I chose the shagbark hickory because I recognize this beautiful tree  from where I live, in Columbus Ohio. 
 

 

The botanical name is Carya ovata.

 

 

Shagbark is a perennial.

 

 

It is a fairly common tree in the eastern United States, and southeast Canada.

 

 

Together with pignut, shagbark makes up commercial use hickory.

 

 

The tree is given its name from its loose shaggy bark. Only mature trees have this characteristic, young trees have smooth bark.

 

 

The flowers are small and wind pollinated.

 

 

The leaves can be 30- 60 cm. long, with 5 leaflets.

 

 

These trees can grow up to 27 meters high, and can live to be 200 years old.

 

 

Shagbark hickory grows best in a humid climate.

 

 

The soils within shagbark's environment are made from a variety of materials, such as sedimentary and metaphoric rocks, glacial till, and loess.

 

 

This species is monoecious and flowers in the spring.

 

 

Its active growth period is spring and summer.

 

 

Their seeds are dispersed from September through December.

 

 

Shagbark hickory is very susceptible to damage by fire.

 

 

Light fires can result in the hault of reproduction and saplings.

 

 

Hotter fires may kill larger trees and wound others, making them subject to rot and lower grade lumber, loss of volume.

 

 

Holes made through the bark by sapsuckers cause a discoloration of the wood that results in the rejection of a considerable amount of hickory lumber.

 

 

Hickories are affected by at least 133 known fungi and 10 other diseases.

 

 

At least 180 species of insects and mites are reported to infest hickory trees and

 

wood products but few cause serious damage.

 

 

Hickory nuts serve as food for many wildlife species.

 

 

They have a very thick shell around the nut.

 

 

The nuts are a preferred food of squirrels and are eaten in early August until the supply is gone.

 

 

Hickory nuts also are 5 to 10 percent of the diet of eastern chipmunks.

 

In addition to the mammals above, black bears, gray and red foxes, rabbits, and white-footed mice plus bird species such as mallards, wood ducks, bobwhites, and wild turkey utilize small amounts of hickory nuts.

 

 

This is a very popular fuelwood and charcoal producing wood.

 

 

Hickories are known for their strength, hardness, and toughness.

 

 

Some uses of hickories are furniture, tool handles, and flooring.

 

 

Hickories are also used for production of their delicious nuts.

 

 

The bark of these trees can also be used to be a flavoring in sugar syrup!

 

 

Shagbark hickory is not considered to be invasive.

 

 

Shagbark is also used for making bows of Native Americans in the northern area.

 

 

“Hickory is carved into basket handles and other objects requiring a strong, elastic wood. Bows and arrows were crafted from the wood; the Iroquois still make their hooked lacrosse sticks from it. Rope twisted from its inner bark lashed sheets of elm bark siding to the wall posts of longhouses. The sweet, aromatic nut is tasty and nutritious. Shagbark or shell-bark hickory is the best firewood in the Northeast and a favorite wood for the smoke-house. Iroquois women also gathered the dry scales to build a hot cook fire with little smoke. The English word hickory is short for pokahickory, an Algonquian word for a food or flavoring made from pounded nuts and water.” (Mohawk, John)

 

 

Distribution of Shagbark Hickory in the U.S.

 

(http://plants.usda.gov/maps/large/CA/CAOV2.png)

 

 

(http://www.duke.edu/~cwcook/trees/caov.html) Shagbark Hickory Tree

 

 

(http://www.pinenut.com/closehick300x225.JPG) Hickory Nuts

 

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Part II 

 

 

    Carya ovata, the shagbark hickory tree, is native to North America.  It is one of the most widespread hickories in North America. It is also called scalybark hickory, and shellbark hickory.  Shagbark grows best in a humid climate. It is the hardiest of all the hickory species, and has adjusted well to other climates as well.  The average growing season can be from 140 days in the North, and 260 days in the South.  The tree contains both male and female flowers.  It can be seen growing mostly among oak trees.  This tree has taproots that grow directly down to help the tree get extra water if there is a drought. This tree has very tolerant ozone sensitivity.

 

 

 

    Shagbark Hickory is susceptible to fire at all ages. Light fires can result in top kill of reproduction and saplings. Worse fires can kill the tree and damage others. It can degrade the lumber and make the wood have butt rot.  Bird pecks can cause discoloration in the wood, which can result in rejection of the lumber. Hickories can be affected by 133 fungi species and at least 10 other diseases. Most of them are saprophytes, but a few of them may cause damage to leaves, or cause trunk or root rot. Saprophytes are organisms, like bacteria or fungi, which feed on dead or decaying organic matter.

 

    Poria spiculosa which causes canker rot is probably the most serious and widespread of all hickory diseases.  A canker can appear around a dead branch, and can spread the wood rot fungus to the entire tree. Anthracnose, (Gnomonia caryae) is another common hickory disease which causes purplish or red spots on the leaf. It can form blotches, and make the leaves fall in wet seasons.  Mildew can invade leaves and twigs and can cause witches’ broom.  Witches broom is a deformity in which a mass of shoots grow from a single point on a branch that resembles a witches’ broom or a bird’s nest.  Another common virus called bunch disease is possibly carried by insects, can cause witches’ broom and can kill heavily affected trees prematurely. A bacterial disease, crown gall, causes big wart like tumors on the base of the tree on the roots.  It will eventually kill the tree.

 

          There are a number of 180 species of bugs that infect hickories, but don’t tend to cause much damage.  The most important insect enemy of hickory and other hardwoods in the East U.S. is the hickory bark beetle.      e times, large areas of timber are killed due to this insect.  Other times, the beetle only kills single trees, or damages the tops of trees.  After a few weeks of attack from the beetles, the leaves of affected trees turn reddish and the tree soon dies.  For this insect to be controlled, some actions must be taken.  Destroying bark of infested trees during winter, cutting down infested trees, and putting infested logs in ponds are all effective if carried out over a big area.  Two other insects, the twig pruner, and twig girdler can prune entire limbs off of trees, and can cause deformation of saplings.

 

While there are numerous diseases and bugs affecting the life of these trees, none of them are nearly as serious as the emerald ash borer.  The ash tree in the U.S. is seriously in danger of becoming extinct because of this insect.  Although these are a nuisance to the tree, no real threat has been identified to cause us to think the tree is in any real danger.

 

According to the World Wildlife Foundation, the Shagbark Hickory is in two biomes, in the U.S. These biomes are temperate broadleaf and mixed forests, and temperate grasslands and savannas. Broadleaf and mixed forests have distinct hot and cold seasons, with mostly warm and rainy climates. It has a fairly even distribution of rainfall between 24 and 60 inches.  Temperate grasslands are primarily made of shrubs and grasses, with trees spread out sparingly.  The climate is temperate and semi arid to semi humid.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Bibliography

 

 

Biome. [Internet]. Wikipedia. [Cited 2008 February 25]. Available from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Biomes

 

 

 

            Koch, K. Carya Ovata. [Internet].  Northeastern Area State and Private Forestry. [Cited 2008 February 19].

Available from: http://www.na.fs.fed.us/spfo/pubs/silvics_manual/volume_2/carya/ovata.htm

 

 

          Mohawk, John, Carson Waterman. 1995. Shagbark Hickory. Conservationist; Vol. 49 Issue 4, p8.

 

 

 

 

Shagbark Hickory. [Internet]. Blue Planet Biomes. [Cited 2008 February 26].  Available from: http://www.blueplanetbiomes.org/shagbark_hickory.htm

 

 

Shagbark Hickory. [Internet]. Wikipedia. [Cited 2008 February 19]. Available from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shagbark_hickory