About ten years ago, we planted two grafted pecan trees on our Missouri farm.
This is the story of this initial pecan tree planting, why we chose them, and what ten years of growth looks like for us.
The Starting Point
We started with a copy of the University of Missouri Center for Agroforestry publication “Growing Pecans in Missouri”. If you’re thinking about pecans in the Heartland, that guide should be your starting point too. It tells you what works at our latitude.
We went with Lakota and Pawnee, both as grafted trees from Forrest Keeling Nursery. These were chosen based on descriptions in the UMCA guide.
Lakota is protogynous – the flower becomes receptive before pollen shedding. Lakota is listed as resistant to pecan scab, so it may or may not require fungicidal treatment in the future.
Pawnee is protandrous – the flower becomes receptive after pollen shedding. Pawnee is susceptible to pecan scab, so it will require fungicidal treatment during the growing season in the future.
We chose one of each flowering type to increase chances of pollination.
We planted these as an experiment, and haven’t seen any nut production yet. Both cultivars are recommended for adaptation zones 3, 4, and 5, at least in this current publication version. Our location is right on the border between zone 1 and 2, so we probably should have chosen a cultivar that is a little better suited to our zone. More on this choice in future articles.
At the time of purchase, we just went with grafted trees because of known quality from Forrest Keeling, and the simplicity of planting without waiting to graft ourselves. Also, at the time, we had no idea how to graft.
That said, our long-term strategy includes seedlings as rootstock for future grafting. We’ll get to that.
The Black Walnut Lesson (and Other Early Mistakes)
In following years, we planted one more each of Lakota and Pawnee, but those two did not survive, even though they were spaced on a 40’ grid from the original two trees, so the soil type was not a factor.
What do I believe the cause was? The second two trees were in closer proximity to two black walnut trees that produce quite a few nuts that covered the ground. I’m not certain that the juglone produced by these two black walnuts adversely affected our young pecans, but it is strange that only the two that were closer to the walnuts did not survive, and the two further away are still growing years later.
Just recently, I cut the two wild black walnuts and plan on preparing the sites for another two pecan trees. We’ll see how that goes.
The soil there is good—deep and well-drained. Not bottom ground where water sits, but not rocky hilltop either. Pecans are known as flood-tolerant, we don’t really have those conditions where we are located. Pecans do need water for the nuts to fill out during the growth season.
We spaced them 40 feet by 40 feet. That seems to be working well as far as growth and light. They have room to grow for another decade before we’d even think about crowding. That spacing also gives us flexibility—we can interplant shorter-term crops or other species between the pecans while they’re young, which may be more of an option now that the black walnut trees are removed.
Ten Years of Growth
The growth has been steady but not spectacular, which is what you want. These trees are building strong frameworks. Nut production is concerning, as the UMCA guide states that nut production should begin 4-6 years after grafting. We are planning on planting different cultivars going forward.
The Long-Term Strategy: Grafted, Seedlings, and Future Cultivars
Two trees don’t make an orchard. They’re a proof of concept, a learning opportunity, and the foundation for something bigger.
The plan going forward involves both more grafted trees and seedling rootstock that we’ll graft ourselves. Here’s the economic logic: a grafted tree costs $40 now. A seedling might cost $1-5 and $4-6 for scionwood. If you can successfully graft a known cultivar onto that seedling rootstock, you’ve saved $25-35 per tree. Multiply that across 20 or 30 trees, and the math gets compelling.
Of course, grafting pecans isn’t trivial. It takes skill, timing, and a willingness to fail on some percentage of attempts. But it’s a learnable skill, and the rootstock time isn’t wasted even if the graft fails—you can try again the next spring.
For cultivars, we’re looking beyond Lakota and Pawnee. Kanza is high on the list—it’s another northern-adapted variety with excellent nut quality and good scab resistance. Major is known for very large, attractive nuts and consistent bearing. Shepard rounds out the group with good cold hardiness and mid-season ripening.
Why multiple cultivars? First, pollination—pecans are wind-pollinated, and having multiple varieties with overlapping pollen shed and receptivity windows improves nut set. Second, risk management—different cultivars have different strengths and vulnerabilities to weather, disease, and pests. There may be a few other cultivars we try, but they all should be adapted to growing zones 1 or 2. Our area just gets those extremely cold spells in the winter more often than just a few counties south of us. And also later frosts in the spring.
