Taking on more natives

摘要

One thing's certain in the pecan business. When pecan prices spike, more people get interested in its managing native pecan trees. Drive through any native pecan area and you can find stands of trees that look to have potential for profitable pecan production. But looks can be deceiving. Some of these native stands were abandoned for good reasons while others offer a sound economic opportunity. I've walked thousands of acres of native pecans over the years and during that time I've collected hundreds of stories of success and failure. I'd like to a few share with you. Grove 1. Outside of Brunswick (MO), I was invited to visit a native pecan grove managed by a retired businessman with little agricultural experience. Like many new and inexperienced land owners, he was sure that if he read enough about pecans he could manage the grove to profitability. He was very excited to show me the dikes he had built and irrigation pump he planned to use to flood irrigate his native trees. Heck, if trees in NewMexico could bear 3000 pounds/acre with flood irrigation why couldn't he use flood irrigation to boost yields in Missouri. I proceeded to tell him about the basics of native pecan management — tree thinning, fertilization and surface drainage. My wordsfell on deaf ears.