On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page pecan pie from the article title. United States and northern Mexico in the region of the Mississippi River. Pecan” is from an Algonquin word, variously referring to pecans, walnuts, and hickory nuts. There are many pronunciations, some regional and others not.

There is little agreement in the United States regarding the “correct” pronunciation, even regionally. A pecan, like the fruit of all other members of the hickory genus, is not truly a nut but is technically a drupe, a fruit with a single stone or pit, surrounded by a husk. Pecans are one of the most recently domesticated of the major crops. Although wild pecans were well known among native and colonial Americans as a delicacy, the commercial growth of pecans in the United States did not begin until the 1880s. As of 2014, the United States produced an annual crop of 119. Native pecans in Mexico are adapted from zone 9 to zone 11.

Little or no breeding work has been done with these populations. A few selections from native stands have been made, such as Frutosa and Norteña, which are recommended for cultivation in Mexico. Active breeding and selection is carried out by the USDA Agricultural Research Service with growing locations at Brownwood and College Station, Texas. While selection work has been done since the late 19th century, most acreage of pecans grown today is of older cultivars, such as ‘Stuart’, ‘Schley’, ‘Elliott’, and ‘Desirable’, with known flaws but also with known production potential. Cultivars such as ‘Elliot’ are increasing in popularity due to resistance to pecan scab.

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