Go Nuts. Harvest is Here!
Before Texas pecans disappear beneath pie filling, they deserve a little daylight. November’s harvest offers a reason to head toward San Saba and Comanche, where the state tree supplies both the scenery and something worth bringing home.
Start half a mile west of San Saba on Highway 190 at The Great San Saba River Pecan Company. Its orchard offers a refreshingly hands-on approach: pick your own pecans during the advertised November-through-January season, with old-fashioned cane poles available for “thrashing” nuts from the trees. Your contribution to the holiday baking can begin considerably earlier than preheating the oven.
The country store serves complimentary pecan coffee and preserve samples, while orchard picnic tables provide a place for lunch. The company’s shop carries pecans, preserves, candy and pies in jars, but leave time for the trees. Gathering the crop gives the finished products a context that a shopping bag alone cannot.
Nearby, Millican Pecan brings five generations of growing history to the same story. Its Country Store collection follows the harvest into packaged nuts, pies, candies and gifts. Behind those treats is a business that grows, shells and processes pecans, keeping the connection between orchard and kitchen close.
The cane pole belongs to a different scale of harvesting. On commercial farms, padded mechanical shakers dislodge nuts from individual trees; harvesting equipment gathers them from the ground, and cleaning machinery separates the crop from leaves, sticks and debris. That efficiency becomes easier to appreciate after gathering a few yourself.
Continue to Comanche, where Durham-Ellis Pecan Company processes and packages millions of pounds of pecans annually. Its weekday retail store at 7200 Highway 67/377 stocks nuts, sweets, salsas, jellies and gifts, extending the orchard story into the pantry.
Before buying, ask which varieties are available. Pawnee pecans are large and sweet; Cheyenne nuts have thinner shells and light golden kernels. Native pecans generally have smaller kernels and thicker shells. Comparing a few makes “pecans” a more interesting order.
Once home, keep unshelled nuts somewhere cool and dry. Refrigerate shelled pecans in airtight containers, or freeze them for longer storage. The harvest deserves better than an open bag forgotten beside the stove.
Call ahead about crop conditions, picking availability and current store hours. Build the day around what is ready to gather, then decide what becomes dessert.
Find more places to stock your pantry in the Guide to Texas directory: https://www.guidetotx.com/grocery-stores
