Poetry's Inspiration...

Strange enough, many years ago I wrote a poem about a Shagbark Hickory - a tree that I had never seen but the name, the name... It rolled across my tongue and tasted delicious in my mouth. I didn't realize that it was a Hickory tree, as in Hickory nuts, nor did I know that there was more than one type of Hickory tree. *amazement* And then, lo and behold, I found myself a Shagbark Hickory tree on the grounds of Sturbridge Village in Massachusetts in a garden full of fascinating and wonderful plants. They even had a POISON GARDEN!! Neat! Note: The link above comes from one of three of the known species of Shagbark Hickories - I think the one that I actually saw was a Carya laciniosa.






There are ten or more species of the hickory nut, three of which are Shagbarks. "Doubtless no other nut has a kernel with the aromatic properties of the hickory. The cooking flavor is also exceptional. In flavor and quality the SHAGBARK HICKORY is held in the highest esteem as the choicest of native hickories". source