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November 3, 2000

Royalty Pecan Farm

purveyors of nature's premium nut!

By Lana Robinson
Field Editor

Hundreds of years ago, the majestic Brazos River freely flowed through the heart of the land now known as Texas, depositing layer upon layer of rich, alluvial soils in the surrounding bottomlands. Years of flooding resulted in a rich foundation that farmers today cherish for its productivity. Early history suggests that native Indians prized the tasty nut of the "royal" trees that lined the banks of the great river as a foodstuff. The ancient peoples, as well as early settlers, revered the pecan as "nature's premium nut."

For the last quarter century, activities at Royalty Pecan Farm have been directed toward building on the bounty nature has provided. Located on 500 acres of prime Brazos River bottomland between Bryan and Caldwell, the orchard was planted by owner Mike Adams of Henderson in the mid 1970s. Today, some 15,000 trees thrive in the farm's fertile soils. Dominant varieties are Choctaw, Cheyenne, Kiowa, Desirable, GraCross, and Cape Fear—nature's gifts enhanced by modern science. The folks at Royalty Pecans also do their part, providing the latest in production management, a modern processing plant, and careful quality control. The result—some of the finest pecans grown anywhere.

Andy Sherrod has managed the orchard since 1986. A native of Midland, Sherrod attended Texas A&M, and then worked in the fruit industry near San Saba before coming to Royalty Pecan Farm. He enjoys his work here and it shows. Right now, Sherrod and his crew are in the middle of the pecan harvest, which began in October. He is also responsible for the farm store, which opened Oct. 21 this year and will remain open until Christmas.

"Our crop will be 100 percent retail this season," says Sherrod, noting that production here, like the statewide crop, is down. "Production is off, but quality is good. Last year was a very good year. We had heavy production, good quality. Looking back, 1996 was a good year for pecans and 1997 and '98 were bad. We'll have to buy from other producers this year to meet the demand."

Obviously, the drought has had some impact. Typically, annual rainfall for this area is 40 inches.

"We're 10 to 12 inches behind," Sherrod reports. "We are non-irrigated, but we're in this flood plain with ideal soil. It holds moisture. Spring is a good time to get rain. And then in July and August, pecans need water to fill out."

Sherrod says dryland pecan trees should yield 400-500 lbs. per acre and irrigated, about double that.

With the exception of nutcrackers and a few antiques, the Royalty Pecans store devotes its space to pecans. Pecans are available in the shell and in the shell/custom cracked, and in the form of fancy halves and premium pieces. Sherrod says each pecan variety has a distinctive flavor.

"We put them out in the store and let people graze. Then they decide which ones they want to buy. Choctaw and Kiowa are larger. We probably sell a little more of those," he says. "A lot of our customers come from Bryan."

According to Sherrod, the Choctaw is a large nut with meat that doesn't stick to the shell. This allows it to shell out quickly and easily. The kernel is darker than most but the flavor is tremendous.

"Kiowa is very similar to Choctaw in size, shape, and flavor, but the kernel is a little lighter in color. Kiowa halves make a nice gift and are good for topping pastries," he adds.

Pawnee is the earliest variety available and ripens two to three weeks ahead of any of the others—around the middle of September. Pawnee is a large, full-kernel pecan. The Cheyenne kernel is bright and creamy in color and has a truly "nutty" flavor. It isn't quite as large as some of the others, but has the thinnest shell.

Sherrod says the GraCross variety is not as popular as the "Indian" varieties, but suggests that is because the name is not as easily recognized.

"This long, slender pecan produces some of the plumpest kernels of any we have. The meat is not as bright as Cheyenne but not as dark as Choctaw. The shell is of average thickness," he explains. "Our most consistent variety is Desirable. Even in an off year, you get a large nut, light color. If you're looking for a nut that is sweet in flavor, Desirable is the one you want. The only negative is that it has a thicker shell."

Sherrod says to keep pecans at peak flavor, store them in the freezer. Inshell pecans have a little longer shelf life than shelled pecans, he notes. Inshell pecans can be stored in a cool, dry place through the winter but should be put in the freezer by spring.

In mid-October, retail prices for pecans in the shell were over $4 lb. and $7 to $8 lb. shelled, but Sherrod doesn't expect that to hold.

"They won't stay up there. They'll fall back to between $2.85 and $2.95 a pound in the shell and probably drop to $6.50-$7.25 lb. for the shelled," he predicts.

Royalty Pecan Farm also markets their premium pecans over the Worldwide Web (www.royaltypecans.com) in 5 lb. and 10 lb. boxes or burlap bags; 1 lb. and 5 lb. bags of fancy halves; and 1 lb. to 5 lb. bags of premium pieces.

"One pound of inshell pecans will provide about two cups of shelled pecans," Sherrod notes.

Sherrod says over the past two years, Texas A&M University has been sponsoring medical research on the oil in pecans and have found that it is good for the heart, second only to olive oil in terms of health benefits.

"Pecans have gotten a bad rap as being high fat, but they're finding that the pecan oil is the good kind of fat. Dr. Benton Story has done a lot of research on that. Findings of a major study will soon be published in the American Journal of Medicine," he says.

Work on the farm begins in the spring with fertilization and weed control. At bud break, the new leaves are sprayed with foliar fertilizer at regular intervals.

"When I do group tours from A&M, I emphasize the importance of spraying zinc to make good foliage. You have to have thick foliage to make nuts," Sherrod advises.

All summer long the trees are checked for damaging insects and diseases.

"Scab is a disease we have to watch out for. In May, we spray for the pecan nut case borer and for the shuck worm in late August and early September. We have some aphids, but we seldom spray for them," he says. "This year, our biggest problem has been crows. We actually started harvesting early because of them."

The growing season is filled with the never-ending tasks of caring for the tree canopy—thinning and hedging—and maintenance of the orchard floor. Harvest begins in October and lasts until the end of November. Trailers full of pecans are brought to the barn each day to be processed. The plant separates the trash (sticks, shucks, etc.) from the nuts. The nuts are placed in drying bins. Ambient air is forced into each bin. This brings the moisture content of the kernel down to about 4 percent. The pecans then pass through a series of blowers to separate the premium grade nuts from the lower grade nuts.

The Royalty crew custom harvests for three other area pecan producers.

While there has been a whole lot of shaking going on, there haven't been nearly as many nuts fall to the ground this year, and that has been pretty much the case throughout the pecan-producing states, Sherrod points out. The orchardist looks forward to a better crop in 2001.

For more information on pecans, call 800-694-8362 (toll-free) or email: info@royaltypecans.com.