Hickory is a long-term planting — a young tree typically takes about ten years to bear its first real nuts, and then produces for years. It's hardy across USDA zones 4 through 8. It roots deep, which helps it reach moisture in a dry spell and open up tight soil as it establishes.
Hickory — the short answer
Hickory: grown in zones 4–8, full sun, pH 5–7.5, ~10 yr to first harvest.
- USDA zones
- 4–8
- Manual horticultural correction (source not retained); NC State Extension and Missouri Botanical Garden, with the remaining rows from other published sources or Growable Ground compilation
- Soil pH
- 5–7.5
- FAO ECOCROP
- Sun
- Full Sun
- Growable Ground Plant Database
- To First Harvest
- ~10 yr
- USDA-NRCS
- Frost-kill temperature
- 30.2°F
- FAO ECOCROP
Plant data: Growable Ground Plant Database, compiled from FAO ECOCROP, USDA PLANTS and university Extension sources — each tile names its own row's source, because per-field provenance varies.
Score Hickory on your exact land.
Zone averages can't see the slope, soil, frost, and sun that decide whether hickory actually takes — and those shift from one yard to the next. Enter your address and we'll score hickory against your land's real conditions.
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What Hickory is
Hickory grows as a perennial and reaches around 60 feet at maturity. It blooms green in spring.
How to grow Hickory
Hickory grows in USDA zones 4 through 8 and takes about ten years to begin bearing. Hickory does best in full sun — at least 6 hours of direct sun a day — and soil from pH 5 to 7.5, on well-drained ground. It needs around 2,500 growing degree days to mature, a growing season of at least 140 frost-free days, and about 1000 hours of winter chill to set fruit, which is why climate matters as much as soil.
USDA Zones
4-8
USDA PHZM 2023
Soil pH
5 - 7.5
FAO ECOCROP
Sun
Full Sun
Growable Ground plant catalog
Drainage
well (dry spells)
Growable Ground plant catalog
Frost Kill Temperature
30.2°F
Where cold starts killing growing tissue. Not a winter-survival floor — a dormant perennial takes far colder, which its hardiness zone answers.
FAO ECOCROP
Minimum Growing Temperature
41°F
Below this it stops growing rather than dies — a pace limit, not a survival limit.
FAO ECOCROP
To First Harvest
~10 years
Shagbark hickory; native; seed needs cold strat 90-120d. ~10 yr from seedling; long-term native nut tree.
USDA-NRCS
GDD Required
2500+
Growing degree-days of accumulated warmth it needs to mature — humid summers reach this faster than cool coastal ones.
Growable Ground plant catalog
Mature Height
60 ft
Growable Ground plant catalog
Chill Hours
1000+
Winter hours below ~45°F it needs to fruit — too-mild winters can leave it bloom-shy.
Growable Ground plant catalog
Frost-Free Days
140+
The frost-free stretch it needs start to finish — short-season areas may need an indoor head start.
Growable Ground plant catalog
Plant it right
Set hickory in full sun with well-drained soil. Many fruit trees need a second variety nearby to pollinate — check before you plant just one.
Match the soil
Hickory prefers pH 5 to 7.5 (FAO ECOCROP). A quick soil test from your local Extension lab tells you whether to add lime or sulfur to land in band.
Water steadily
Keep the root zone evenly moist through establishment. A 2–3 inch mulch layer holds moisture without waterlogging.
Be patient, then harvest
Hickory takes about ten years to its first meaningful harvest (USDA-NRCS). Prune annually while it establishes, and the tree will then crop for years.
Where Hickory thrives
Hickory is hardy across USDA zones 4 through 8. Zone is only the starting point, though: the soil pH, drainage, and frost dates on your specific land decide how well it actually does.
A USDA zone is a 10°F band of average annual extreme winter minimum, so zones 4–8 spans average winter lows from -30°F to 20°F (USDA PHZM 2023). Across the 50 states and DC, that band covers 25 outright and splits 26 more down the middle — and which side of that line your land sits on changes the answer.
