Growing pecans from seed is not as simple as it sounds. While a mighty oak may shoot up from an acorn stuck in the ground, sowing pecan seeds is only one step in a complex process of growing a nut producing tree. Can you plant a pecan seed? You can, but you may not be able to get nuts from the resulting tree.
Read on for information on how to plant pecans, including tips on pecan seed germination.
Can You Plant a Pecan?
It is entirely possible to plant a pecan seed. However, it
is important to realize that growing pecans from seed will not produce a tree identical
to the parent tree. If you want a particular type of pecan nut, or a tree that
produces excellent pecans, you will need to graft.
Pecans
are open pollinated trees, so each seedling tree is unique in all the world.
You do not know the seed’s “parents” and that means the nut quality will be
variable. That’s why pecan growers only grow pecans from seed to use as rootstock
trees.
If you are wondering how to plant pecans that produce
excellent nuts, you’ll need to learn about grafting. Once the rootstock trees
are a few years old, you will need to graft cultivar buds or shoots onto each
seedling rootstock.
Pecan Tree Germination
Pecan tree germination requires a few steps. You’ll want to
select a pecan from the current season that appears sound and healthy. In order
to give yourself the greatest possibility of success, plan on planting several,
even if you only want one tree.
Stratify
the nuts for six to eight weeks before planting by placing them in a container
of peat moss. Keep the moss moist, but not wet, in a temperature slightly above
freezing. After that process is complete, acclimate the seeds to normal
temperatures for a few days.
Then soak
them in water for 48 hours, changing the water daily. Ideally, the soaking
should occur in running water so, if possible, leave a hose trickling into the
dish. This facilitates pecan tree germination.
Sowing Pecan Seeds
Sow pecan seeds in early spring in a sunny garden bed. Fertilize the soil with 10-10-10 before planting. After two years a seedling should be around 4 to 5 feet (1-1.5 m.) tall and ready for grafting.
Grafting
is a process where you take a cutting from a cultivar pecan tree and allow it
to grow on the rootstock tree, essentially blending two trees into one. The
part of the tree with the roots in the ground is the one you grew from seed,
the branches that produce nuts are from a particular cultivar pecan tree.
There are many different ways to graft fruit trees. You’ll need a cutting (called a scion) that is straight and strong and has at least three buds on it. Do not use branch tips since these can be weak.
Growing pecans from seed is not as simple as it sounds. While a mighty oak may shoot up from an acorn stuck in the ground, sowing pecan seeds is only one step in a complex process of growing a nut producing tree. Can you plant a pecan seed? You can, but you may not be able to get nuts from the resulting tree.
Read on for information on how to plant pecans, including tips on pecan seed germination.
Can You Plant a Pecan?
It is entirely possible to plant a pecan seed. However, it
is important to realize that growing pecans from seed will not produce a tree identical
to the parent tree. If you want a particular type of pecan nut, or a tree that
produces excellent pecans, you will need to graft.
Pecans
are open pollinated trees, so each seedling tree is unique in all the world.
You do not know the seed’s “parents” and that means the nut quality will be
variable. That’s why pecan growers only grow pecans from seed to use as rootstock
trees.
If you are wondering how to plant pecans that produce
excellent nuts, you’ll need to learn about grafting. Once the rootstock trees
are a few years old, you will need to graft cultivar buds or shoots onto each
seedling rootstock.
Pecan Tree Germination
Pecan tree germination requires a few steps. You’ll want to
select a pecan from the current season that appears sound and healthy. In order
to give yourself the greatest possibility of success, plan on planting several,
even if you only want one tree.
Stratify
the nuts for six to eight weeks before planting by placing them in a container
of peat moss. Keep the moss moist, but not wet, in a temperature slightly above
freezing. After that process is complete, acclimate the seeds to normal
temperatures for a few days.
Then soak
them in water for 48 hours, changing the water daily. Ideally, the soaking
should occur in running water so, if possible, leave a hose trickling into the
dish. This facilitates pecan tree germination.
Sowing Pecan Seeds
Sow pecan seeds in early spring in a sunny garden bed. Fertilize the soil with 10-10-10 before planting. After two years a seedling should be around 4 to 5 feet (1-1.5 m.) tall and ready for grafting.
Grafting
is a process where you take a cutting from a cultivar pecan tree and allow it
to grow on the rootstock tree, essentially blending two trees into one. The
part of the tree with the roots in the ground is the one you grew from seed,
the branches that produce nuts are from a particular cultivar pecan tree.
There are many different ways to graft fruit trees. You’ll need a cutting (called a scion) that is straight and strong and has at least three buds on it. Do not use branch tips since these can be weak.