Bitternut Carya cordiformis
Other Common Name(s):
- Phonetic Spelling
- KAIR-yuh kord-ih-FOR-miss
- Description
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Bitternut Hickory is a tall, slender, cylindrical deciduous tree with a broad pyramid-shaped crown. It is native to North Carolina and usually found on moist, rich soils in relatively open areas where the tree can find sun. The Bitternut Hickory does not tolerate shade but will tolerate a variety of soil types. The tree has a strong tap-root, making it difficult to move, and needs a lot of space as it matures; all considerations for planting in a permanent position. When surrounded by other trees, the trunk is long and straight and the crown is short; in open areas, the trunk is less long and the crown larger and ovoid in shape. At all seasons, the Bitternut Hickory can be identified from all other native trees by its long, scaly, yellow buds. On bottomlands, it develops into a tree of 50 to 70 feet or more with a straight trunk, 1 to 2 1/2 feet in diameter. The wood is hard, strong and heavy, with a reddish-brown heartwood. This tree is late coming into leaf and loses its leaves early in the autumn, but while the leaves are present, it casts an open shade allowing lawn or other plants to grow beneath it. Individual trees have been known to live up to 200 years; however, they do not produce nuts until at least 30 years old.
A food source for the larvae of the Luna (Actias luna) and the Hickory Horndevil (Citheronia regalis) moths.
Insects, Diseaes, and Other Plant Problems: Bark beetle, pecan weevil, borers and twig girdler are sometimes problems. White heart rot, anthracnose, leaf blotch, powdery mildew, leaf spot, catkin blight and crown gall are occasional diseases. This tree is shade intolerant. Hickory
VIDEO created by Grant L. Thompson for “Trees, Shrubs, and Woody Vines for Landscaping” a plant identification course offered by the Department of Horticulture at Iowa State University.
- Profile Video:
- See this plant in the following landscape:
- Cultivars / Varieties:
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- Tags:
- Cultivars / Varieties:
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- Tags:
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Attributes:
- Genus:
- Carya
- Species:
- cordiformis
- Family:
- Juglandaceae
- Uses (Ethnobotany):
- Said to be somewhat inferior to the other hickories, but is used for the same purposes: tool handles, furniture, interior paneling, and sporting goods. Also used to smoke ham and bacon.
- Life Cycle:
- Woody
- Recommended Propagation Strategy:
- Seed
- Country Or Region Of Origin:
- Eastern Canada to Central & Eastern United States.
- Distribution:
- Northeast Canada west to Nebraska, south to Texas and east to Florida.
- Fire Risk Rating:
- medium flammability
- Wildlife Value:
- Several species of moth are attracted to the foliage. Larval host for butterflies and Luna moths. This plant supports Hickory Horndevil (Citheronia regalis) larvae which have one brood and appear from May to mid-September. Adult Hickory Horndevil moths do not feed.
- Edibility:
- Thin shelled nut, but bitter and astringent.
- Dimensions:
- Height: 50 ft. 0 in. - 100 ft. 0 in.
- Width: 25 ft. 0 in. - 40 ft. 0 in.
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Whole Plant Traits:
- Plant Type:
- Native Plant
- Perennial
- Tree
- Woody Plant Leaf Characteristics:
- Deciduous
- Habit/Form:
- Ascending
- Irregular
- Oval
- Pyramidal
- Rounded
- Growth Rate:
- Rapid
- Maintenance:
- Low
- Texture:
- Coarse
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Cultural Conditions:
- Light:
- Full sun (6 or more hours of direct sunlight a day)
- Partial Shade (Direct sunlight only part of the day, 2-6 hours)
- Soil Texture:
- Clay
- High Organic Matter
- Loam (Silt)
- Sand
- Shallow Rocky
- Soil pH:
- Acid (<6.0)
- Neutral (6.0-8.0)
- Soil Drainage:
- Good Drainage
- Moist
- Occasionally Wet
- NC Region:
- Coastal
- Mountains
- Piedmont
- USDA Plant Hardiness Zone:
- 4a, 4b, 5a, 5b, 6a, 6b, 7a, 7b, 8a, 8b, 9a, 9b
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Fruit:
- Fruit Value To Gardener:
- Showy
- Display/Harvest Time:
- Fall
- Fruit Type:
- Nut
- Fruit Length:
- < 1 inch
- Fruit Description:
- Nuts do not appear until the tree is about 30 years old. The 4-ribbed nut is about an inch long, roughly spherical, with a thin shell. The meat of the nut is very bitter. The husk is four-winged from the tip to about the middle and is covered with yellowish-green, scruffy hairs. Nuts display in October.
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Flowers:
- Flower Color:
- Gold/Yellow
- Green
- Flower Inflorescence:
- Catkin
- Insignificant
- Spike
- Flower Bloom Time:
- Spring
- Flower Size:
- < 1 inch
- Flower Description:
- Monoecious with both male and female flowers produced on the same tree. The male flowers are arranged in greenish yellow catkins that are 3 to 5 inches long in clusters of 3, drooping downward from either the tips of the previous year's twigs or at the base of the current year's twigs. Each tiny male flower has a 3-lobed calyx and several stamens. The female flowers are small short spikes at the tips of the current year's twigs. Each female flower is about an 1/8 of an inch, consisting of an ovoid ovary with 4 prominent ridges and a pair of styles. The blooming period occurs from mid- to late spring for about 1 to 2 weeks.
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Leaves:
- Woody Plant Leaf Characteristics:
- Deciduous
- Leaf Color:
- Gold/Yellow
- Green
- Leaf Value To Gardener:
- Showy
- Deciduous Leaf Fall Color:
- Gold/Yellow
- Leaf Type:
- Compound (Pinnately , Bipinnately, Palmately)
- Leaf Arrangement:
- Alternate
- Leaf Shape:
- Lanceolate
- Leaf Margin:
- Serrate
- Hairs Present:
- Yes
- Leaf Length:
- > 6 inches
- Leaf Description:
- Leaves are 6 to 10 inches long with 5 to 9 long, oval, toothed leaflets that are dark yellow-green above and lighter below. There is a slight pubescence on the underside veins.
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Bark:
- Bark Color:
- Light Brown
- Light Gray
- Surface/Attachment:
- Furrowed
- Smooth
- Bark Description:
- The bark on the trunk is granite gray and faintly tinged with yellow. It is less rough that most of the hickories, yet it is broken into narrow, plate-like scales as it ages. The hard bark is initially smooth.
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Stem:
- Stem Color:
- Gray/Silver
- Stem Is Aromatic:
- No
- Stem Form:
- Straight
- Stem Lenticels:
- Conspicuous
- Stem Surface:
- Smooth (glabrous)
- Stem Description:
- Branches are gray and smooth, while twigs are gray or light brown. Young non-woody shoots are light green, terete, and glabrous; they have scattered lenticels that are white or pale yellow.
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Landscape:
- Landscape Location:
- Woodland
- Landscape Theme:
- Butterfly Garden
- Native Garden
- Nighttime Garden
- Pollinator Garden
- Design Feature:
- Shade Tree
- Street Tree
- Attracts:
- Butterflies
- Moths
- Pollinators
- Small Mammals
- Songbirds
- Resistance To Challenges:
- Black Walnut
