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First Aired - 11/07/2010 03:30PM
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This week on We Dig Plants Carmen and Alice get nutty and speak to Duke Lane, president of the Georgia Pecan Commission. Learn about the healthful properties of the pecan (antioxidants!) Learn how a slave named Antoine over a hundred years ago grafted the genetic strain of pecan that is now grown by every industrial operation in the world, and learn why China is becoming a major player in the pecan market. This episode was sponsored by Acme Smoked Fish.
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We Dig Plants Introduction (19:03)
Tags:
a nutty show, the Chestnut show, Duke Lane, Georgia Pecan Commission Chairman, pecans have more anti-oxidants than any other nut, pecan oil is similiar to avacado oil in its good cholsterol content, pecan orchards, pecan trees were planted in Long Island in 1772, NY State is not a listed producer of pecans, wild versus native pecans, seedlings are delicious pecans just smaller with less oil, improved varieties, George Washington planted pecans, the wild pecan harvest was once more popular and profitiable than row crops, Abner Landrum of South Carolina discovered a pecan budding technique in 1822, a slave named Antoine grafted wild pecans to seedlings to create the Centennial, the Centennial is now called the Improved Pecan, pecans are the only tree nuts grown in the US, the US ranks #1 in world pecan production, Georgia produces 1/3 of US pecans, Texas produces the most of any state, the demand for pecans has escalated recently, China's potential production of pecans, Chinese pecans are different from US pecans, the Chinese have begun buying pecans in Georgia, Duke went to Cuba and brought pecans, Cuban people loved pecans, the pecan crop is just getting started,What Makes a Good Pecan? (20:56)
Tags:
crop quality is determined by kernel shell and oil content, you want thin shells with pecans, you weigh pecans in-shell and then weigh the kernel to find the meat percentage, meat percentage determines the oil content and how much you're paid (the yield), a nut's color sometimes shows how much oil the pecan may contain, you usually plant the nuts with the highest oil content and the least amount of spraying to keep insects away, the most popular variety in Georgia is the Desirable, pecan growers are paid on the point of the yield, agrotourism has helped pecans, people are interested in how things are grown now more than they once were, how hard or easy is it to grow pecans?, you're working on a pecan tree almost year round to enhance the 2 months of production, you often have presold your nuts based on what you do harvest, growers often plant more than one variety so you can harvest at more than one time, sprouting is when nuts aren't gathered in a timely fashion and get too ripe, hopefully the harvest is complete by Christmastime, what are the pests associated with pecan trees?, pecans love rain but too much rain can cause scabbing wherein the nut turns black and may even drop off the tree, scabbing can be controlled, equipment can compensate for excess moisture, pruning as part of growing pecans, the more sunlight and are circulation through orchards into lower limbs helps increase the size and quality of the nut, you can't just plant a tree in the ground wish it well and hope it pays your bills, regional growing conditions, what is the future of the industry?,To comment on this episode click here. There are currently Comments
