Carya cordiformis

Common Names

Bitternut, Bitternut Hickory, Pignut, Pignut Hickory, Swamp Hickory

Summary

Bitternut Hickory, Carya cordiformis, is a tall native North American tree with a long branch free trunk and an irregular oval rounded crown, featuring alternate pinnately compound leaves of seven to eleven leaflets, bright sulfur yellow buds, and gray to gray brown bark that is smooth when young and develops interlacing ridges with age, autumn foliage turns yellow, and fruits are four winged husked nuts with bitter kernels, with wood that is strong, hard, and heavy, it prefers deep, moist, well drained soils but tolerates a range from bottomlands to uplands and various pH, grows best in full sun to partial shade, and is hardy in USDA zones 4 to 9, propagation is by seed, with transplanting difficult due to a long taproot, and root suckers or coppice shoots may occur, while irregular but sometimes productive seed crops support its use as a tall ornamental shade tree and for timber, charcoal, and fuelwood, with fall nut drop contributing debris to cleanup.

Lifecycle

Perennial

Height

50-80 feet

Spread

30-50 feet

Hardiness Zones

Zones 4-9

Sunlight Requirements

Ideally Full Sun, tolerates Partial Sun, Partial Shade, and Full Shade

Soil Type

Moist, loamy soil

Soil Drainage

Moist but well-drained soil

Soil pH

Tolerates all pH levels

Bloom Color

Insignificant

Bloom Time

Spring (April–May)

Foliage Color

Green, Yellow-green, Yellow

Fall Foliage Color

Yellow

Leaf Lifecycle

Deciduous

Growth Rate

Carya cordiformis is among the fastest-growing hickories; young plants can reach about 2.5 meters in 3 years in open settings.

Seasons of Interest

Spring and Fall

Propagation Methods

Seeds, Layering, Cuttings, Division

Attracts Wildlife

Birds, Butterflies