VALUE AND USE
SPECIES: Carya ovata | Shagbark Hickory 



WOOD PRODUCTS VALUE : 
The wood of shagbark hickory is tough, heavy, hard, and resilient
[23,54].  It is well suited to uses which require a wood capable of
resisting impact and stress [23].  The close-grained heartwood is
reddish brown and the sapwood nearly white [29,57].  Wood was formerly
used to make wheels and spokes for wagons, carriages, carts, and early
automobiles [29].  Shagbark hickory wood is currently used to make
furniture, flooring, tool handles, dowels, ladders, and sporting goods
[29,43].

Shagbark hickory is an excellent fuelwood.  It has high heat value and
burns evenly with a long-lasting steady heat.  The wood imparts a
hickory-smoked flavor to foods and is often used to make charcoal [23].


IMPORTANCE TO LIVESTOCK AND WILDLIFE : 
Browse:  Shagbark hickory is seldom browsed by deer unless preferred
foods are limited or unavailable [23].  It is browsed by livestock only
when other food is scarce.

Nuts:  Shagbark hickory nuts are readily eaten by a wide variety of
birds and mammals.  The black bear, red fox, gray fox, white-footed
mouse, eastern chipmunk, and rabbits eagerly feed on the nuts [23].
They are a preferred food of the fox squirrel during August, September,
October, February, and March [52], and in some areas, hickory nuts
comprise 5 to 10 percent of the eastern chipmunk's diet [23].  Black
bears consume large quantities of hickory nuts during the fall in parts
of New England.  The abundance of mast crops such as acorns and hickory
nuts can affect black bear reproductive success during the following
year [18].

Many birds, including the mallard, wood duck, northern bobwhite, and
wild turkey, feed on shagbark hickory nuts [23].  The ring-necked
pheasant, common crow, bluejay, white-breasted nuthatch, red-bellied
woodpecker, and yellow-bellied sapsucker also consume hickory nuts [41].


PALATABILITY : 
Shagbark nuts are highly palatable to many birds and mammals.  Hickory
nuts are rated as having fair value for upland game birds and songbirds
and good value for fur and game mammals [13].  Hickory browse appears to
be low of low palatability to most big game species and to all classes
of domestic livestock [23].


NUTRITIONAL VALUE : 
Browse:  The nutrient content of shagbark hickory browse varies
seasonally.  Loomis [39] reported an average fall ash content of 8.1
percent and a spring ash content of 9.6 percent.

Nuts:  Shagbark hickory nuts are high in protein, fats, and
carbohydrates [58].  Caloric content is as follows [52]:

      plant             cal./g dry wt.    cal./nut
 
      kernel            6,570             6,700
      shell             4,240             8,600
      husk              4,150            16,100


COVER VALUE : 
Shagbark hickory presumably provides cover for a variety of birds and
mammals and are probably used as den trees by squirrels [11].


VALUE FOR REHABILITATION OF DISTURBED SITES : 
Shagbark hickory may have potential for use on many types of disturbed
sites.  It naturally recolonizes strip mines in Maryland and West
Virginia [25], and lead pit mines with high levels of lead and zinc in
the soil [6].  Strains obtained from floodplain habitats are
particularly well adapted to streambank plantings [14].

Shagbark hickory can be readily propagated from seed.  Cleaned seed
averages 100 per pound (221/kg) [57].  Seed may be planted during the
fall, or stratified and planted in the spring [7].  Mulching generally
improves the results of fall plantings.


OTHER USES AND VALUES : 
Shagbark hickory nuts are sweet and edible [54].  They were once a
staple food of some Native American peoples [34] and today are the
important hickory nut of commerce [57].  Shagbark hickory was first
cultivated in 1911 [7], and many cultivars are now available [57].  At
least one ornamental cultivar has been developed, but it has not been
widely planted.  Shagbark hickory is an important shade tree in some
residential areas and is well suited for planting as a specimen tree in
landscaping [23].


MANAGEMENT CONSIDERATIONS : 
Insects/diseases:  Shagbark hickory is susceptible to numerous insects
and diseases [23].  Damage can be serious, particularly during drought
years.

Mechanical treatment:  Hickories (Carya spp.) commonly produce epicormic
branches or water sprouts after pruning [12].

Wildlife considerations:  In New England, black bears are most likely to
damage crops in poor mast (acorn and hickory nut) years [18].

Silviculture:  Shagbark hickory is long-lived and slow-growing.
Consequently, it does not respond well to even-aged management systems
if rotations are less than 100 years.  It does respond well to release
and is reportedly favored by management for long rotations (200 years or
more) [23].

Following timber harvest, most hickory stems develop from advance
regeneration.  Some advance regeneration may be damaged during logging
operations, but plants typically sprout and many quickly overtop older
residual stems [49].  New sprouts are characterized by a straight bole
and rapid growth and are considered the most desirable hickory
regeneration in new stands.  Derivation of hickory regeneration
following various types of timber harvest was documented as follows in
an Indiana oak-hickory stand [49]:

                        clearcut         shelterwood       med. partial
                              (percent of total reproduction)

new seedlings            2                 2                 2
adv. regeneration       30                77                73
new sprouts             56                21                24
stump sprouts           12                 0                 1

Related categories for Species: Carya ovata | Shagbark Hickory