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Juglandaceae FAMILY Least Concern

Carya tomentosa

Carya tomentosa

Edibility
3/5
Medicinal
2/5

Safety & Hazards

None known

Cultivation Details

HabitDeciduous Tree
GrowthMedium

The climate where Carya tomentosa grows is usually humid. Within its range the mean annual precipitation ranges from 890mm in the north to 2,030mm in the south, with around 510 - 890mm occurring during the growing season. About 2,000mm of annual snowfall is common in the north, but it seldom snows in the south. Across its range, mean annual temperatures vary from 10° - 21°c, with summer temperatures around 21° - 27°c, falling in winter to between minus -7° to plus 16°c. Temperature extremes are fromwell above 38°c to less than minus 18°c. The growing season is approximately 160 days in the north of the range and up to 320 days in the south[1]. Prefers a deep moisture-retentive loam in a sunny sheltered position, requiring a good summer for best development[2, 3, 4, 5]. Succeeds in poor soils[3] and in drier soils than many other members of the genus[5]. Generally a slow growing tree[5] though it is fast when young[6]. Trees respond well to coppicing, sprouting vigorously from the stump and the roots[6]. As the stumps increase in size and age, however, the number of stumps that produce sprouts decreases[1]. A very ornamental and long-lived tree with specimens 500 years or more old[7], it is quite successful in Britain[4] and has been planted on an experimental scale for its timber in Germany[8]. Most species in this genus have quite a wide range of distribution and, in order to find trees more suited to a particular climate, seed from the most appropriate provenances should be sought[4]. Most trees growing in Britain at present tend to only produce good seed after hot summers[4]. Trees in the wild commence fruiting when about 20 years old, with an optimum seed bearing age from 40 - 150 years, though they often live for 300 - 500 years[9]. Trees are self-fertile but larger crops of better quality seeds are produced if cross-pollination takes place[9]. Plants are strongly tap-rooted and should be planted in their permanent positions as soon as possible[2, 4]. Sowing in situ would be the best method so long as the seed could be protected from mice[2, 5]. Plants in this genus are notably resistant to honey fungus[5].

Propagation

Seed - requires a period of cold stratification. It is best sown in a cold frame as soon as it is ripe[10]. Stored seed should be kept moist (but not wet) prior to sowing and should be sown in a cold frame as soon as possible[10]. Where possible, sow 1 or 2 seeds only in each deep pot and thin to the best seedling. If you need to transplant the seedlings, then do this as soon as they are large enough to handle, once more using deep pots to accommodate the tap root. Put the plants into their permanent positions as soon as possible, preferably in their first summer, and give them some protection from the cold for at least the first winter[10, PFAF]. Seed can also be sown in situ so long as protection is given from mice etc and the seed is given some protection from cold[5] (a plastic bottle with the top and bottom removed and a wire mesh top fitted to keep the mice out is ideal) Cite as: Temperate Plants Database, Ken Fern. temperate.theferns.info. 2026-02-20. <temperate.theferns.info/plant/Carya+tomentosa>

