Cultivation Notes No. 73 The Rhode Island Wild Plant Society Spring 2018 Shagbark Hickory Shagbark Hickory – Carya ovata Family: Juglandaceae by Russ Cohen Shagbark hickory (Carya ovata) trees are a end. The bark of a young shagbark hickory, ed into baked goods. Indeed, their fine flavor familiar sight along rural roads and field however, is light gray and smooth; the shag- makes them a superior substitute for walnuts edges over much of New England, as well as giness develops as the trunk exceeds four to or pecans in almost any recipe. People who further south and west. They are recognizable five inches in diameter. taste my maple-hickory nut pie (the recipe is year-round by their tell-tale bark. Although in my book, Wild Plants I Have Known…and Shagbark hickory’s compound leaves have five other trees such as silver maple (Acer sacchari- Eaten) prefer it to pecan pie, as its flavor is leaflets, the two inner ones noticeably smaller num) have shaggy bark, C. ovata’s is the most richer and less cloying. than the outer three. They are typically over dramatic. Pieces of bark typically peel off in 60 feet tall, with trunks a foot or more in vertical strips over a foot long, pulling away While not hard to grow Carya ovata from diameter. Although several other species of from the trunk up to several inches at each seed, it takes 20 years or more for a seed- smoother-barked hickories, such as the pignut grown tree to produce good-sized nut crops. (Carya glabra) grow in So, while you are waiting, you may want to Distinctive shaggy bark of the shagbark hickory, Carya ovata this region, I tend to gather nuts from existing shagbark hickories Photo by Russ Cohen ignore them. Their in Rhode Island, rural Connecticut (Windham nuts tend to be small- and New London Counties), or Massachu- er and less reliably setts (Bristol, Norfolk or Worcester Counties). tasty than those of the shagbark. In addition, Shagbark hickory nuts typically ripen in this trees of the other region over four to six weeks, from mid-Sep- hickory species tend tember into late October. The quantity and to be less conspicuous quality of hickory nuts can vary considerably than C. ovata. from tree to tree and from year to year, as the In addition to the trees tend to produce large nut crops on a tree’s distinctive peel- two-to-three-year cycle. ing bark (under which The nut meats are enclosed in a smooth, light bats are known to tan, inch-long shell covered by a spherical, roost), it has attrac- shiny-green, four-parted husk. The nuts usu- tive, deep-yellow fall ally fall when they are ripe, so there’s no need foliage; and its wood is to pick them from the tree. The husk typically useful for tool handles, splits away from the shell or is easily pulled heating, and smok- off by hand. ing. But Carya ovata’s most appealing trait is Hickory nuts were (and, in some cases, still the deliciousness of are) a very popular food of Native Ameri- its nuts. Some people, cans. European botanists of the 17th and including me, believe 18th centuries observed them crushing the that no tastier nut is shells with stones, and putting nut meats, produced by a native shells and all, into mortars, where they would species of this, or per- be mixed and pounded with water and then haps any, region. To boiled to produce a milky soup or gruel-like me, shagbark hickory substance called “powcohickora” (hence the nuts taste like store- derivation of the word “hickory”). bought walnuts lightly Propagation sprayed with maple The first step to propagating shagbark hicko- syrup. They are good ry from seed is to gather some nuts and plant eaten raw right out them outdoors soon after collection before of the shell, but even they dry out and lose their viability. Or store better when lightly nuts in a sealed plastic bag to retain mois- toasted or incorporat- 6 Wildflora RI Cultivation Notes as any part of the Other Sources sprouted nut has not Cohen, Russell, 2004. “Shagbark Hickory. yet been used by the Fall Foraging Fun for Friends and Fami- growing tree, rodents lies,” (Chapter 11), Wild Plants I Have and other critters will Known…and Eaten, Essex County Green- be tempted to go belt Association. after it. (I know this from bitter experi- Koch, K. “Carya ovata.” Plants for a Future. ence.) I now leave the Web. 13 March 2018. protection on until < https://www.pfaf.org/user/Plant. near the end of the aspx?LatinName=Carya+ovata> growing season, when I use metal cutters to Koch, K. “Hickories: Carya ovata.” Texas remove the mesh. A&M University. Web. 13 March 2018. < https://aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu/ Nuts fall when ripe, so no need to pick. Photo by Russ Cohen In choosing a loca- carya/species/ovata/ovata.htm> tion, remember that hickory trees bear larger “Non-Timber Forest Products: Have You ture, and refrigerate them for four to six crops in full sun. And avoid rocky sites Considered Shagbark and Shellbark Hicko- months to mimic winter conditions. Then because the hickory’s long tap root needs ries?” Kentucky Woodlands Magazine, sow them outdoors the following spring. December, 2010. Vol. 5, Issue 3. University deep soil. While C. ovata trees are mone- of Kentucky Cooperative Extension. Web. If you have not yet determined a per- cious and self-fertile, planting two or more March 13, 2018. manent location for your shagbark trees, trees close to each other helps ensure good plant them in deep pots. Shagbarks spend pollination and nut production. <http://www2.ca.uky.edu/forestryexten- most of their energy the first few years sion/KWM/Non-Timber%20Forest%20 Last but not least: planting a shagbark developing a long taproot; for every inch Products/NTFpg14-17.pdf> hickory is the epitome of delayed gratifi- the plant grows above ground, the root cation. I will never see nuts produced grows three inches downward. I grow my from many of the hickory trees I Carya ovata trees in 14 inch-deep Treepots propagate and plant. But Rhode Island, (available from Stuewe and Sons https:// and the greater ecoregion, including www.stuewe.com/products/treepots.php), wildlife and humans, will reap the ben- and I am not sure that even they are deep efits of more shagbarks in the land- enough for the taproot. scape. I bear in mind the wise adage Whether you sow the nuts outside, right attributed to the Chinese: “The best where you want the trees to grow, or sow time to plant a tree is twenty years ago. them in pots, plant them about three-quar- The second best time is now.” ters to one inch inch below the surface Author biography of the soil or growing medium. You must Russ Cohen has spent most of his life also protect the nuts from being dug up by communing with nature by nibbling squirrels, chipmunks, and other wildlife. I on it. He has led walks and taught use half-inch-mesh metal hardware cloth, courses on wild edibles throughout jamming it firmly into the top of each pot, the Northeast since 1974. In addition, or pinning it down over the nut planted in since retiring from the Massachusetts situ with fabric pegs. When the nut sprouts Department of Fish and Game, Russ in the spring, the seedling can easily grow has set up a small nursery in Weston, through the mesh. C. ovata nuts sown in MA, where he grows plants from seed. the spring will usually show evidence of He is partnering with public and non- germination by late May/early June, when profit groups to plant these species on the soil has warmed sufficiently. a variety of properties. You may read more about these many projects on his The delicious nuts are easily husked by hand. The seedling will typically grow about Photo by Russ Cohen 6” tall the first growing season. Do not website, http://users.rcn.com/eatwild/ remove the hardware cloth after the seed- bio.htm. ling shows, even after it leafs out; as long Spring 2018 7 .