named and grafted trees in the nurseries of commercial concerns. Grafted trees may come into bearing in three or four years after the operation.
Perhaps as many as five species are native of Missouri. The big sh.e.l.lbark or kingnut is common to the south and southwest regions, but its range is not as wide as others. The s.h.a.gbark which is the most valuable nut producer of all the hickories, is rather widely distributed particularly in northern and central Missouri. Numerous varieties have been described and named because of their particular merits. Sh.e.l.lbark nuts may be large and attractive, but are often poorly filled.
The pignut, mockernut, and bitternut have a rather general distribution especially in the central and northern parts of the state. These nuts are not considered of great value except for their hybrids with other species. Perhaps the most natural type of hybrid occurring among the hickories is crosses between the s.h.a.gbark and sh.e.l.lbark, one of the best varieties of which is Weiker.
The pecan and sh.e.l.lbark hybrids include McAllister, Nussbaumer, and Rockville, while the Burton is believed to be a pecan-s.h.a.gbark cross.
The natural crosses of the pecan and hickory found in the wild have not been entirely satisfactory. The trees vary greatly in fruitfulness and the nuts in thickness of sh.e.l.ls, size, shape, and kernel quality. A strong tendency to produce nuts with imperfect kernels is common among the pecan-sh.e.l.lbark crosses.
Local varieties selected from the wild may have merit for use in top-working hickories or pecans. The pecan is suggested because it makes a good stock for the hickories and as it grows more rapidly. Some of the best of the older named sorts for planting or for use in top-working appear to be the following: Barnes, Fairbanks, Stanley, Weiker, Kentucky, Swain, Laney, Kirtland, and Rieke.
THE c.h.i.n.kAPINS
The c.h.i.n.kapin is related closely to the chestnut and resembles it strikingly in most of the important characteristics. It occurs in two well known forms. West of the Mississippi River, the Ozark c.h.i.n.kapin tree may reach a height of sixty feet in good soil, while the other form (Allegany c.h.i.n.kapin) in the eastern range grows to a height of about 15 feet. Each may be grafted or budded upon the other without difficulty.
Named varieties of the c.h.i.n.kapin are not available at this time. The j.a.panese, Chinese, and European chestnuts are introduced species.
The blight disease has almost wiped out the great American chestnut forests of the East. As yet, however, the malady has not been introduced into Missouri. (The oak wilt, however, has been found there.--Ed.) The c.h.i.n.kapin of this area is highly resistant to the blight and some of the hybrids carry the resistant quality and bear nuts of good size and high quality. The native c.h.i.n.kapin forests especially of southwest Missouri are valued highly not only for their nuts but particularly for post timber.
The native c.h.i.n.kapin tree in Missouri grows to large size in good soil and it may be found as one of the largest forest trees on the stony ridge lands of southwestern sections of the Ozark Mountains. The nuts are very much like those produced by chestnut trees except they are smaller. In flavor and quality the nuts may be found equal or superior to the chestnuts.
Both the c.h.i.n.kapin and chestnut may be grafted or budded one upon the other. In fact, the western c.h.i.n.kapin may be used successfully as a stock for the chestnut.
The European chestnut is very susceptible to the blight. A very large coa.r.s.e nut is produced by the j.a.panese chestnut and it does not blight quite as readily as the American sorts. The Chinese chestnut is the most resistant to blight and it is admired for its beauty as a lawn tree.
Promising varieties include Abundance, Nanking and Meiling.
Some desirable varieties of the American and hybrid chestnuts for growing in Missouri are as follows: Boone, Fuller, Paragon, Progress, Rochester, and Champion.
FILBERTS AND HAZELNUTS
The European filbert which is grown so successfully in Oregon and Washington has not been generally successful in Missouri. This has been due mainly to winter injury, resulting either in the killing of the staminate catkins by cold, or of the developing catkins by late spring freezes and frosts. For good fruiting they need cross pollination. Some of the well-known and popular filbert varieties are Barcelona, Du Chilly, Medium Long and Italian Red. Rush, Winkler, and others, are partly or purely American hazelnuts.
The native hazelnut which may be found throughout the State is hardy and generally a fairly regular cropper. Seedling nuts, while not as large usually as the Northwestern filbert, are found now and then that approach them closely in size and cracking quality. Furthermore, the native seedling nut kernels may excel occasionally in flavor and quality.
Interested nut growers are, therefore, urged to perpetuate the most promising hazelnuts of the wild by simple layerage. Until hardier varieties of the filbert are found, the chief attention may be well spent on the propagation and culture of the native seedling sorts of merit. As yet none of the Missouri native seedlings have been described, named and propagated for sale and distribution.
Tip or simple layering seems to be the most satisfactory method of propagating the hazelnut and filbert. Shoots or suckers, one-year old and arising from the base of the plant are used. They are left attached to the mother plant and are bent over until the ends of tips rest upon the soil.
To encourage root growth, the underside of the branch to be covered with soil is frequently notched or ringed. The part of the branch in contact with the moist soil is then covered leaving a small portion of the end protruding. The branches are sometimes pegged down with forked sticks or weighted with stones. After one season"s growth, the branch should be established with roots and top. It is then cut from the parent and removed for transplanting to its permanent location.
Well, now, my good friends, I have talked about five or ten minutes longer than I intended to, but you just listened so attentively you encouraged me, so it"s your fault. I am happy to be here. Show me an organization like the Northern Nut Growers a.s.sociation, as full of vim and vigor and vinegar and going ahead, and I will show you a successful organization.
Thank you.
MR. CHASE: Thank you, Professor Talbert, for a very nice message.
I am still a little angry at Professor Talbert because I realize now that if he had accepted my invitation to come to another good southern state two years ago our meeting would have been a much better one at Norris.
Now, we have several papers here which deal with chestnuts, and there seems to be a good deal of interest among the membership concerning chestnuts this year, and perhaps before we get into chestnuts for nut production we might hear a short resume of Dr. Graves" breeding work for timber type chestnut. This problem of chestnut for timber purposes, of course, accounts for the presence of Chinese and j.a.panese chestnuts in the country today, and yet most of our efforts to establish chestnut plantings for timber purposes have been unsuccessful. You heard from Dr.
Diller last year concerning these efforts.
This paper will deal with the breeding work which is now under way by Dr. Graves in Connecticut, and I have asked Dr. McKay to give us a brief digest of this paper.
Chestnut Breeding Work: Report for 1950
ARTHUR HARMOUNT GRAVES Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station, New Haven, Conn.
and Division of Forest Pathology, U.S.D.A. Plant Industry Station, Beltsville, Maryland