The pecan is native to North America. Serious development of orchards occurred in the early 1900s in the Southeast. Pecan scab has plagued the industry since these early days. It was not until the introduction of effective synthetic chemical fungicides in the 1960s that growers could effectively prevent losses to the fungus leading to a quadrupling in yields.

“Two of the main advances leading to the U.S. pecan industry’s success have been the introduction of fungicides and airblast spray technology for quickly and effectively dispersing pesticides throughout an orchard.”

“The approaches have quadrupled yields and boosted farmers’ profits.”

Author: T. Weaver
Affiliation: USDA ARS
Title: Routing Pecan Scab – Protecting a Popular Nut
Publication: Agricultural Research. 1998. August:8-9.