Native plants for wetlands, fields or forests and an eclectic mix of other botanic delights

Carya ovata

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Status
Out Of Stock
Shagbark Hickory
The nuts are edible with an excellent flavor, and are a popular food among people and squirrels.
Mature Size:
90
' Height /
50
' Spread
Expected Size:
/
Light Preference:
Sun to Part Sun
Soil Preference:
Moist (Mesic)
Price:
$18.50/1 gal.; $28.50/4 gal. (3'-4')

Carya ovata, the Shagbark Hickory, is a common hickory in the eastern United States and southeast Canada. It is a large, deciduous tree, growing up to 27 m (90') tall, and can live up to 200 years. Mature shagbarks are easy to recognize because, as their name implies, they have shaggy bark. This characteristic is, however, only found on mature trees; young specimens have smooth bark.

The Shagbark Hickory's nut is edible and has a very sweet taste.

The leaves are 30–60 cm long, pinnate, with five (rarely three or seven) leaflets, the terminal three leaflets much larger than the basal pair. The shagbark hickory ismonoecious. Staminate flowers are borne on long-stalked catkins at the tip of old wood or in the axils of the previous season's leaves. Pistillate flowers occur in short terminal spikes.  The fruit is a 2.5– to 4.0-cm-long drupe, an edible nut with a hard, bony shell, contained in a thick, green four-sectioned husk which turns dark and splits off at maturity in the fall.  The terminal buds on the shagbark hickory are large and covered with loose scales.  The word "hickory" is said to have come from the Algonquian Indian word "pawcohiccora". Shagbark Hickory nuts were a significant food source for the Algonquians. Red squirrels, gray squirrels, raccoons, chipmunks, and mice are consumers of hickory nuts. Other consumers include black bears, gray and red foxes, rabbits, and bird species such as mallards, wood ducks, bobwhites, and wild turkey.

Information from: Wikipedia

There are two designated varieties:

  • Carya ovata var. ovata (Northern Shagbark Hickory) has its largest leaflets over 20 cm long and nuts 3.0–4.0 cm long.
  • Carya ovata var. australis (Southern Shagbark Hickory or Carolina hickory) has its largest leaflets under 20 cm long and nuts 2.5–3.0 cm long.
Source:
Wikipedia
25
2’- 3’ (2-3 gal)
$12.50
No additional images.
Photo(s) Credit:
Information

Prices listed are subject to change, based upon size change and availability.

We are a small local nursery with limited shipping capability. We will do our best to ship smaller material (usually 1 or 2 gallon), although we can sometimes ship larger plants with the pots removed.

We have some species that are not listed, as we have too few of them to make a full listing plausible. You can always inquire.

We will consider contract growing an order with appropriate advance notice and availability of seed, cuttings or lining out stock.

Fall Business Hours
Monday
10 - 6
Tuesday
10 - 6
Wednesday
By Appointment
Thursday
10- 6
Friday
10- 5
Saturday
10 - 5
Sunday
11- 4
Kollar Nursery | 5200 West Heaps Road, Pylesville, MD 21132 | 410.836.0500
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