Best Pecans Cultivars for Oklahoma, Texas

One of the most common questions I receive throughout the year is, “What pecan cultivar is best for me?” This question is not always the easiest to answer. With more than 1,000 named cultivars, there are plenty from which to choose. Unfortunately, there is no perfect cultivar. A cultivar may work good in one area or one orchard and not do as well in another. Sometimes cultivars in the same area perform differently because of differences in soil, water and/or management.

Another problem in determining which cultivar to plant is the fact that we are at the mercy of the nurseries and what they have to offer. Normally, nurseries will offer what is the most popular at the time because they have to be sure they can sell as many trees as possible.

Determining how willing you are to manage the trees goes a long way in determining which cultivars to plant. If you are willing to do whatever it takes to produce the highest quality pecans and have the resources to achieve this management, including water, then selection of larger nut cultivars are normally good choices. However, if you want to minimize inputs and lessen management requirements, selecting a smaller nut cultivar would be best.