Archive for the ‘Pecan Orchard Activity’ Category

Last week we got a couple of showers in the pecan orchard.  Over an inch on one day and then about a half inch the next day.  Pecans are continuing to size up nicely.  As always there are always a few limbs that break so limb picking up is a continuous process.  Crows and squirrels seem to be showing up more and more so we will need to get our plan together as to how to take care of those pesky varmits.

There appears to be a good nut set on the trees this season.  However, even with a good nut set water is so critical for pecan trees .  We have been in a drought cycle this spring with only a few showers.  Last week we finally received some substantial rainfall – a total a four inches over a period of two to three days.  Seems like overnight the grass under the trees turned from brown to green.  The tiny nutlets are increasing in size daily.  With the temperatures in the upper 90′s and low 100′s we will need more rain in the next couple of weeks.  Mark is getting ready to spray for second generation casebearer.  He will also include a fungicide for scab.

We attended the annual Tri-State Pecan Growers meeting in Bossier City mid June.  It was great to catch up with fellow pecan growers and get up to date information on new products for insect and disease control in the pecan orchard.  As always there is still plenty to do at this “NUT FARM”!  That is all for now as it is time to go check on the guys that are picking up limbs.

Little Eva Pecan StoreBy Charla Jones They’ve gone completely nuts in Cloutierville, LA! “We talk nuts, we grow nuts, we crack nuts; we’re just plain nutty.”

~Shared by charlajones at http://www.americanprofile.com/spotlights/article/43539.html

They’ve gone completely nuts in Cloutierville, LA!

“We talk nuts, we grow nuts, we crack nuts; we’re just plain nutty.”

That’s Julie Swanson’s joking way of describing her family’s business Natchitoches Pecans, Inc. in the heart of pecan country along old Highway 1 in central Louisiana.

Swanson, her husband, mother, brother and sister and their spouses own and operate the pecan orchard and retail outlet, Little Eva Pecan Store, in Cloutierville, LA., providing locals and visitors a variety of pecans during the fall season, the peak of pecan harvesting.

“We sell pecan products and items with Louisiana flair,” Swanson says. “We also have a cleaning business where people bring their pecans for us to clean.”

In addition to purchasing pecans, visitors can buy many different pecan products such as pecan flour, candied pecans and pecan oil. Also, on the menu at the Little Eva Pecan Store are a variety items unique to the sound and taste of the L-shaped state. Most all items can be purchased online or through mail-order year round.

“I grew up a farm girl. My family was always in farming, but we didn’t know the first thing about a pecan orchard when we bought part of the plantation. But since we’ve been on this journey, we’ve learned a lot,” Swanson says.

Natchitoches Pecans, Inc. began when Swanson and her family bought a portion of the original Little Eva Plantation when it was put up for sale in 1986. Little Eva was owned by Sterling C. Evans and Gus Wortham in the mid-part of the 20th century.

“Evans and Wortham were friends who would buy distressed properties, bring them back to life and sell them,” Swanson says.

According to Swanson, Evans, after completing research of his property which was originally Hidden Hill Plantation, named the property Little Eva after the character Evangeline in Harriet Beecher Stowe’s novel Uncle Tom’s Cabin. Area folklore states that Stowe visited Hidden Hill Plantation.

“The pecan trees were planted in the 1950s,” Swanson notes. At one time the pecan orchard was one of the largest of its kind at approximately 10,000 acres.

However, the property was put up for sale in the 1970s and eventually broken up for sale again in 1986 when the Swanson’s placed an offer for approximately 450 acres. Swanson said even Elvis Presley was interested in the property in the 1970s, but apparently Evans was not impressed with the king of rock and roll’s plans for the beloved orchard.

“When the Taylor’s owned the property in the 1970s, they tore down the plantation’s original home that had been used as a hospital during the Civil War,” Swanson adds.

Even though their pecan business has been sweet, in 2005, the Swanson’s big warehouse, where they clean and process the pecans, was destroyed by fire; but neither destruction nor tough years have deterred the family from enjoying the nutty fruit of their labor.

“We just keep growing. Our mail-order business continues to grow a little every year,” she says.

“It’s been tough years, but some really good years. It’s funny, but no two years are anyway similar. That’s just the nature of the business.”

Little Eva Pecan store  is located on Highway 1 in the small community of Cloutierville, a once thriving community along the famous Cane River in the plantation area of central Louisiana. During the peak pecan season from October to December, the store is open every day and then on Fridays and Saturdays during the rest of the year.

While visiting Little Eva, make a trip around the historical area of the Cane River to Melrose Plantation, one of the renowned plantation homes. The area is also home to the late American folk artist Clementine Hunter and late American novelist Kate Chopin. Hunter was born on Hidden Hill Plantation.

For more information about Little Eva Pecan Store, visit their website at www.natchitochespecans.com.

By Charla Jones 12/7/2010

Just when we think it could not get any hotter it gets hotter!! Triple digits this week with heat index on up there. Mark is spraying again – fungicide for “scab” and miticide for mites. Aphids are showing up as it is easy to see the “honeydew” on the trees but aphid counts have not been high enough to justify treating them. Mark has been scouting the trees on “Juggs”. Juggs is the huge quarter horse gelding that we call the “gentle giant of the pecan orchard”. It is easy to ride him underneath the trees to inspect the leaves for pests. The nuts are sizing up nicely but with the heat as it has been for the last few days we will be in need of a good rain hopefully within the next 7 to 10 days. I will be posting info about the different pests that we scout for during the growing season so check back often to learn about our “nutty” business!

Last week was spray time again in the pecan orchard. This spray application included fungicide to help control “scab”, and insecticide to help control nut curculio, pecan shuckworm, second generation casebearer, and mites. The two inches of rain earlier of last week was much needed. We could really use two to three inches more within the next few days. The nuts are really beginning to be easier to spot on the pecan trees from the ground as you pass by. The next few weeks should really see the pecans jump in size. Only about 12 weeks left before pecan harvest. Lots to get done before then — this nut farm is a work house!!!! Be checking out you tube as I will be posting video of the pecan sprayer spraying the trees.

The trees are so beautiful once the leaves have all budded out.  There is still limb chipping going on in the orchard.  Female flowers are showing up and Mark is grafting daily.