Water hickory
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Carya aquatica
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Juglandaceae
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Landscape Uses:
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Canopy tree along canal banks and swales. |
Ecological Restoration Notes: |
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Availability: |
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Grown by one or two native plant nurseries in South Florida. |
Description: |
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Medium to large tree with an erect trunk and a narrow, rounded crown. Trunks to 2 feet in diameter, but usually much smaller in South Florida. Bark loose, brown, separating into plate-like scales. Leaves deciduous, compound, about 9-15 inches long, thin, dark green. |
Height: |
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Typically 25-50 feet in height in South Florida; to 150 feet in Florida. Taller than broad. |
Growth Rate: |
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Moderate. |
Range: |
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Southern and central United States west to Texas and south to Palm Beach, Hendry and Lee counties. For a digitized image of Elbert Little's Florida range map, visit the Exploring Florida website. |
Habitats: |
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Floodplain forests. |
Soils: |
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Wet to moist, seasonally inundated organic soils. |
Nutritional Requirements: |
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Moderate to high; grows best with some organic content and may languish in nutrient poor soils. |
Salt Water Tolerance: |
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Low; does not tolerate flooding by salt or brackish water. |
Salt Wind Tolerance: |
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Low; salt wind may burn the leaves. |
Drought Tolerance: |
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Low; requires moist to wet soils and is intolerant of long periods of drought. |
Light Requirements: |
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Light shade to full sun. |
Flower Color: |
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Greenish. |
Flower Characteristics: |
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Male flowers in semi-showy hanging catkins. |
Flowering Season: |
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Spring. |
Fruit: |
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Nut. |
Wildlife and Ecology: |
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Provides significant food and cover for wildlife. |
Horticultural Notes: |
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Can be grown from stratified seed, sown in spring. |
Comments: |
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