So I know this is a old thread. I did see people mentioning a pecan I bought and was wanting to get some information on it. The pecan I bought was Starks Hardy Giant Pecan which Stark Bros lists as self fertile and zone 5. I wanted to make sure that information is accurate that it will produce nuts by itself in zone 5. I live in Colorado if that makes a difference. I have talked to a few people at Stark Bros and they say it will produce by itself which the pollination chart seems to suggest.
Almost all pecans that are self-fertile are actually protandrous but pistillate blooms overlap most of the pollen shed. Starking Hardy Giant fits this profile. In addition, it is very early maturity which makes it recommended for northern climates.
However, all pecans benefit from cross pollination. If you can fit in another tree, Lucas, Green River, and Oswego would be good choices for pollen compatibility. Lucas is similar in nut maturity so would probably be the best fit.
Picked up a 7 foot, 7 gal potted Pawnee on sale today. Need suggestions for a quick cropping type two to graft to it.
You could use Kanza or possibly Lakota.
At my mom’s house in Oklahoma, was out in the back yard checking out her pecan tree I planted 6 years ago. To my surprise, I found these-
I counted about 3 dozen husks on the tree. I imagine it got pollinated by a massive old pecan next door. I don’t even remember what variety it was when I bought it, other than it had a native American name like most of them. I got it at Atwood’s, a local farm supply store. Maybe Comanche or Cherokee? Can you tell @Fusion_power or @Lucky_P which it might be by looking at these husks?
Also the tree’s leaves look a bit pale green, any advice on what kind of fertilizer to give it?
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Perhaps knowing what type of pecan you have is more important than knowing the variety.
Type I (protandrous) pecans have male flowers that release their pollen before their female flowers are receptive to pollen shed. Type II (protogynous) pecans release their pollen after their female flowers were receptive.
Right. But, it has husks on it already, so apparently it got pollinated. Unless it makes husks regardless, I don’t know about pecan tree husbandry.
Like I mentioned, there’s a 30ft+ pecan tree next door, so I’m guessing it’s the “father”. So maybe it’s a type 2 variety?
I can’t ID from a picture but can tell a few things about the tree. Don’t worry about nut color. It is genetic with some varieties having pale color and others deep green. Leaves are a more reliable indicator of nutrient status. Since they are pale around the veins, it is probably nitrogen deficient. Given stated age of 6 years, it needs about 10 pounds of 13-13-13. Sharp pointed leaf tips indicate it is not deficient in nickle, but it needs a small amount of zinc. I would put 2 or 3 pounds of zinc sulphate around it same time as the fertilizer.
You can look up USDA pecan releases on these pages:
https://cgru.usda.gov/carya/pecans/pecalph.htm
https://cgru.usda.gov/carya/pecans/peccv00.htm
I found a small tree on the north side of my Mom’s house, thought the leaves looked familiar. Turns out it’s also a pecan, but it’s apparently a seedling. Guess a squirrel buried a nut there…
Perfect opportunity to practice grafting pecans subdood.
Well, considering I don’t have any rootstock at home, I can’t do much with a cutting.
I have about 500 seedlings growing. Message me later this year and I’ll send you a dozen.
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Thanks, that’s very generous of you. Do you know what variety they might be? Or combinations of several varieties?
I started seed of 7 different highly scab tolerant pecans. I have Lakota, Gafford, McMillan, Adams #5, Florence, etc. Lakota would be highly adapted to your climate.
Thanks! I planted 8 bare root pecans 7 years ago, but all of them died within a couple years. They had big tap roots but hardly any of the small feeder roots. I think they had Caddo rootstock.
I think I had Zinner and Lakota, but can’t remember the other two varieties. I got two pairs each of type I and type II varieties. They were from Plant Me Green out of Florida. I also got two pears from them that are still doing very well.
Edit: the others were Oconee and Caddo. Here’s the thread I commented about it.
Double edit: the pecan I planted for my Mom was from Atwood’s, a local farm supply store. It was a bare root tree with its roots wrapped in a big bag with a moist medium to keep them from drying out. I bet I dug a two foot deep hole to accommodate the monster tap root. Guess I did that one right.
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Hi Fusion_Power,
I’m in old zone 5, newly 6a mid-Michigan.
Downloaded chart. Ultra Northern pecans add-in was blank for info ie Campbell nc4 was blank for pollen/ stigma. Ordered Hark as it has good buzz fr local forums but there is a long list of maybe compatibles in chart, but as ultra northern are blank I can’t line up a 2nd tree type for pollination. Is there an updated link to newer chart?
Campbell NC4 is not documented for pollen shed and pistil receptive dates so I can’t add them to the database. It is type 1 which means pollen available first. As such, it is not a good pollen source for Hark.
Your best options are Warren 346 (1?), Hark (1), Lucas (II), Oswego (II), Mullahy (II), and Campbell NC4 (I). You could try Kanza but it is known to have problems as far north as your location.
Many type 1 pecans are actually overlap pollinators. With 4 of the above varieties, it is almost certain there will be adequate pollen available.
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Thanks Fusion. I’ll impatiently wait for fall to find Oswego in stock 
.
I collected Oswego scionwood from Auburn a couple of months ago and grafted a tree a few days ago. Grimo is your best possibility for the varieties likely good for your climate. Don’t discount Mullahy. It is a fairly good pecan for northern regions.
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