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| Oswego catkins still hanging on |
Our pecan grove is still covered in a layer of slime courtesy of
last weekend's flood of the Neosho River. Yesterday's rain only added to the mucky mess. However, the sun popped out today and I took the opportunity to check on pecan flowering. At this point, it all of our pistillate flowers have been to be pollinated. The catkins on protandrous cultivars have dropped off long ago. Catkins on protogynous cultivars are still hanging on the tree but have fully released their pollen (photo above).
I like to keep track of catkin fall because it keeps me in tune with the progress of the season. Over the years, I've found that pecan nut casebearer larvae begin their attack on pecan nut clusters about 5 days after the last catkins drop from the latest pollen shedding trees. So, by watching catkin fall I know exactly when to start scouting for casebearer.
