Spermatophytes (seed plants): Angiosperms (flowering plants): Eudicots: Core Eudicots: Rosids: Fabids: Fagales
WEAKLEY'S FLORA OF THE SOUTHEASTERN US (4/24/22):
Carya ovata
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 Common Shagbark Hickory at Vascular Plants of North Carolina.
SYNONYMOUS WITH
PLANTS NATIONAL DATABASE:
Carya ovata
FAMILY
Juglandaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH Flora of North America
Carya ovata var. ovata
INCLUDING Vascular flora of Illinois (Mohlenbrock, 2014)
Carya ovata var. fraxinifolia
INCLUDING Vascular flora of Illinois (Mohlenbrock, 2014)
Carya ovata var. nuttallii
INCLUDING Vascular flora of Illinois (Mohlenbrock, 2014)
Carya ovata var. ovata
SYNONYMOUS WITH VASCULAR FLORA OF THE CAROLINAS (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968) 053-02-006:
Carya ovata FAMILY Juglandaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH Manual of the Southeastern Flora (Small, 1933, 1938)
Hicoria ovata
COMMON NAME:
Common Shagbark Hickory
To see larger pictures, click or hover over the thumbnails.
)
Trees You Want to Know (Peattie, 1934); illustration by F.A. Michaux dcp34_p22
)
Ron Lance jkm110219_651
Note variation in husk thickness & dehiscence, and nut shape, size & sweetness.
)
JK Marlow jkm191222_2364_c_ovata
Clay County AL
Cheaha State Park
)
Manual of the Trees of North America (Exclusive of Mexico) (Sargent, 1905) mtna_i_215
)
Manual of the Trees of North America (Exclusive of Mexico) (Sargent, 1905) mtna_i_217
)
USDA-NRCS PLANTS Database / US Forest Service pnd_caov2_002_lhd
)
USDA-NRCS PLANTS Database / USDA Wetland flora: Field office illustrated guide pnd_caov2_005_lvd
)
USDA-NRCS PLANTS Database / Britton, N.L., and A. Brown. 1913 pnd_hiov2_001_lvd
)
Richard and Teresa Ware rtw_carya_ovata_13
January
Twigs stout, slightly hairy, with large loosely scaled buds, per Woody Plants of the Southeastern US: A Winter Guide (Lance, 2004).
)
Richard and Teresa Ware rtw_carya_ovata_2
January
)
JK Marlow jkm0504d_16
April McCormick County SC
Stevens Creek Heritage Preserve
)
JK Marlow jkm180408_1083
April McCormick County SC
Parks Mill
Opened bud scales can be reminiscent of flowers. Note last year's leaf rachises.
)
Sam Pratt sbp_040722_image4
April Spartanburg County SC
In cultivation
Large terminal buds covered by several very loose brown scales, per Woody Plants of the Blue Ridge (Lance).
)
Richard and Teresa Ware rtw_carya_ovata
June
Crushed lvs w faint apple smell unlike other hickories. Petioles pubescent, per Native Trees of the Southeast, An Identification Guide (Kirkman, Brown, & Leopold, 2007).
)
Richard and Teresa Ware rtw_c_ovata_polk_co_3
August Polk County GA
)
JK Marlow jkm150927_191
September Henderson County NC
Bearwallow Mountain
Husk is thick and splits free from the nut, per Woody Plants of the Blue Ridge (Lance).
)
JK Marlow jkm150927_197
September Henderson County NC
Bearwallow Mountain
Leaves with minute tufts of hair on margins, per Woody Plants of the Blue Ridge (Lance).
)
JK Marlow jkm150927_201
September Henderson County NC
Bearwallow Mountain
)
JK Marlow jkm150927_203
September Henderson County NC
Bearwallow Mountain
Fruit nearly globular, per Woody Plants of the Southeastern US: A Winter Guide (Lance, 2004).
)
Richard and Teresa Ware rtw_c_ovata_1_bark
December Floyd County GA
Dark gray bark, exfoliating in long narrow plates oft detached at both ends, per Native Trees of the Southeast, An Identification Guide (Kirkman, Brown, & Leopold, 2007).
)
Ron Lance jkm110219_639b
Month Unknown
Nut nearly round, shell angled, husk 1/4-3/8" thick and splitting to base, per Native Trees of the Southeast, An Identification Guide (Kirkman, Brown, & Leopold, 2007).
WEAKLEY'S FLORA OF THE SOUTHEASTERN US (4/24/22):
Carya ovata
FAMILY
Juglandaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH
PLANTS NATIONAL DATABASE:
Carya ovata
FAMILY
Juglandaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH
Flora of North America
Carya ovata var. ovata
INCLUDING
Vascular flora of Illinois (Mohlenbrock, 2014)
Carya ovata var. fraxinifolia
INCLUDING
Vascular flora of Illinois (Mohlenbrock, 2014)
Carya ovata var. nuttallii
INCLUDING
Vascular flora of Illinois (Mohlenbrock, 2014)
Carya ovata var. ovata
SYNONYMOUS WITH
VASCULAR FLORA OF THE CAROLINAS (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968) 053-02-006:
Carya ovata
FAMILY
Juglandaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH
Manual of the Southeastern Flora (Small, 1933, 1938)
Hicoria ovata
276
Tree
Perennial
Monoecious
Habitat: Rich moist bottomlands, slopes, occasionally on dry upland flats, per Weakley's Flora
Native to North Carolina & Georgia
Uncommon (rare in GA Coastal Plain)
CLICK HERE to see a map, notes, and images from Weakley's Flora of the Southeastern US.
LEAVES:
Deciduous
Odd-pinnately compound: 5 leaflets (usually)
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
- Gardening with the Native Plants of Tennessee (Hunter, 2002) p281
- Guide to the Wildflowers of SC, 2nd ed. (McMillan, Porcher, Rayner, & White; 2022) p208
- Guide to the Wildflowers of SC, 2nd ed. (McMillan, Porcher, Rayner, & White; 2022) p258
- Guide to the Wildflowers of SC, 2nd ed. (McMillan, Porcher, Rayner, & White; 2022) p425
- Identifying Trees: An All-Season Guide to Eastern North America (Williams, 2007) p222
- Landscaping with Native Trees (Sternberg & Wilson, 1995) p070
- Native Trees of the Southeast, An Identification Guide (Kirkman, Brown, & Leopold, 2007) p219
- Trees of the Southeastern United States (Duncan & Duncan, 1988) p068
- Woody Plants of the Blue Ridge (Lance) p12
- Wildflowers & Plant Communities of the Southern Appalachian Mountains and Piedmont (Spira, 2011) p230
- 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".
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