HICKORIES, ELMS AND ASH TREES 



By Warren H. Miliar, M. F. 



THIS group constitute a striking sissippi Valley as far north as Wiscon- 

 set of individuals which, next sin, there is no reason why it cannot be 

 after the oaks, maples and grown anywhere throughout our area, in 

 birches are most frequently fact all the nurseries offer "hardy" pe- 

 met with in the average hardwood for- cans for northern growing, which are 

 est. Our hickory is a most American doubtless from wild stock growing in 

 tree, as typical of our Republic (before the northern part of its range. But 

 the present epoch of imperialism set in) there is no reason why shagbark hickory 

 as the wild turkey among our birds or can not be grown, either in forest or in 

 the bison among our animals. They orchard, the former for lumber and nut 

 have nothing like the hickory in Eu- crops, the latter for nuts only either 

 rope ; no tree that combines so many way it would be a paying proposition 

 fine lumber qualities as well as produc- for one whose tastes lie in the realm of 

 ing a nut finer in flavor than any im- horticulture. But I take it that these ar- 

 ported variety whatsoever. tides interest chiefly the man who does 

 It is one of those distinctively Amer- not fancy the cares and labors of or- 

 ican things, unique in its excellence not charding, but who does love to have 

 to be matched elsewhere a leaf of plenty of wood about him and is not 

 hickory ought to find its place on our averse to bettering the quality of and 

 national escutcheon ! Like the turkey beautifying within reasonable expense 

 and the bison, the hickory has been little limits his own wild forest. For him the 

 appreciated by us as a nation, and it has shagbark will be a tree to plant and en- 

 been allowed to go almost to the van- courage wherever a moist loamy bottom 

 ishing point. The hickory bark borer of granite, limestone or clay base ex- 

 destroys hundreds of thousands of wild ists. It does not do well in sand base 

 trees every year, now that the birds soils. Nurseries seldom offer young 

 are so scarce; no young trees are com- hickories, as they are exceedingly dif- 

 ing up to take the place of those that ficult to transplant, and wild stock, 

 we have ; and no attempt is being made gathered, no matter how young, is 

 to raise hickories on a large scale, either nearly certain to die. The way to set 

 in orchard or in forest. On the farm a tree in a given locality, then, is to 

 the hickory is appreciated to the point plant one or two sound healthy nuts 

 of leaving a fine one standing when and save the vigorous seedling. Also, 

 clearing a field, partly as a shade tree wherever nature has already started a 

 for cows, partly because a good one young hickory, to clear away the over- 

 can be depended upon for about two growth and give it all the encourage- 

 bushels of nuts every seed year. ment possible. 



The wood commands about twice the We have a number of species of 

 price of white pine, $30 at the mill per hickories, but four of them will be 

 M., and we use 350 million feet of it enough to know and identify. The 

 a year, a rate of cutting that plays havoc shagbark is known at once by its long, 

 with the very existence of the tree in hard, whitish gray bark scales, warp- 

 wild forests. The estate owner has a ing off at both top and bottom from the 

 big field ahead of him in the study trunk. Young specimens are not so 

 and growing of this tree (the shagbark easy to be sure of, but look for a large 

 being the one understood by the gen- five-leaved leaf with the center leaflet 

 eral term "hickory"), yet the only one very large, two nearly as large on each 

 actually orcharded on a large scale is side of it, and two little ones behind 

 the southern hickory or pecan. As the that, and your identification is reason- 

 natural range of this nut is up the Mis- ably certain. Occasionally they have a 



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