Raffi at 04:20, 26 June 2009

2009-06-26T04:20:45Z

Kpdhage at 12:47, 25 June 2009

2009-06-25T12:47:41Z

Raffi at 07:05, 27 March 2007

2007-03-27T07:05:52Z

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{{Taxobox
| color = lightgreen
| name = Pecan
| status = {{StatusSecure}}
| image = Pecan orchard.jpg
| image_width = 240px
| image_caption = Pecan orchard<br>[[Lyndon B. Johnson National Historical Park]]
| regnum = [[Plant]]ae
| divisio = [[Flowering plant|Magnoliophyta]]
| classis = [[Dicotyledon|Magnoliopsida]]
| ordo = [[Fagales]]
| familia = [[Juglandaceae]]
| genus = ''[[Hickory|Carya]]''
| species = '''''C. illinoinensis'''''
| binomial = ''Carya illinoinensis''
| binomial_authority = (Wangenh.) K.Koch
}}

The '''Pecan''' (''Carya illinoinensis'') is a species of [[hickory]] native to southeastern [[North America]], from southern [[Iowa]] and [[Indiana]] south to [[Texas]] and [[Mississippi]]. It is a [[deciduous]] [[tree]], growing to 25–40 m in height, and can be grown approximately from [[United States Department of Agriculture|USDA]] [[hardiness zone]]s 5 to 9, provided summers are also hot and humid. Pecan trees may live and bear nuts for more than three hundred years, and are one of the largest species of hickory<ref>http://www.harrellnut.com/pecanfactsandtips.html</ref>. The Pecan harvest for growers is traditionally around mid October and they grow wild in [[Texas]], [[Oklahoma]], [[Mississippi]], [[Louisiana]], [[South Carolina]] and other southeastern states of the U.S. as well as northeast [[Mexico]].

[[Image:pecan-nuts-on-tree.jpg|thumb|left|Ripe pecan nuts on tree]]
The [[leaf|leaves]] are alternate, 40–70 cm long, and pinnate with 9–13 (rarely up to 17) leaflets, each leaflet 5–12 cm long and 2–6 cm broad. The [[flower]]s are [[pollination|wind-pollinated]], and [[plant sexuality|monoecious]], with [[stamen|staminate]] and [[carpel|pistillate]] [[catkin]]s on the same tree. The Pecan trees are mostly self incompatible, because most [[cultivars]], being [[cloning|clones]] derived from wild trees, show incomplete [[dichogamy]]. Generally, two or more trees of different [[cultivar]]s must be present to [[pollenizer|pollenize]] each other. The [[fruit]] is an oval to oblong [[nut (fruit)|nut]], 2.6–6 cm long and 1.5–3 cm broad, dark brown with a rough husk 3–4 mm thick, which splits off at maturity to release the thin-shelled nut. <br clear = left>

==Cultivation and uses==
[[Image:Pecans.jpg|left|thumb|Pecans]]
The nuts of the Pecan are edible, with a rich, buttery flavor. They can be eaten fresh or used in [[cooking]], particularly in sweet [[dessert|desserts]] but also in some savory dishes. One of the most common desserts with the pecan as a central ingredient is the [[pecan pie]], a traditional southern U.S. recipe. Pecans are also a major ingredient in [[praline]] candy, most often associated with [[New Orleans]].

In addition to the pecan nut, the [[wood]] of the pecan tree is also used in making [[furniture]], in [[hardwood]] [[floor]]ing, as well as flavoring fuel for [[smoking (food)|smoking]] [[meat]]s.

Pecans were one of the most recently domesticated major crops. Although wild pecans were well known among the colonial Americans as a delicacy, the commercial growing of pecans in the United States did not begin until the 1880s.<ref>http://pecankernel.tamu.edu/introduction/index.html</ref> Today, the U.S. produces between 80% and 95% of the world's pecans, with an annual crop of 150-200 million kg (300-400 million pounds)<ref>http://www.tpga.org/faqs.html</ref>. Historically, however, the leading Pecan-producing state in the U.S. has been [[Georgia (U.S. state)|Georgia]], followed by Texas, [[New Mexico]] and [[Oklahoma]], they are also grown in [[Arizona]]. Outside the United States, pecans are grown in [[Australia]], [[Brazil]], [[China]], [[Israel]], [[Mexico]], [[Peru]] and [[South Africa]].

===Diseases===
{{Main|List of pecan diseases}}

===Nutrition===
{{nutritionalvalue| name = Pecans | kJ=2891 | protein=9 g | fat=72 g | satfat=6 g | monofat = 41 g | polyfat = 22 g | carbs = 14 g | fiber = 10 g |right=1 |noRDA=1 }}

Pecans are a good source of protein and also unsaturated fats. Studies have shown that a diet rich in nuts can lower the risk of [[gallstones]] in women.<ref>http://www.
ajcn.org/cgi/content/full/80/1/76</ref> The [[Antioxidants]] and [[plant sterols]] found in pecans have been shown to reduce high [[Cholesterol]] by oxidating the (bad) [[low density lipoprotein|LDL cholesterol]] levels.<ref>http://www.llu.edu/news/scope/spr02/newscope2.html </ref>

===Trivia===
*In 1906 Texas Governor [[James Stephen Hogg]] made the Pecan tree the [[List of U.S. state trees|state tree]] of [[Texas]]. The story goes that Hogg had a Pecan Tree planted at his grave instead of a traditional headstone, requesting that the nuts be distributed throughout the state to make Texas a "Land of Trees"<ref>http://www.tpga.org/faqs.html</ref>.

*The scientific name is commonly misspelled "''illinoensis''".

*The pronunciation of pecan is a source of friendly dispute among aficionados. Some people say {{IPA|[ˈpiː.kæn]}} while others say {{IPA|[pə.ˈkɑn]}}. (See [[International Phonetic Alphabet]].) The word pecan itself is noted as having an origin from the Native American [[Algonquin|Algonquin tribe]], meaning a nut requiring a stone to crack<ref>http://www.greenvalleypecan.com/history.asp</ref>.

*In and around the greater New Orleans area and the outlying parishes, the phrase "gone pecan" (pronounced in the local dialect as "gawn pe-cawn") is used to refer to a person who behaves in a crazy or illogical way. It is typically used in a positive or friendly fashion among companions. At one time, the phrase was used in a derogatory fashion to label the mentally ill or irresponsible.

==External links==
*[http://www.efloras.org/florataxon.aspx?flora_id=1&taxon_id=210000185 Flora of North America: ''Carya illinoinensis'']
*[http://www.cas.vanderbilt.edu/bioimages/species/frame/cail2.htm ''Carya illinoinensis'' images at bioimages.vanderbilt.edu]
*[http://www.uga.edu/nchfp/publications/nchfp/factsheets/preservingpecans.html National Center for Home Food Preservation — Home Preservation of Pecans]
*[http://www.na.fs.fed.us/Spfo/pubs/silvics_manual/volume_2/carya/illinoesis.htm USDA Forest Service: ''Carya illinoensis'']

==References==
<references />

[[Category:Crops originating from the Americas]]
[[Category:Fagales]]
[[Category:Edible nuts and seeds]]

Pecan - Revision history

Raffi at 04:20, 26 June 2009

Kpdhage at 12:47, 25 June 2009

Raffi at 07:05, 27 March 2007