Carya illinoinensis 'Cape Fear'

'Cape Fear', a cultivar of the Carya illinoinensis pecan tree originated by Dr.Smit at Willard Horticultural Department, North Carolina State University.  This familiar cultivar is an open-pollinated seedling derived from the cultivar 'Schley'.  It is grown mostly for its delicious edible nuts with golden kernals that appear in the summer after an insignificant bloom.

'Cape Fear' is a large shade tree growing 60 to 40 feet tall with a spread of 40 to 75 feet. This deciduous tree has a medium texture and spreading form. It was bred to have moderate disease resistance to pecan scab. As a mature tree, it may need selective pruning to maintain nut quality.

'Cape Fear' grows best in full sun. It tolerates clay, sand, and loam soils—neutral to acidic—as long as they are well drained. It has high drought tolerance once established. Learn more about selection, planting, and care of pecan trees.

It is protandrous and precocious, requires two cultivars for pollinating, like 'Stuart' or 'Elliot'. It has an excellent character of resisting diseases like scab but is susceptible to bacterial leaf scorch.  It also produces high-quality pecans though the production is not as consistent as other cultivars.. 

Nut production can be reduced in the northern part of its growing range, especially when spring is late and the summer is cool. It can be difficult to transplant due to a deep taproot, so choose your planting location wisely and keep its large mature size in mind. Pecans tolerate being planted near black walnut trees. This tree requires a medium amount of maintenance. 

Due to its size, this is a tree most appropriate for a large property. It makes a good shade tree in a naturalized, woodland, or recreational area and as part of a children’s, edible, or pollinator garden.

Quick ID Hints:

• Leaves are alternate, pinnately compound
• Leaflets are falcate, crenate

Insect, Diseases, and Other Plant Problems:  Aphids, pecan weevils, stink bugs, twig girdlers, and fall webworms can cause some issues. Bacterial leaf scorch, powdery mildew, peach leaf curl, fire blight, brown rot, bacterial spot, and cedar apple rust. Scab can infect both nuts and foliage, but scab-resistant cultivars are available. Pecans are known for their brittle branches prone to breakage, especially in wind, and late frosts can reduce nut production.  Dropped nuts can be messy on hardscaped surfaces.

VIDEO Created by Elisabeth Meyer for "Vegetables, Herbs, Fruits, and Nuts" a plant identification course offered in partnership with Longwood Gardens.   

More information on Carya illinoinensis.