Use

Pecans bring a great crunch into muesli mixtures, they are interesting decoration on pastries. Ground, they are used in pastries. What would typical American cookies be without them? Also the pecan nut cake on festive days has a tradition in America in many population groups. Finely salted and roasted, organic pecan nuts enhance party blends. But also the fine edible oil from pecans is popular.

Production

Pecan nut trees, which belong to the walnut family and the Hickory genus, reach a proud height of 30 – 50 meters. The trunk of adult plants can have a diameter of 2 meters. The crown of the pecan tree is also impressive. The age is remarkable, specimens with 1000 years are known in North America.

It takes four to five years for flowers to appear. The first significant yield is from the tenth year onwards. The trees bloom monoeciously, the female, ear-shaped flowers are pollinated by the wind. Fruit ripening lasts about half a year. The greenish-brown fruits consist of the outer skin, which is thick and leathery. It contains the woody shell in which the pecan nut, consisting of two flat seed halves, sits.

The pecan tree forms tap roots up to 10 m long and is thus able to regulate its water balance largely by itself. Watering is only necessary during longer dry periods in order to obtain uniformly large and ripening fruits. Pecans grow in tufts, 3 – 5, but occasionally up to 20 nuts stand together.

Origin

Once the pecan nut was one of the foods that ensured the survival of the Indians in North America. The pecan tree is still honored and valued, and in Texas it was even named a state tree with its own holiday. The pecan tree grew throughout the Mississippi catchment area, from Iowa and Ohio to Mexico, from Virginia to Florida. Today, pecans thrive in Hawaii, South America, especially Peru and Brazil, South Africa, Australia, China and Israel.

Sustainability

The pecan tree is robust and shows little susceptibility to animal pests and fungi. Tomahawks and carriage wheels were once made of wood, but now they are mainly used in paper production. But also the use as furniture wood or wood for the outside area increases again, color and grain resemble the real hickory wood.

Harvest

Much of the harvest is done mechanically. When the first pecans are ripe and fall to the ground, tree vibrators are used. The fallen nuts are heaped up with blowers and sweepers. Specially designed collection machines pick them up. During this process, the nuts are separated from the fruit skins. Depending on the harvest time and weather conditions, a short or extensive drying process is then carried out to make the pecans more durable.

Flavor

Organic pecans resemble walnuts not only in appearance, but also in taste. However, they taste less bitter, sometimes even sweet.

Yield

The main yield of pecan nuts still comes from the USA. Here it is above all the harvest in Georgia which alone accounts for about half. The yield from other countries is not yet worth mentioning, but is increasing steadily.

Special feature

The shape and structure of the pecan nut corresponds to that of the walnut, but the shell is smooth and the halves of the nut are less grooved.