2024 Author: Gavin MacAdam | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 13:38
Kariya (lat. Carya) - a genus of trees in the Walnut family. Another name is Hickory. The genus has about 20 species. Natural area - North America. Two wild species grow on the territory of China, these include Chinese Caria and Tonkin Caria. Typical locations are deciduous forests, river valleys, and flooded areas with fertile soils. In culture, the most common type of Karya pecan (lat. Carya pecan). The average life expectancy is 400-500 years.
Characteristics of culture
Kariya, or Hickory, is a large deciduous tree up to 65 m high. Exception: Kariya Florida species (lat. Carya floridana) is represented by shrub forms. The crown of plants is ovoid or tent-shaped. The branches are powerful, thick, with a dense core. The bark on the trunk is smooth, gray, cracks with age or flakes off in long plates. Buds short-petiolate or sessile, covered with numerous overlying scales. Leaves are green, large, compound, pinnate, alternate consisting of 3-13 leaves. Leaflets are lanceolate, dentate, pointed at the tip. In autumn, the foliage becomes bright yellow or golden yellow in color.
Flowers are dioecious. Female flowers are sessile, collected in spikelets of few flowers, male flowers - in drooping earrings. The fruit is a false drupe, can have an oblong, obovate or spherical shape. The shell of the fruit is fleshy, woody; when ripe, it cracks with four valves. The nut is slightly wrinkled or smooth, with pronounced ribs. The kernel is dark brown, 2-4-lobed, edible. Hazel begins to bear fruit 10-12 years after planting (subject to optimal conditions and careful care).
Among the representatives of the genus, the species Kariya fringed, or Big shaggy Hickory (lat. Carya laciniosa) should be noted. The species is represented by trees up to 40 m high with a trunk covered with light gray peeling or cracking bark. The buds are large, brown, pubescent. The branches are thick, bare, brown, equipped with reddish lenticels. The leaves are large, complex, consisting of 7-9 oblong leaflets. Fruits are spherical, brown, up to 6 cm in diameter. The nut kernel is sweet, enclosed in a strong woody shell. The species in question is propagated by seeds. Sowing is carried out in autumn or spring. When sowing in spring, the seeds are subjected to 90-day stratification.
The most common species in culture (as mentioned above) is Karya pecan, or Hickory pecan (lat. Carya pecan). The species is represented by powerful trees up to 50 m high with a trunk covered with gray-brown bark. The crown is tent-shaped. The leaves are alternate, compound, green, consisting of 11-17 leaves. Fruits are oblong, collected in clusters of 2-10 pieces. The nut is smooth, with a thin brown shell with black stripes. The nut kernel is sweet, buttery. The species is photophilous; at the initial stage of rapid growth, one should not expect from it. The culture cannot boast of frost-resistant properties; it can withstand short-term frosts down to -20C. Kariya pecan is relatively resistant to diseases and pests. The species in question is propagated by seeds. Currently, about 100 cultivars and several hybrid forms have been bred.
Another interesting species is White Caria, or White Hickory (lat. Carya alba). The species is represented by trees up to 30 m high with dark gray, fissured bark. Young shoots are tomentose, pale. Leaves outside are dark green with a yellowish tint, glabrous, on the inside - pubescent, brown. Fruits are pear-shaped or spherical, collected in 1-4 pieces in a brush. Nuts are elliptical or spherical, light brown, often flattened, have a fairly thick and strong shell. The kernel is small and sweet. The species is relatively frost-resistant, withstands frosts down to -30C.
The subtleties of growing and care
Kariya is a thermophilic plant, its cultivation is possible only in open ground. As a houseplant, hazel will not work. It is recommended to grow hazel only in regions with mild winters. At present, cold-resistant varieties have been developed that can withstand a short-term drop in temperature to -36C. But in practice, not everything is as good as it seems, most of them hopelessly die even at a temperature of -30C. It is desirable to grow hazel with seedlings. The seed method is not prohibited, but it is very laborious and time-consuming. Sowing is carried out in autumn or spring with a preliminary 90-day stratification.
Care for hazel (or hickory) is standard for all Nut treatments. Young plants need more careful care, namely, frequent and abundant watering, systematic fertilizing with mineral fertilizers, loosening of the trunk circle and weeding. Mulching the near-trunk zone is encouraged. Organic material can be used as mulch - peat, foliage, sawdust. Sanitary pruning for hazel is mandatory, the removal of thickening branches will favorably affect the general condition of the trees. Preventive treatment against pests and diseases is important for plants.
