Bitternut Hickory (Carya cordiformis)

Form

Height 50 to 75 feet, diameter 1 to 2 inches; the crown is open and rounded at the top.

Bark

Granite-gray, faintly tinged with yellow; broken into thin, plate-like scales; not as rough as most hickories; bark does not strip off as that of shagbark hickory. Winter buds are compressed, scurfy and bright yellow, 1/2 inch or more in length.

Leaf

Alternate; compound; length 6 to 10 inches; composed of 7 to 9 leaflets, 4 to 6 inches long and with toothed margins; each leaflet relatively much smaller and more slender than that of other hickories.

Fruit

Nut usually thin shelled, smooth, brittle; length about 1 inch with thin husk that usually splits only partly down side. Nut is broader than long; kernel is very bitter.

Range

Found on well-drained, fertile soils in the southern part of the state extending northward to Langlade, Rusk and Polk counties.

Wood

Hard, strong, heavy, and reddish-brown; used for hoops, fuel and farm implements. Wood is considered somewhat inferior to the shagbark hickory.