Northern Nut Growers Association Report of the Proceedings at the Second Annual Meeting | Page 7

glabra pallida.
In addition to the sixteen described varieties and species of hickories in
America, we have an endless variety of hybrid forms, because
cross-pollenization seems to take place readily between hickories of
synchronous flowering time.
Five of the hickories: H. pecan, H. Texana, H. minima, H.
myristicaeformis, and H. aquatica belong to the open-bud group, while
the rest belong to the scale-bud group. The winter buds of the open-bud
group resemble the winter buds of the walnuts in a general way, and in
artificial hybridization experiments I seem to note a close relationship
between the open-bud hickories and the walnuts.
There is no more promising work for the horticulturist than crossing
hickories with walnuts, and crossing hickories with each other. Five
hundred years from now we shall probably find extensive orchards of
such hybrids occupying thousands of acres of land which is now
practically worthless. The hickories are to furnish a substantial part of

the food supply of the world in the years to come. At the present time
wild hickories held most highly in esteem are: H. pecan, H. ovata, H.
Carolinae-septentrionalis, and H. laciniosa. Several other kinds have
edible kernels, sometimes of excellent character, but not readily
obtained except by boys and squirrels, whose time is not valuable. In
this group we have H. alba, H. glabra, H. villosa, H. glabra pallida, H.
glabra odorata, H. glabra microcarpa, H. Mexicana, H. Buckleyi, and H.
myristicaeformis. In another group of hickories with temptingly thin
shells and plump kernels, we have a bitter or astringent pellicle of the
kernel. This group contains H. Texana, H. minima, and H. aquatica.
Sometimes in the bitter group we find individual trees with edible nuts,
and it is not unlikely that some of them represent hybrids in which the
bitter and astringent qualities have been recessive.
Among the desirable species of wild hickories there is much variation
in character, and selection of trees for propagation is in its infancy. One
reason for this has been the difficulty of transplanting hickories.
Another reason is the fact that hickories do not come true to parent type
from seed. A third reason is the length of time required for seedling
hickories to come into bearing.
Concerning the first reason, the enormous taproot of young hickories
requires so much pabulum for maintenance that when the trees are
transplanted, with destruction of root-hairs along with the feeding roots,
transplanted stocks may remain a year or two years in the ground
before they are ready to send out buds from the top. On this account,
the Stringfellow method has in my locality proven of value. This
consists in extreme cutting back of root and top, leaving little more
than a short club for transplantation. The short club does not require
much pabulum for maintenance, and new feeding roots with their
root-hairs get the club under way quickly, because there is little useless
load for them to carry. The Stringfellow method further includes the
idea that stock should be planted in very hard ground, and seems to be
practicable with the hickories. The root-hairs which take up
nourishment from the soil find it difficult to carry on osmosis in loose
soil. The close contact obtained by forcing a way through compact soil
facilitates feeding. On this account, autumn is perhaps a better time for

transplantation of hickories, in the northern latitudes, at least. Callus
forms over the ends of cut roots at all times when the ground is not
frozen, and the more complete the callus formation the more readily are
feeding roots sent out.
One of the main obstacles to propagation of hickories has depended
upon the fact that nuts did not come true to parent type from seed. This
is overcome by budding or grafting, and we can now multiply the
progeny from any one desirable plant indefinitely. In the South grafting
is nearly as successful as budding, but in the North budding seems to be
the better method for propagation. The chief difficulty in grafting or
budding the hickories is due to slow formation of callus and of
granulation processes which carry on repair of wounds.
The propagation of trees from a desirable individual plant can be
accomplished also by transplanting roots. A hickory root dug from the
ground, divested of small rootlets, cut into segments a foot or more in
length, and set perpendicularly in sand with half an inch protruding,
will throw out shoots from adventitious buds. In my experimental work
with hickory roots, in covered jars, surrounded by wet moss, but with
the entire root reached by light, adventitious buds have started along
the entire length of the root, and we may find this an economical way
for root propagation, dividing up sprouting roots into small segments.
The chief objection to this method of propagation as