Zones 4–8·Where Hickory growsOpen map →
Where Hickory stands, state by state
Hickory is rated for zones 4–8 — a cold floor USDA puts at -30 to -20°F. Across the 50 states and DC, 25 sit fully inside that band, the line runs through 26 more, and 0 sit outside it — and inside every split state, the same line runs on at county grain.
Fully inside zones 4–8
25 states
3 of 25 shown
State zone extents: USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map (PHZM) 2023. A zone is a 10°F band of average annual extreme minimum temperature, so a state that splits the band contains the boundary — its own page draws the county line, and a parcel report resolves which side your land sits on.
What grows around Hickory
Growing guides for hickory
In rotation planning, hickory counts as a Other — beds recover best when other crops don’t follow each other in the same spot year over year. (Growable Ground derivation — crop-rotation group from botanical family)
Good to know
Good news for pet owners — hickory isn't known to be toxic to dogs or cats. (Source: ASPCA.)
Hickory isn't classified as a notable pollinator plant in our data — pair it with high-value bloomers nearby to feed bees.
Before you harvest hickory, know your soil
Anything you grow to eat takes up what's in the ground it grows in, so it's worth knowing what's documented near you before you plant hickory for food. Our free screen reads 9 federal source types across roughly 1.8M indexed sites and shows which sit near your address and which way they drain. It's a screening estimate from public records and proximity — not a soil test — so a nearby record means a soil test is worth it, not that your soil is unsafe.
Your land is one point inside Hickory's range
This page resolves to the species. Your state page draws the county line, and a report reads the parcel — the soil pH, drainage, sun, and frost dates on your exact ground, which no species average can see.
See if Hickory will thrive on your land
Zone averages are a start. Your exact soil pH, drainage, sun exposure, and frost dates shape whether hickory actually takes — we score it against the real conditions at your address.
Three things about your exact spot that zone averages miss:
We read public map data for this spot — soil, climate, flood, and parcel records. How we handle your address.
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How we know this about Hickory
The figures above are cited per row, not per site: the pH band names this plant’s own source column, the three temperature figures each carry their own, and days-to-maturity cites the publication that actually lists it. All of it comes from the Growable Ground Plant Database — a compilation over FAO ECOCROP, USDA PLANTS, and university Extension sources, published openly with per-field provenance.
Grounded inUSDA PLANTS Database•USDA PHZM•ASPCA
Frequently asked questions
Can I grow Hickory in my zone?
Hickory grows in USDA hardiness zones 4 through 8 (USDA PHZM 2023). Zone is one factor — soil pH, drainage, and frost dates on your specific parcel also shape whether it takes.
How long until Hickory bears fruit?
Hickory typically takes about ten years after planting to bear its first real crop, then produces for years (USDA-NRCS). Soil, climate, and rootstock all shift the timeline.
When should you plant Hickory?
Set hickory out in early spring or fall while it's dormant, so the roots establish before the heat of summer. Your local last-frost date — which a Growable Ground report pulls for your exact address — sets the precise window.
How much sun does Hickory need?
Hickory needs full sun — a spot that catches at least 6 hours of direct summer sun a day. In more shade it still grows, but usually gives a smaller, later crop. The catch is that a yard rarely gets even light everywhere — a fence, the house, or one tall tree can quietly take those hours. A Growable Ground report reads the real sun-hours across your land, canopy and buildings included, so you can pick the brightest bed before you plant.
What soil does Hickory need?
Hickory prefers soil pH 5 to 7.5, on well-drained ground (FAO ECOCROP). Your report scores your parcel's actual soil against that using USDA SSURGO data.
Does Hickory attract pollinators?
Hickory isn't classified as a notable pollinator plant in our data. Pairing it with high-value bloomers nearby keeps bees and butterflies fed.
Is Hickory safe for pets?
Hickory is not known to be toxic to dogs or cats based on available data. Always supervise pets around new plantings. (Source: ASPCA.)