Otherwise known as bitternut hickory, it is one of the tallest and most vigorous of the hickory genus, and can reach over 35 metres. Bitternut is usually found in moist mountain valleys, along stream banks and in swamps, but it can also endure dry sites and poor soils. It can be distinguished from other hickories by its bright sulphur-yellow winter buds.
Although closely related to the pecan, the bitternut, as its name suggests, has an inedible nut; not poisonous but so unpleasant to taste that even squirrels avoid them. However, when cooked, the nuts can produce a pleasant milk or tea.
As part of the juglans family, hickories are also related to the walnut, but are taller and more graceful trees. While hickories are almost unknown in Europe, they are characteristic of the vast forests of eastern North America. Here, the bitternut is the most common and widespread of the genus, reaching from Texas and Florida to Maine and Minnesota, and even into southern Ontario and Quebec. Its gorgeous leaves form part of the spectacular Fall display.
Bitternut is often used for lumber and pulpwood. The wood is hard, durable and shock absorbing, and therefore useful for furniture, panelling , ladders and tool handles. Native Americans used bitternut for making bows. Hickory is also used for making floors, being considerably harder than even white oak. Its disadvantage is that the density of the wood makes installing and finishing well, a challenge.
Cambridge Tree Trust will be planting some bitternuts in the new Cambridge dog park on Thornton Road. Because they grow enormous tap roots, they need to be planted when very small.
