I had scanty knowledge of what a pecan is. I did not even think about the benefits and harms of its use. Quite by chance, a small note in a local newspaper caught my eye. Interested. Pecan is little known in our country, since the industrial cultivation of this nut tree is practically not common in our country. It mainly grows in the south of our country, but it is cold-resistant enough, therefore it can be grown to the north. Once I saw small bags of pecan kernels on the shelves, but they were brought from the USA, they were very expensive. Compared to walnuts, pecan has a milder flavor and is more oily. I like this.
Nuts have been a part of the human diet for many, many centuries. When the Almighty created our unique planet for the highest substance - Man, He insured this super-intelligent, but weak creature for all occasions. He created man as a complex of all trace elements, substances found on Earth. There are plants that are inseparable from the existence of man, as a reserve echelon during a crisis, in order to support or save him. This is a nut plant, among which pecan comes first.
The calorie, nut variety is exceptionally high! A. I. Vavilov very aptly called them "the bread of the future."Yes, indeed, the kernels of any nuts contain a lot of first-class fat, protein, carbohydrates, almost the entire group of vital vitamins, trace elements, and other substances. It turns out that this is bread with butter, cocoa, fruit at the same time.
But I would call this beautiful creation a great doctor. Almonds, walnuts improve the work of the stomach, reanimate the performance of the brain, heart, liver, kidneys. Almond improves eyesight, which is important for anyone over 40. It also, like the enemy of atherosclerosis, improves brain and lungs( in asthma).
Pecan is a collection of these nuts. He deserves special attention.
Where grows a pecan
Long pecan( carya illinoensis N) comes from the Mississippi Valley( North America).There, they have long paid attention to him as the most valuable culture, harmoniously including everything necessary for the sustenance of the human body, which does not require special expenses for the cultivation and storage of fruits. The industrial cultivation of this crop is significant in the southeastern United States, where pecan pie and praline sweets are traditional sweets.
In Russia, pecans settled at the dawn of the 20th century, starting from the Black Sea coast. It was from that period that the Sochi Pecans Alley( Research Institute of Horticulture) has its history. A little later, his saplings appeared in the Adler Park Arboretum "Southern Cultures".
The height of trees can reach up to 50 m with a crown width of up to 40 m. The trunk of a tree at the base reaches a diameter of 3 m. A hollow of such a tree can cover a rider with a horse during bad weather. Young trees withstand freezing temperatures down to -30 ° C, so it is not surprising that the long-fruited nut began to move rapidly to the north. There are many varieties of pecan at the Adler variety testing site. As the best, are widely distributed varieties Success, Indiana, Stewart, and others. They already grow in groups on the northern slope of the Caucasus Mountains, in the Stavropol Territory, the Rostov Region, Ukraine, and Moldova. But it has no industrial value on the territory of these regions. On the shelves it is not, except that there are bags, brought from other countries.
Unpaved, complex pecan leaves up to 50 cm long. According to its characteristics, it is very close to a walnut, because this plant is also dioecious, monoecious, which is very important for its survival. Male stamen flowers of the earrings hang on two-year shoots, while female pistillate flowers are formed in bunches on shoots of the current year. Usually bloom occurs at the end of spring and the beginning of summer, which is not dangerous in the spring frosts in the North Caucasus.
Pecan fruits from Sochi Mature in September-October, showered like walnuts. Precipitated fruits are considered ripe. The fruit is a drupe weighing 12–20 g. Because of the grade, the shape of the nut varies from elongated spherical to elongated oval, 3-6 cm long, 1-2 cm in diameter. The pecan kernel is golden brown outside and beige inside. The shell is smooth, clean, free from the convolutions, cracks, holes, mold. Unpeeled nuts must be heavy for their size. The core is shaped like a walnut kernel, but the convolutions seem to be smoother, there are no partitions, i.e.the nucleolus is easily removed as a whole from the shell. If untreated pecans roar when you shake them, it may mean that inside it is dry, unsuitable for food.
