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Project Noah Nature School
Carya illinoinensis
Tree with dangling catkins and serrated lanceolate leaves. This is a species of Hickory. "The pecan tree is a large deciduous tree, growing to 20–40 m (66–130 ft) in height, rarely to 44 m (144 ft); taller trees to 50–55 m (160–180 ft) have been claimed but not verified. 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 (0.79–2.4 in) broad. The flowers are wind-pollinated, and monoecious, with staminate and pistillate catkins on the same tree; the male catkins are pendulous, up to 18 cm (7.1 in) long; the female catkins are small, with three to six flowers clustered together." - Wikipedia
Bog in riparian area near scrub at Anstine-Audubon Nature Preserve. This is not native but is found in Southern California.
"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 nuts of the pecan are edible, with a rich, buttery flavor. In addition to the pecan nut, the wood is also used in making furniture and wood flooring, as well as flavoring fuel for smoking meats." - Wikipedia These are the only shots I could get with my lens from the bog.
Spotted on May 19, 2012
Submitted on May 22, 2012
3 Comments
Glad I could help a little. I never knew pecans belonged to the same genus as hickories...makes sense once you think about it!
That's it! Thank you Marcus. I couldn't remember what the guide called these until you mentioned it :)
I think it's a type of hickory but I may very well be wrong! There are trees with similar leaves near my house and I know that those are hickories.