Water hickory
Carya aquatica
Juglandaceae


Landscape Uses:

Canopy tree along canal banks and swales.

Ecological Restoration Notes:

Availability:
Grown by one or two native plant nurseries in South Florida.
Description:
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:
Typically 25-50 feet in height in South Florida; to 150 feet in Florida. Taller than broad.
Growth Rate:
Moderate.
Range:
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:
Floodplain forests.
Soils:
Wet to moist, seasonally inundated organic soils.
Nutritional Requirements:
Moderate to high; grows best with some organic content and may languish in nutrient poor soils.
Salt Water Tolerance:
Low; does not tolerate flooding by salt or brackish water.
Salt Wind Tolerance:
Low; salt wind may burn the leaves.
Drought Tolerance:
Low; requires moist to wet soils and is intolerant of long periods of drought.
Light Requirements:
Light shade to full sun.
Flower Color:
Greenish.
Flower Characteristics:
Male flowers in semi-showy hanging catkins.
Flowering Season:
Spring.
Fruit:
Nut.
Wildlife and Ecology:
Provides significant food and cover for wildlife.
Horticultural Notes:
Can be grown from stratified seed, sown in spring.
Comments:


Susan Trammell
Shirley Denton
Shirley Denton
Shirley Denton