Well, Grey, I'm just as clueless as you, but I did copy over a couple of excerpts off the net for you. Hopefully someone who has more personal experience can give you the hints and drawbacks!
VAL
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Harvesting Pecans
Pecans are usually harvested from mid-October through November when the shuck loosens from the shell or splits. The trees in commercial production are harvested with trunk or limb shakers that literally shake the nuts off the tree to be collected by various means.
Homeowners usually use a long cane pole to whap the nuts down or find some 10-year-old kids willing to spend an entire afternoon throwing baseball gloves or old sneakers up into the tree to knock nuts down. That's how my mother got hickory nuts for cakes and cookies many years ago. Wait to pick up the nuts that fall to the ground naturally, and you're competing with the wiley squirrel-and may well lose.
Squirrels can be a real barrier to successful back yard pecan growing. It has been estimated that a single squirrel can consume about 50 pounds of pecans in a single season-the total production of two trees. Nuts can be stored in their shells for about four months at room temperature before becoming rancid. They'll last up to nine months in the refrigerator and a year or two when stored in the freezer.
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Harvesting Pecans:
Pecans are mature and ready to harvest anytime after the shuck begins to split and open.
Storing Pecans:
We prefer to store pecans in airtight heavy-duty plastic freezer bags with a zipper-type closure. Pecans can be stored in jars or plastic cartons that can be made airtight. Label with the month and year of purchase.
Pecans should be stored in the refrigerator for six (6) to nine (9) months or preferably in the freezer for up to two (2) years. Pecans can be thawed and refrozen and not lose their quality. Also, frozen pecans need not be thawed to be used in recipes. If pecans appear shriveled or smell too strongly, discard them.
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"Sweetening" Pecans:
Pecans have two sources of bitterness -- naturally occurring tannins in the kernel and pieces of corky material from the inside of the nut which can adhere to the kernel.. Washing can eliminate this bitterness.
To "sweeten" pecan meats, place the kernels in a bowl and fill with lukewarm water. Stir and tumble the meats in the water for several minutes; the water will be discolored. Pour off the water and repeat the process at least once more. Spread the pecans on paper towels and allow them to dry for 15 minutes or so.
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Harvesting & Storage
Harvesting pecans occurs from mid October through November, and occasionally into December. For home harvesting, gathering falling nuts can be an option, but you usually have to fight the squirrels, who are master nut gatherers. Small harvests can be achieved by tapping limbs with a padded stick to help with nut drop, or commercially tree shakers are used. Mechanical shakers are fascinating to watch. Once secured on the trunk of the tree, they are turned on and the tree shakes rapidly, causing the nuts to drop like pelting rain. Standing nearby, even the soil vibrates. Then the nuts are gathered, removed from their outer husks and sorted. Pecan nuts lose quality very quickly on the ground, especially during wet weather, so it is important to harvest soon after shaking. Fresh pecans need to be air dried for two to three weeks before storing.
Pecans will oxidize or turn rancid more rapidly in light and out of their shell, so nuts will store longer when they are in their shell. If you don't intend to use them right away, you may want to buy unshelled nuts. They are best stored in a cool, dry, protected location. If you plan to store them for more than a month, you might consider freezing them. For the highest quality product it is recommended that they not be stored for more than one year in the freezer, but they have been known to do fine for several years.