In the Northern states, the Northern James pecan tree will ripen, if this proper cultivar is selected. Native pecans occur in the wild state all along the Mississippi River as far north as Illinois. In fact the early American botanists gave it the name Carya illinoinensis - named after the state where it was first identified, Illinois. Considered by some to be a "Northern Type" pecan, the Northern James pecan trees planted at South Georgia Experiment Station sites have proven well adapted to humid southern climate conditions as well. The nuts are completely matured by September 1st. in South Georgia; the high quality nuts command a high price on the early wholesale market. The James pecan is a northern pecan tree, however, it is prized in the south, because it produces big crops of papershell nuts in September that bring a high price for Thanksgiving nut sales. An orchard of James Pecan trees in the North offers a cooling shade to joggers during the Summer heat, and then a bountiful crop of delicious papershell pecans in September. Pecan trees were first offered for sale in the year 1737 by Prince Nursery located in Flushing, New York, and Presidents George Washington and Thomas Jefferson were both enthusiastic about planting pecan trees in their personal orchards, and Benjamin Franklin of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania was an early pecan grower. In the past the problem with growing pecans successfully in cold climates was finding a cultivar that matured before the first frosts in the Fall, so as to avoid putting the trees into dormancy too early for high quality kernel filling. The Northern pecan cultivar, such as the James pecan trees is extremely cold hardy.