The twenty-year vision is probably 15-20 pecan trees in the orchard block, representing 4-5 cultivars, with spacing that allows tractor access and room for each tree to develop a full canopy.
Pecans in the Whole-Farm System
Pecans don’t exist in isolation on our farm. They’re part of a broader agroforestry system that includes chestnuts, black walnuts, hazelnuts, elderberries, persimmons, and pine trees. Each species brings something different to the table.
Chestnuts are our other big nut crop focus. Ours have produced much earlier than pecans—we’re already getting chestnuts from 6-year-old trees.
Black walnuts are already on the property. We’re managing them in separate areas for timber and nuts, but we are now monitoring the spacing between the black walnuts and other desired crop trees. The lesson there is about understanding how different species interact, sometimes antagonistically.
Hazelnuts are producing now and provide an early-season nut crop in August-September. They’re small trees, so they fit into different spaces and don’t compete with the pecans for light.
Elderberries and persimmons add fruit diversity and fill niches the nut trees can’t. Elderberries produce very quickly after establishment, but are a challenge for us to harvest given all the wildlife and timing of harvesting. Persimmons are another patient crop, but they tolerate shadier conditions and can nestle into edges where pecans wouldn’t thrive.
Pines are our method for production of mulch – pine straw mulch. The pines are doing well, and after their first summer, are better prepared for handling summer drought. Now the challenge is keeping deer away from the attractive sized trees for rubbing in the fall and winter.
The beauty of this system is the timelines and complementary harvests. Something is producing every year, even while the long-term crops like pecans are maturing. The risk is hopefully spread across species, markets, and timelines.
Managing multiple species does require more knowledge and more attention than a monoculture. You’re tracking different pruning schedules, different pest pressures, different harvest techniques. We’re tackling each of these as we can.
The Numbers: Costs, Time, and Patience
Initial investment in 2015: roughly $50 for two grafted trees. Add another $50 for the two that died. Call it $100 in tree costs, plus maybe $20 in amendments, t-posts, and fence. Total: ~ $120.
Today, those same four trees would cost around $160 for grafted stock, plus supplies. Call it $200 all-in to start.
Time investment is harder to quantify. Planting took about an hour. First-year care—watering during drought, checking trees, mowing around them—maybe 2-3 hours total. By year three, the trees were mostly self-sufficient beyond annual mowing and occasional pruning. Over ten years, I’d estimate we’ve put in maybe 3 hours of direct labor on these two trees. That’s not a whole lot.
Opportunity cost is the big question. That orchard space could have been growing something else for the past decade. In pure financial terms, we’ve had zero return so far. However, this is part of the lessons learned.
Pecans are a perennial crop that, once established, can produce for many years. No replanting (maybe there is in our case), no tillage, just some fertilizer and spray needs. The break-even timeline might be 15-20 years from planting, but after that, it’s decades of pecans to enjoy, or sell, or both.
Also, this orchard space was never going to be our highest-value ground. It’s not convenient for intensive vegetable production, and it’s not our best hay ground. Pecans are using land that fits their needs without displacing higher-return enterprises.
When might we see first production? Realistically, maybe a few pounds in year 11 or 12. Commercial production—say, 20-50 pounds per tree—probably year 15-20. Full production, 75-100+ pounds per tree, maybe year 25-30. At current retail prices of $10-15/pound for local, quality pecans, a mature tree could generate $750-1,500 annually. Two trees, $1,500-3,000/year.
Or, production may depend on getting different cultivars growing in proximity so that pollination improves.
Would We Do It Again?
Ten years in, no harvest yet, but, yes, I’d plant those pecans again. Because of the valuable lessons learned, as long as we learn them and don’t keep making the same mistakes.
Here’s what I’d tell someone starting today: Do your homework on cultivars. The UMCA guide is worth its weight in… pecans. Choose varieties proven for your zone or region. Don’t cheap out on planting site—these trees will be here longer than you will. Plant away from black walnuts. Space generously. Protect young trees from deer and rabbits. Water the first two summers. Then step back and let time work.
Don’t expect big pecan crops for several years. Hope for something around year ten. If it comes earlier, great.
We’re a decade into this experiment, and we’re just getting to the exciting part. I’ll report back when we’re cracking our first home-grown pecans.
Until then, we wait, we watch, and we plant a few more trees.
Have questions about pecans or other agroforestry crops in the Midwest? Want to share your own pecan-growing experiences? We’re all learning together. Drop a comment or reach out—this is a long game, and we might as well help each other along the way.
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