Scholl shellbark hickory |
Hickory buds go through all the same growth stages as pecan buds. The photo at left shows a Yates shagbark hickory in the bud elongation stage. Note that the true hickories have numerous bud scales that overlap each other in a spiral fashion around the emerging shoot. Pecans buds develop a single inner scale around their new shoots.
The hybrid of pecan and hickory, also known as a hican, breaks bud more like a hickory than a pecan (photo at right). Hicans produce some overlapping bud scales but these scales do not expand to the large size or create a flower petal type appearance that we see with the true hickories.