High-Density Pecan Orchards: Benefits, Challenges, and Recommendations
Interest in high-density pecan orchards has grown significantly in recent years, driven by the potential to increase yield per hectare and make better use of available space—potentially resulting in a faster return on investment. However, this system also presents significant management challenges that must be carefully considered from the planning stage. Mario Villanueva is a...
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Growing Pecans Under Waterlogging Conditions
As discussed in my previous article, “The Consequences and Management of Flooding in Pecans,” pecan trees require plenty of water but cannot tolerate waterlogging. Over the past few months, growers in Brazil, Argentina, and Texas have battled with flooding, leading to devastating consequences in some cases due to these weather adversities. Agricultural Engineer Mariano Marcó...
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Consequences and Management of Flooding in Pecan Orchards
It is known that pecan trees have a high water demand, which can reach 1200 to 1600 millimeters annually. However, this amount must be well distributed throughout the season. So, what happens when a significant volume of water impacts a pecan orchard all at once? Pecan trees cannot withstand floods, and although flooding is a...
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High-Density Plantings—A New Look at Pecans in Argentina
When the pecan industry began to develop in Argentina, the most common planting frames were 12 by 12 meters (39 by 39 feet) and 10 by 10 meters (32 by 32 feet), resulting in orchards with 64 to 100 trees per hectare. This spacing was partly because traditional management proposals were imported from other countries...
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How to Optimize Production in a Small Orchard
When industry members speak about pecans in Argentina, it’s impossible not to mention Alejandro Lavista Llanos, who is one of the people that began to write pecan’s history in the country. Alejandro Lavista Llanos has been an agronomist for 54 years and accumulated more than 36 years of experience in pecan production through his own...
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Argentina launches domestic and international pecan marketing campaign
South American pecans are making their way into the markets. Although production volumes are still small compared to those of the big players in the Northern Hemisphere, the marketing and communication efforts of countries such as Argentina and Brazil are gaining strength not only to position themselves in international markets but also to increase pecan...
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Uruguay, South America’s small but rising producer
In previous issues, we have analyzed the evolution of pecan production throughout South America and several countries’ efforts to develop markets and position themselves as pecan suppliers to global consumers. Today, it’s Uruguay’s turn. The second smallest country in South America, Uruguay borders Brazil, Argentina, and the Atlantic Ocean. Its location near the Argentine Mesopotamia...
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The Peruvian pecan sector looks to access China to boost its growth
Peru is well-known for being an important producer and exporter of agricultural products such as blueberries, avocados, asparagus, grapes, and citrus, but it is not common to hear about Peru being a pecan producer. Pecan is not only grown in Peru, but it is also a historical crop whose origin goes back to the late...
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Brazil aims to be among the top pecan producers in the next 20 years
Although native to the United States, the pecan continues to gain popularity in different countries around the world, especially in South America, where agro-ecological conditions result in a natural environment for growing this nut. As we have already seen in Argentina, an incipient but promising pecan industry is developing with great potential in this region....
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Argentina’s pecan industry, a thriving and growing sector
Pecan cultivation in Argentina goes back to the 19th century when Domingo Faustino Sarmiento, an Argentine politician, writer, teacher, journalist, military, and statesman, brought the first seeds to the country when he returned from his trip to the United States, where he was ambassador. However, it was not until the end of the 20th century...
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