Pecan nut hard to split. Its shell does not have a single crack, a single hole( like, for example, a walnut).This is a plus at the same time - pests, various bugs cannot penetrate inside, and this is also a minus - it is difficult to split, remove the core because of the dense shell.
Sometimes I met questions about why pecans are sold cracked. I have not seen any answers yet. But I think I can answer it.
The reason - a dense shell. Manufacturers make our life easier for you, anticipating our difficulties, our discontent, when you have to wield a hammer, breaking the shell. My nut doesn't split it. Or maybe I simply do not have enough strength. .. In addition, I have experienced myself - it is difficult to calculate even the force of a blow with a hammer - you hit a little harder - you get a “mess” out of a nut or it flies to the farthest corner, a little weaker - it lies intact. And so, thanks to the crack on the shell - everything turns out fine. But I would like to warn: be sure to read the information about the date of packaging, the date of expiration date. A cracked pecan nut is not stored for a long time, it goes rancid, becomes tasteless, even dangerous to health.
Pecan kernels not only taste good, but they are useful, especially when it comes to lowering cholesterol. They not only help lower cholesterol, but also clean the arteries.
The results of a 2001 study conducted by Loma Linda University( USA) showed that eating only a handful of nuts every day can prevent undesirable blood lipid oxidation, thereby helping to prevent coronary heart disease.
Pecan Walnut - Useful Properties of
Pecan nuts contain more than 19 vitamins and minerals - vitamin A, vitamin E, folic acid, calcium, magnesium, phosphorus, potassium, zinc. One hundred grams of kernels provide 30% of the recommended daily intake of fiber. Pecan is also a natural source of high-quality protein, which contains very few carbohydrates, does not contain cholesterol, sodium. Among the nuts - this is the fattest - more than 70% fat. It satisfies well the hunger, ideal as a snack for children or adults.
Very high merits of this nut. The pecan kernel, besides the highest quality fat, contains up to 10% of pure protein, up to 15% of carbohydrates, contains the entire chain of vitamins, trace elements, amino acids.
Pecan kernel oil - peanut butter - is much better than olive oil. Ripe fruits, having a very thin shell, do not lose their qualities when they are shed, they are very transportable, they can be stored for a long time, without spoiling at all, without fear of pests. But peeled is not stored for a long time. Due to their high fat content, they become rancid and tasteless.
There is nothing better during fasting instead of meat or animal fats to use these most valuable pecan nuts for the body. Within two or three weeks you will feel lightness, strength of the body, your eyes will be more vigorous, your heart will work harder, itching, insomnia will disappear. This your body gets rid of the vicious slags accumulated by an illiterate, ruthless attitude towards yourself.
Tree Fruiting Annual. When propagated by seeds, the pecan tree begins to bear fruit from 9-14 years. Harvest young trees - from 1 to 5 kg. The average yield of a ten to fifteen-year-old tree is from 8 to 15 kg( data for the United States).Back in the seventies of the last century, pecan production there reached 150 thousand tons per year. The life cycle of a tree is 300 years. Old trees yield up to 250 kg of nuts.
Pecan cultivation technology is completely analogous to walnut. It is a wind-pollinated, light-loving plant that grows on soils of various types: typically forested, rich in humus, heavy, stony, and clay. But, like most plants, does not tolerate marshiness.
Pecan is propagated vegetatively or by seed( seed germination up to 100%).The incidence of plants is not seen, there are no pests, even the fruits, in comparison with the walnut, are not damaged by the pest.
Now pecans are very widespread, not only in the US, Europe. This medical and diet product should be consumed by everyone. You can live long, not painfully, optimistically rejoicing around the world.
Nature Creator is generous, rich, in her infinitely many unique, beautiful. One of these noble creatures is pecan.
When I learned in more detail what a pecan is, that its benefits are enormous, and the harm is minimal, I wanted to grow it in my country house. And now I have one pecan sapling. He is still very small. He is three years old. It grows very slowly. It is too early to share cultivation experiences, but I will tell you about it.
Yes, another small addition: where, at what price, from whom you can buy pecans - read the comments.
Article edited 03.28.2016.
Useful:
- Walnut - cultivation, breeding methods
