Pecans
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C 1174
Pecan Management
This circular is a calendar-based management reference for pecan production in the Southeastern U.S. It provides an easy-to-use graphical guide for management decisions regarding crop phenology, irrigation and fertilization requirements, disease, and insect and mite arthropod pest management. It also includes information on production activities including timing for planting, harvesting, and nutrient sampling. Information on bearing and non-bearing trees are provided to address the different management requirements for these orchards. Temporally precise management decisions on horticultural activities, disease suppression, and insect pest control will maximize efficiency, improve tree health, optimize crop quality and yield, and promote ecological and economic sustainability.
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Although many problems regarding pecan production result from pest or disease pressure, the crop may also be adversely affected by nutritional imbalances, nutrient deficiencies, or environmentally induced disorders. These are some of the more difficult problems to diagnose. Some nutrients may be more available than others on certain soil types and under certain soil conditions. Additionally, complex interactions often occur between nutrients, which influence uptake by the pecan tree. Pecans can also be quite sensitive to environmental conditions, which stress the tree, limiting its growth and productivity.
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Georgia pecan orchards are often found growing adjacent to fields of annual row crops, timber, and pastures. As a result, the tree canopies of these orchards are susceptible to injury from herbicide drift from the adjacent operations when herbicide applications are made under conditions unsuitable for spraying. Drift may also occur when cotton fields are sprayed with chemical defoliants in the fall. Pecan tree roots often extend into an adjacent row crop fields and can compete with the row crop for available soil, water, and nutrients. Under such conditions, trees may also absorb residual herbicides from the soil in these fields.
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The most fundamental step in pecan production is the selection of varieties or cultivars to be planted in the orchard. Planting the wrong pecan variety can be a costly mistake, resulting in considerable expense. This publication includes descriptions and photos of pecan varieties suitable for planting in Georgia orchards.
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Research conducted on drip-irrigated pecans in Georgia over the past several years has shown that drip irrigation is highly beneficial even in wet years. The objective of drip irrigation is to supply each plant with sufficient soil moisture to meet transpiration demands. Drip irrigation offers unique agronomic, agrotechnical and economic advantages for the efficient use of water.
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