s will get it, but if you put it in
something all winter, it will be there in the spring. I don't see any
reason for planting a nut in the fall, taking a chance of rodents
getting at them. If you plant them in the spring, they come up so much
quicker that the rodents don't have a chance to get at them. They got
nearly all of mine that I planted in the fall.

MR. HARDY: A good many nuts don't have any rest period requirements. I
think it probably is a matter of convenience as to the manner in which
they are handled. I have talked with nurserymen in the South. If they
get the nuts in the fall they may either plant them in the fall or
stratify them over winter and then plant them in the rows in the spring.
If they get them in the spring, they soak them for a day or two days in
water before planting. Perhaps the dry nut is slow in taking up moisture
direct from the soil, and they are primarily interested in getting a
uniform stand of trees so that they handle it in such a manner that all
the nuts will grow at the same time. And I believe many will agree that
a dry nut planted in the spring will show considerable variation as to
the time in which they appear above ground.

MR. O'ROURKE: The suggestion of soaking them in water a few days is well
taken, because a great many have recommended it. Most folks recommend
changing the water daily. By changing the water you replace the oxygen
which would be in the water, and you also eliminate any toxic substances
which may have leached out of the shells during the preceding 24 hours.

DR. MCKAY: I'd like to mention the reason for raising this question. Dr.
Crane has the idea that there is no definite rest period in the pecan
nut; if they are soaked in water they will sprout at any time.

I decided I would test that hypothesis, so I stratified one group of
nuts of about four pounds. Another lot of four pounds I kept in the
laboratory dry all winter long. Then I planted the two lots of nuts this
spring together, side by side, in the cold frame. Today there is not a
single seedling growing out of the dry lot, and there is a perfect stand
in the group that was stratified.

To me that means that there is a definite rest period in the pecan seed.
I don't see how you can get away from it.

MR. O'ROURKE: I am going to stick my neck out a little bit. I have
absolutely no basis to make this statement, but it does give us
something to think about. That is the greater the distance towards t