Agencies
Services
shagbark hickory
shagbark hickory (Carya ovata)
Features and Behaviors
FEATURES
The deciduous shagbark hickory tree may grow to a height of 80 feet and a trunk diameter of three and one-half feet. Its gray bark separates into long, shredding scales giving the tree a shaggy appearance. The pinnately compound leaves are arranged alternately along the stem. Each leaf contains five to seven ovate or lance-shaped leaflets. Each finely toothed leaflet may grow to 10 inches long and five inches wide. Leaves are yellow-green or green on the smooth upper surface and paler and smooth or somewhat hairy on the lower surface. Male and female flowers are separate but located on the same tree. The tiny flower has no petals. Male (staminate) flowers are arranged in drooping catkins while female (pistillate) flowers are in groups of two to five. The fruit is a spherical nut, about two inches across. The husk is yellow-green to red-brown, about one-half inch thick. The four-angled, white nut has meat that is sweet to the taste.
BEHAVIORS
The shagbark hickory may be found statewide in Illinois. This tree grows in rich woods and upland woods. The shagbark hickory flowers after its leaves begin to unfold, during April and May. Its heavy, hard wood is used for tool handles, as fuel, for hickory-smoked cooking and for making baseball bats. The nuts are used in cooking and as food by wildlife.
Illinois Range
Taxonomy
Kingdom: Plantae
Division: Magnoliophyta
Class: Magnoliopsida
Order: Juglandales
Family: Juglandaceae
Illinois Status: common, native
