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caryer ovale, noyer tendre, shagbark hickory, shellbark hickory

kingnut, shellbark hickory

Habit Trees, to 46 m. Bark light gray, fissured or exfoliating, separating freely into long strips or broad plates that persist, ends often curling away from trunk. Trees, to 41 m. Bark light gray, fissured or exfoliating, separating freely into large, thick, broad plates that persist.
Twigs

greenish, reddish, or orangish brown, retaining color or turning black on drying, stout or slender, hirsute or glabrous.

orange-tan, stout, hirsute, scaly.

Leaves

3-6 dm;

petiole 4-13 cm, petiole and rachis hirsute or mainly glabrous.

6-9 dm;

petiole 6-13 cm, minutely hirsute, becoming glabrous at base.

Leaflets

(3-)5(-7), lateral petiolules 0-1 mm, terminal petiolules 3-17 mm;

blades ovate, obovate, or elliptic, not falcate, 4-26 × 1-14 cm, margins finely to coarsely serrate, with tufts of hairs in axils of proximal veins of serrations, often weathering to only a few in fall, apex acute to acuminate;

surfaces abaxially hirsute with unicellular and 2-4-rayed fasciculate hairs, occasionally restricted to midrib and major veins or essentially without hairs, with few to many large peltate scales and small round, irregular, and 4-lobed peltate scales.

(5-)7-9(-11), lateral petiolules 0-1 mm, terminal petiolules 2-14 mm;

blades ovate to obovate or elliptic, not falcate, 9-20 × 3-10 cm, margins coarsely serrate, apex narrowly acuminate;

surfaces abaxially hirsute with unicellular, 2-6-rayed fasciculate and occasionally multiradiate hairs, scaly with abundant large peltate scales and small round peltate scales, adaxially hirsute along midrib, puberulent throughout.

Fruits

brown to reddish brown, spheric to depressed-spheric, not compressed, 2.5-4 × 2.5-4 cm;

husks rough, 4-15 mm thick, dehiscing to base, sutures smooth;

nuts tan, ovoid, obovoid, or ellipsoid, compressed, 4-angled, rugulose;

shells thick.

tan to brown, spheric to ellipsoid, not compressed or slightly so, 4.5-6 × 4-5 cm;

husks minutely hirsute, 7-13 mm thick, dehiscing to base, sutures smooth;

nuts tan, ellipsoid, compressed, 4-angled, rugulose;

shells thick.

Seeds

sweet.

sweet.

Terminal

buds tan to dark brown to black, ovoid, 6-18 mm, tomentose or nearly glabrous;

bud scales imbricate;

axillary buds protected by bracteoles fused into hood.

buds tan, broadly ovoid with apices of outer scales prolonged, 12-20 mm, tomentose;

bud scales imbricate;

axillary buds protected by bracteoles fused into hood.

Staminate

catkins pedunculate, to 13 cm, stalks and bracts without hairs;

anthers hirsute.

catkins pedunculate, to 20 cm, stalks and bracts minutely hirsute, capitate-glandular;

anthers hirsute.

Carya ovata

Carya laciniosa

Phenology Flowering spring.
Habitat Rich bottomlands, along creeks, and in open cedar glades
Elevation 20-300 m (100-1000 ft)
Distribution
from FNA
AL; AR; CT; DC; DE; GA; IA; IL; IN; KS; KY; LA; MA; MD; ME; MI; MN; MO; MS; NC; NE; NH; NJ; NY; OH; OK; PA; RI; SC; TN; TX; VA; VT; WI; WV; ON; QC
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
AL; AR; DE; GA; IA; IL; IN; KS; KY; MD; MI; MO; MS; NC; NY; OH; OK; PA; TN; TX; VA; WV; ON
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Carya ovata hybridizes with C. cordiformis (C. ×laneyi Sargent), C. illinoinensis, and C. laciniosa (C. ×dunbarii Sargent). The Mexican shagbark appears to be a good variety.

The Mexican hickory (Carya ovata var. mexicana (Hemsley) W. E. Manning) appears to be synonymous with C. ovata.

Native Americans used Carya ovata medicinally as an antirheumatic, a gynecological aid, a tonic, and an anthelmintic (D. E. Moerman 1986).

Varieties 3 (2 in the flora).

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)

The most southern locality of Carya laciniosa is an outlier from Hardin County, Texas. Carya laciniosa hybridizes with C. illinoinensis (C. ×nussbaumeri Sargent) and C. ovata (C. ×dunbarii Sargent), and possibly C. cordiformis.

Cherokee Indians used Carya laciniosa medicinally as an analgesic, a gastrointestinal aid, and a general disease remedy (D. E. Moerman 1986).

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)

Source FNA vol. 3. FNA vol. 3.
Parent taxa Juglandaceae > Carya Juglandaceae > Carya
Sibling taxa
C. aquatica, C. cordiformis, C. floridana, C. glabra, C. illinoinensis, C. laciniosa, C. myristiciformis, C. pallida, C. texana, C. tomentosa
C. aquatica, C. cordiformis, C. floridana, C. glabra, C. illinoinensis, C. myristiciformis, C. ovata, C. pallida, C. texana, C. tomentosa
Subordinate taxa
C. ovata var. australis, C. ovata var. ovata
Synonyms Juglans ovata, Hicoria ovata Juglans laciniosa, Hicoria laciniosa
Name authority (Miller) K. Koch: Dendrologie 1: 598. (1869) (F. Michaux) G. Don: in J. C. Loudon, Hort. Brit., 384. (1830)
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