Shagbark
Hickory (Carya ovata) is a long-lived, deciduous, slow-growing,
medium to large tree with lovely, interesting shaggy bark
when mature.
Growing
conditions
Shagbark Hickory is
hard to transplant because of its long taproot, and subject
to insect damage. It is extremely shade-tolerant. It grows
best in deep, fertile, moist soils, and does not thrive in
heavy clay soils. It grows best on neutral or slightly alkaline
soils. It likes bottom-lands, but will grow on a wide range
of sites.
Uses
Hickories are edible with an excellent
flavor, but the trees bear too little for them to be grown
commercially. They are readily eaten by a wide variety of
birds and mammals, including black bears (though they aren't
usually strolling around the Arboretum looking for them!).
The wood is used for smoking meat and
It is tough, heavy, hard and resilient. It used to be used
to make wheels and spokes for wagons, carriages and carts,
and for making some Native American bows. Today the wood is
used to make furniture, flooring, tool handles, ladders and
sporting goods.
It is also an excellent fuel wood, with
a high heat value and slow even burn. It imparts a hickory-smoked
flavor to foods so is often used to make charcoal.
The tree provides cover for a variety
of birds and mammals and can be used as den trees by squirrels.
Fun
Facts
Bruised or crushed
leaves have the faint aroma of apples.
Size
To
130 feet.
Form & Shape
In a forest, it often develops
a clear bole for half its length and has a narrow, oblong crown.
Open-grown trees have egg-shaped crowns.
Bark
The
gray brown bark exfoliates in long plate-like strips, free at
the ends and attached in the middle; the overall effect is shaggy.
Leaves
The leaves are
1-2' long, pinnate, with five (rarely three or seven) leaflets,
the terminal three leaflets much larger than the basal pair.
Flowers
The flowers are
small wind-pollinated catkins, produced in spring.
Fruit
The fruit is an edible nut,
1 to 1 ½" long with a green four-valved cover deeply
grooved at the seams, and a hard, bony shell. The husk separates
along the grooves when ripe, in October. The fruit is borne
singly or in pairs.
Below is a schematic map of the Ladd Arboretum,
with a dot in red showing where the Nut Trees (including Hickory)
are located. Click to take a virtual tour
of the Ladd.
