Carya myristiciformis

(F. Michxaux) Elliott

Gen. N. Amer. Pl. 2: 222. 1818.

Common names: Nutmeg hickory nogal
Basionym: Juglans myristiciformis F. Michaux Hist. Arbr. Forest., 1(2): 211, plate 10. 1810
Synonyms: Hicoria myristiciformis (F. Michaux) Britton
Treatment appears in FNA Volume 3.

Trees, to 35 m. Bark gray to brownish, fissured or exfoliating, separating freely into long strips or broad plates. Twigs brown to bronze, slender, without hairs, densely scaly. Terminal buds bronze, ovoid, 4-6 mm, essentially without hairs, densely scaly; bud-scales valvate; axillary buds protected by bracteoles fused into hood. Leaves 3-6 dm; petiole 3-10 cm, densely scaly. Leaflets (5-) 7-9, lateral petiolules 0-2 mm, terminal petiolules 2-3 mm; blades ovate or obovate to elliptic, not falcate, 3-17 × 1-8 cm, margins finely to coarsely serrate, without tufts of hairs, apex acuminate; surfaces abaxially with unicellular and 2-4-rayed fasciculate hairs along midrib in spring, densely scaly with coating of large peltate scales and small irregular, round, and 4-lobed peltate scales, imparting bronze color, adaxially pubescent along midrib and major veins in spring, with scattered peltate scales. Staminate catkins pedunculate, to 6 cm, stalks and bracts scaly; anthers hirsute. Fruits light tan to bronze, obovoid to ellipsoid, not compressed, 2-3 × 1.5-2 cm; husks rough, 2 mm thick, dehiscing to base, sutures winged; nuts reddish-brown mottled with tan patches, ellipsoid, not compressed, not angled, smooth; shells thick. Seeds sweet. 2n = 32.


Phenology: Flowering spring.
Habitat: River bottomlands, edges of streams, bluffs, and hillsides, often on calcareous prairie soils and marl ridges
Elevation: 0-500 m

Distribution

V3 892-distribution-map.gif

Ala., Ark., La., Miss., N.C., Okla., S.C., Tex., Mexico (Nuevo León)

Discussion

Carya myristiciformis is the rarest species in the genus. It is patchily distributed from the mountains of northeastern Mexico to the coastal plain of North Carolina.

Selected References

None.

Lower Taxa

None.

"dm" is not declared as a valid unit of measurement for this property."broad" is not a number.

... more about "Carya myristiciformis"
acuminate +
Donald E. Stone +
(F. Michxaux) Elliott +
gray;brownish +
exfoliating +  and fissured +
Juglans myristiciformis +
3 cm30 mm <br />0.03 m <br /> (17 cm170 mm <br />0.17 m <br />) +
not falcate;obovate;elliptic +
1 cm10 mm <br />0.01 m <br /> (8 cm80 mm <br />0.08 m <br />) +
imbricate +  and valvate +
pubescent +  and glabrous +
4-lobed +  and 2-6-lobed +
pedunculate +  and staminate +
elongate +
0 cm0 mm <br />0 m <br /> (6 cm60 mm <br />0.06 m <br />) +
Nutmeg hickory +  and nogal +
1 cm10 mm <br />0.01 m <br /> (14 cm140 mm <br />0.14 m <br />) +
Ala. +, Ark. +, La. +, Miss. +, N.C. +, Okla. +, S.C. +, Tex. +  and Mexico (Nuevo León) +
0-500 m +
light tan;bronze +
2 cm20 mm <br />0.02 m <br /> (3 cm30 mm <br />0.03 m <br />) +
not compressed +, obovoid +  and ellipsoid +
1.5 cm15 mm <br />0.015 m <br /> (2 cm20 mm <br />0.02 m <br />) +
not compressed +  and compressed +
River bottomlands, edges of streams, bluffs, and hillsides, often on calcareous prairie soils and marl ridges +
unicellular +
2 cm20 mm <br />0.02 m <br /> (?) +
indehiscent +  and dehiscent +
hard +  and fibrous-fleshy +
0 cm0 mm <br />0 m <br /> (0.2 cm2 mm <br />0.002 m <br />) +
3-lobed +  and shield--shaped +
odd-pinnate +
aromatic +
bronze color +
reddish-brown mottled +
verrucose +, rugulose +  and smooth +
not angled +, not compressed +  and ellipsoid +
large +
2-carpellate +
glabrous;scaly;pubescent +
3 cm30 mm <br />0.03 m <br /> (10 cm100 mm <br />0.1 m <br />) +
Flowering spring. +
homogeneous +
Gen. N. Amer. Pl. +
4-lobed +  and round +
Hicoria myristiciformis +
Carya myristiciformis +
species +
0.4 cm4 mm <br />0.004 m <br /> (0.6 cm6 mm <br />0.006 m <br />) +
0.2 cm2 mm <br />0.002 m <br /> (0.3 cm3 mm <br />0.003 m <br />) +
brown +  and bronze +
glabrous +, scaly +  and pubescent +
slender +
bronze color +