Pollinators

Wind

References

  1. [1]Silvics of North America. Agricultural Handbook No. 654. — Burns. R.M. & Honkala. B.H. · USDA Forest Service; Washington DC. · 1990 · http://www.na.fs.fed.us/spfo/pubs/silvics_manual/table_of_contents.htm ↩︎A very comprehensice guide to about 200 species of timber trees of N. America, Hawaii and Puerto Rico. Mainly temperate species, plus a number of tropical species. It is downloadable from the Internet.
  2. [2]RHS Dictionary of Plants plus Supplement. 1956 — F. Chittendon. · Oxford University Press · 1951 · ISBN - ↩︎Comprehensive listing of species and how to grow them. Somewhat outdated, it has been replaced in 1992 by a new dictionary (see [ 200 ]).
  3. [3]Nuts. — Howes. F. N. · Faber · 1948 · ISBN - ↩︎Rather old but still a masterpiece. Has sections on tropical and temperate plants with edible nuts plus a section on nut plants in Britain. Very readable.
  4. [4]The Plantsman. Vol. 9. 1986 - 1987. — ? · Royal Horticultural Society · 1986 · ISBN - ↩︎Excerpts from the periodical giving cultivation details and other notes on some of the useful plants including Carya spp and Crocus sativus.
  5. [5]The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992. — Huxley. A. · MacMillan Press · 1992 · ISBN 0-333-47494-5 ↩︎Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed.
  6. [6]Trees of Central Texas. — Vines. R. A. · University of Texas Press · 1987 · ISBN 0-292-78958-3 ↩︎A good concise guide, it gives details of habitats and some of the uses of trees growing in Texas.
  7. [7]Flora of N. America — http://flora.huh.harvard.edu/fna/ ↩︎An on-line version of the flora with an excellent description of the plant including a brief mention of plant uses.
  8. [8]Flora Europaea — ? · Cambridge University Press · 1964 · ISBN - ↩︎An immense work in 6 volumes (including the index). The standard reference flora for Europe, it is very terse though and with very little extra information. Not for the casual reader.
  9. [9]The Complete Trees of N. America. Field Guide and Natural History. — Elias. T. · Van Nostrand Reinhold Co. · 1980 · ISBN 0442238622 ↩︎A very good concise guide. Gives habitats, good descriptions, maps showing distribution and a few of the uses. It also includes the many shrubs that occasionally reach tree proportions.
  10. [10]Propagation of Trees, Shrubs and Conifers. — Sheat. W. G. · MacMillan and Co · 1948 · ISBN - ↩︎A bit dated but a good book on propagation techniques with specific details for a wide range of plants.
  11. [11]IUCN Red List of Threatened Species — http://www.iucnredlist.org/ ↩︎A list of plants under threat and facing possible extinction, usually with brief details of the threats and information on habitat.
  12. [12]Gray's Manual of Botany.Eighth Edition — Fernald. M. L. · American Book Co.; New York · 1950 · ISBN 0442222505 ↩︎A bit dated but a good and concise flora of the eastern part of N. America.
  13. [13]Edible Wild Fruits and Nuts of Canada. — Turner. N. J. and Szczawinski. A. · National Museum of Natural Sciences · 1978 · ISBN - ↩︎A very readable guide to some wild foods of Canada.
  14. [14]Wild Food Plants of Indiana. — McPherson. A. and S. · Indiana University Press · 1977 · ISBN 0-253-28925-4 ↩︎A nice pocket guide to this region of America.
  15. [15]Sturtevant's Edible Plants of the World. — Hedrick. U. P. · Dover Publications · 1972 · ISBN 0-486-20459-6 ↩︎Lots of entries, quite a lot of information in most entries and references.
  16. [16]Cornucopia - A Source Book of Edible Plants. — Facciola. S. · Kampong Publications · 1990 · ISBN 0-9628087-0-9 ↩︎Excellent. Contains a very wide range of conventional and unconventional food plants (including tropical) and where they can be obtained (mainly N. American nurseries but also research institutes and a lot of other nurseries from around the world.
  17. [17]Identification Guide to the Trees of Canada — Lauriault. J. · Fitzhenry and Whiteside, Ontario. · 1989 · ISBN 0889025649 ↩︎Very good on identification for non-experts, the book also has a lot of information on plant uses.
  18. [18]The Book of Edible Nuts. — Rosengarten. jnr. F. · Walker & Co. · 1984 · ISBN 0802707699 ↩︎A very readable and comprehensive guide. Well illustrated.
  19. [19]Native American Ethnobotany — Moerman. D. · Timber Press. Oregon. · 1998 · ISBN 0-88192-453-9 ↩︎Very comprehensive but terse guide to the native uses of plants. Excellent bibliography, fully referenced to each plant, giving a pathway to further information. Not for the casual reader.
  20. [20]A Dictionary of Plants Used by Man. — Usher. G. · Constable · 1974 · ISBN 0094579202 ↩︎Forget the sexist title, this is one of the best books on the subject. Lists a very extensive range of useful plants from around the world with very brief details of the uses. Not for the casual reader.
  21. [21]Manual of the Trees of N. America. — Sargent. C. S. · Dover Publications Inc. New York. · 1965 · http://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/ · ISBN 0-486-20278-X ↩︎Two volumes, a comprehensive listing of N. American trees though a bit out of date now. Good details on habitats, some details on plant uses. Not really for the casual reader. It can be downloaded from the internet.
  22. [22]Trees of North Texas — Vines. R.A. · University of Texas Press. · 1982 · ISBN 0292780206 ↩︎A readable guide to the area, it contains descriptions of the plants and their habitats with quite a bit of information on plant uses.
  23. [PFAF]Plants for a Future — pfaf.org ↩︎