Pecan

THE BIG BOOK ABOUT NUTS

PECAN 1

THE BIG BOOK ABOUT NUTS - Intro

Pecan nuts The pecan tree is a large deciduous tree, growing to 20–40 m (66–131 ft) in height, rarely to 44 m (144 ft).[2] It typically has a spread of 12–23 m (39–75 ft) with a trunk

up to 2 m (6.6 ft) diameter. A 10-year-old sapling will stand about 5 m (16 ft) tall. The leaves are alternate, 30–45 cm (12–18 in) long, and pinnate with 9–17 leaflets, each leaflet 5–12 cm (2.0–4.7 in) long and 2–6 cm (0.79–2.36 in) broad. g]] A pecan, like the fruit of all other members of the hickory genus, is not truly a nut, but is technically a drupe, a fruit with a single stone or pit, surrounded by a husk. The husks are produced from the exocarp tissue of the flower, while the part known as the nut develops from the endocarp and contains the seed.

The husk itself is aeneous, oval to oblong, 2.6–6 cm (1.0–2.4 in) long and 1.5–3 cm (0.59–1.18 in) broad.

The outer husk is 3–4 mm (0.12–0.16 in) thick, starts out green and turns brown at maturity, at which time it splits off in four sections to release the thin-shelled nut.[2][4][5][6] The seeds of the pecan are edible, with a rich, buttery flavor. They can be eaten fresh or used in cooking, particularly in sweet desserts. One of the most common desserts with the pecan as a central ingredient is the pecan pie, a traditional southern U.S. recipe.

Pecans are also a major ingredient in praline candy1.

[7] In addition to the pecan seed, the wood is also 1 2

The others being sugar and clouds.

used in making furniture and wood flooring as well as flavoring fuel for smoking meats.

Cultivation[edit] Pecan trees being irrigated in Anthony, New Mexico Pecans were one of the most recently domesticated major crops. Although wild pecans were well known among the colonial Americans as a delicacy, the commercial growing of pecans in the United States did not begin until the 1880s.[8] Today, the U.S. produces between 80% and 95% of the world’s pecans, with an annual crop of 150–200 thousand tons[9] from more than 10 million trees.[10] The nut harvest for growers is typically2 around mid-October. Historically, the leading pecanproducing state in the U.S. has been Georgia, followed

by Texas, New Mexico and Oklahoma; pecans are also grown in Alabama, Florida, Arkansas, Kansas, Missouri, Arizona, South Carolina and Hawaii. Outside the United States, pecans are grown in Australia, Brazil3, China, Israel, Mexico, Peru and South Africa. They can be grown approximately from USDA hardiness zones 5 to 9, provided summers are also hot and humid.

Pecan trees may live and bear edible seeds for more than 300 years. They are mostly self-incompatible, because most cultivars being clones derived from wild trees show incomplete dichogamy. Generally, two or more trees of different cultivars must be present to pollinate each other.

Choosing cultivars can be a complex practice, based on the Alternate Bearing Index and their period of pollinating. Commercial planters are most concerned with the Alternate Bearing Index, which describes a cultivar’s likelihood to bear on an alternating years (index of 1.0 signifies highest likelihood of bearing little to nothing every 2 Excluding in 2014 due to the effects of global warming.

3 Not really.

THE BIG BOOK ABOUT NUTS

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THE BIG BOOK ABOUT NUTS other year).[11] The period of pollination groups all cultivars into two families: those that shed pollen before they can receive pollen (protandrous), and those that shed pollen after becoming receptive to pollen (protogynous).[12] Planting cultivars from both families within 250 feet is recommended for proper pollination.

Diseases[edit] Main article: List of pecan diseases In the southeastern United States, nickel deficiency in C. Illinoinensis produces a disorder called mouse-ear in trees fertilized with urea.[13] An enzyme within the leaves uses nickel during the conversion of urea to ammonia, and a deficiency results in the toxic accumulation of urea. Symptoms of mouse-ear include rounded or blunt leaflet tips which produces smaller leaflets, dwarfing of tree organs, poorly developed root systems, rosetting, delayed bud break, loss of apical dominance, and necrosis of leaflet tips. Mouseear can be treated with foliar sprays of nickel.

A similar condition results from a zinc deficiency, which also can be treated by foliar sprays.[14] Nutrition[edit] Carya illinoinensis - MHNT Pecans Nutritional value per Energy 2,889 kJ (690 kcal) Carbohydrates 13.86 Starch 0.46 Sugars 3.97 Dietary fiber 9.6 Fat 71.97 Saturated 6.18 Monounsaturated 40.801 Polyunsaturated 21.614 Protein 9.17 Vitamins Vitamin A equiv. beta-carotene lutein zeaxanthin (0%) 29 μg 17 μg Vitamin A 56 IU 4

Thiamine (B1) Riboflavin (B2) Niacin (B3)

(57%) 0.66 mg (11%) .13 mg (8%) 1.167 mg Pantothenic acid (B5) (17%) 0.863 mg Vitamin B6 (16%) 0.21 mg Folate (B9) (6%) 22 μg Vitamin C (1%) 1.1 mg Vitamin E (9%) 1.4 mg Vitamin K (3%) 3.5 μg Trace metals Calcium (7%) 70 mg Iron (19%) 2.53 mg Magnesium (34%) 121 mg Manganese (214%) 4.5 mg Phosphorus (40%) 277 mg Potassium (9%) 410 mg Sodium (0%) 0 mg Zinc (48%) 4.53 mg Other constituents Water 3.52 Units μg = micrograms • mg = milligrams IU = International units Percentages are roughly approximated using US recommendations for adults.

Source: USDA Nutrient Database

THE BIG BOOK ABOUT NUTS

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THE BIG BOOK ABOUT NUTS

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