Spermatophytes (seed plants): Angiosperms (flowering plants): Eudicots: Core Eudicots: Rosids: Fabids: Fagales
WEAKLEY'S FLORA OF THE SOUTHEASTERN US (4/24/22):
Carya laciniosa
FAMILY
Juglandaceae
Go to FSUS key
Dig deeper at SERNEC, a consortium of southeastern herbaria.
You may also want to check Trees, Shrubs, and Woody Vines of North Carolina
Read more about Big Shellbark Hickory at Vascular Plants of North Carolina.
SYNONYMOUS WITH
PLANTS NATIONAL DATABASE:
Carya laciniosa
FAMILY
Juglandaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH Flora of North America
Carya laciniosa
SYNONYMOUS WITH VASCULAR FLORA OF THE CAROLINAS (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968) 053-02-007:
Carya laciniosa FAMILY Juglandaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH Manual of the Southeastern Flora (Small, 1933, 1938)
Hicoria laciniosa
COMMON NAME:
Big Shellbark Hickory, Kingnut Hickory
To see larger pictures, click or hover over the thumbnails.
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Ron Lance jkm110219_651
Note variation in husk thickness & dehiscence, and nut shape, size & sweetness.
)
Manual of the Trees of North America (Exclusive of Mexico) (Sargent, 1905) mtna_i_219
)
USDA-NRCS PLANTS Database / USDA Wetland flora: Field office illustrated guide pnd_cala21_003_lvd
)
USDA-NRCS PLANTS Database / Britton, N.L., and A. Brown. 1913 pnd_hila7_001_lvd
)
Richard and Teresa Ware rtw_carya_laciniosa_16
May
Bark gray, scaly, with long strap-like plates, per Woody Plants of the Blue Ridge (Lance).
)
Richard and Teresa Ware rtw_carya_laciniosa_8
May
Leaf rachises may persist on twig into winter, per Woody Plants of the Blue Ridge (Lance).
)
Richard and Teresa Ware rtw_carya_laciniosa_19
June
Twigs sandy, buff, or orange-brown; terminal bud abruptly tapered, per Woody Plants of the Southeastern US: A Winter Guide (Lance, 2004).
)
Richard and Teresa Ware rtw_carya_laciniosa_32
August
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Richard and Teresa Ware rtw_carya_laciniosa_7
August
)
Ron Lance rwl_caryalaciniosa
August
In cultivation
Leaflets 7 (usually) to 9, lance-shaped to obovate, margins finely serrate, per Native Trees of the Southeast, An Identification Guide (Kirkman, Brown, & Leopold, 2007).
)
Richard and Teresa Ware rtw_carya_laciniosa_20
October
Husks about 1/4" thick, lacking wings; seeds edible and sweet, per Native Trees of the Southeast, An Identification Guide (Kirkman, Brown, & Leopold, 2007).
)
Ron Lance jkm110219_636b
Month Unknown
Fruits the largest of the genus (to 8cm long!). Husks 8-14mm thick, per Woody Plants of the Southeastern US: A Winter Guide (Lance, 2004).
WEAKLEY'S FLORA OF THE SOUTHEASTERN US (4/24/22):
Carya laciniosa
FAMILY
Juglandaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH
PLANTS NATIONAL DATABASE:
Carya laciniosa
FAMILY
Juglandaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH
Flora of North America
Carya laciniosa
SYNONYMOUS WITH
VASCULAR FLORA OF THE CAROLINAS (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968) 053-02-007:
Carya laciniosa
FAMILY
Juglandaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH
Manual of the Southeastern Flora (Small, 1933, 1938)
Hicoria laciniosa
273
Tree
Perennial
Monoecious
Habitat: Bottomland forests, hardwood flatwoods, swamps; rarely in mesic upland forests and on rich lower slopes, per Weakley's Flora
Native to North Carolina & Georgia
Uncommon in GA Mountains, rare elsewhere in GA & NC
CLICK HERE to see a map, notes, and images from Weakley's Flora of the Southeastern US.
LEAVES:
Deciduous
Odd-pinnately compound: 7-9 leaflets, usually 7
Alternate
FLOWER:
Spring
Staminate calyx 2-3 lobed
Inferior ovary
Unisexual
Staminate flowers in elongate catkins
FRUIT:
Fall
Nut
TO LEARN MORE about this plant, look it up in a good book!
- Gardening with Native Plants of the South (Wasowski & Wasowski, 1994, 2020) p043
- Identifying Trees: An All-Season Guide to Eastern North America (Williams, 2007) p226
- Landscaping with Native Trees (Sternberg & Wilson, 1995) p071
- Native Trees of the Southeast, An Identification Guide (Kirkman, Brown, & Leopold, 2007) p217
- Trees of the Southeastern United States (Duncan & Duncan, 1988) p068
- Woody Plants of the Blue Ridge (Lance) p12
- Woody Plants of the Southeastern US: A Winter Guide (Lance, 2004) p088
If a search such as "Carex leptalea var. leptalea" doesn't deliver the results you want, try "Carex leptalea".
Or, to minimize chances of a misspelling, try just "Carex le".
Less is more: If "pencil flower" doesn't deliver the results you want, try "pencil".