My friend recently bought a pecan tree and planted it

My Friends recently bought a pecan tree and planted it. She was told by another friend that she has to have 2. There is a huge one in a neighbors yard but the pecans have never been good to eat.

Does she need to buy another one? And will this other tree ruin her pecans being cross polinated?

Please Help.

http://www.cpes.peachnet.edu/pecan/Home%20Pecans.htm
http://pubs.caes.uga.edu/caespubs/pubcd/C744.htm
http://www.uga.edu/fruit/pecan.htm#GENERAL_CULTURE_
http://aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu/extension/newsletters/hortupdate/jan02/art10jan.html

Yes Pecans do need to be cross pollinated. The neighbor's tree may well do the job.
Pecans are not trouble free. Scab being the major disease. Some of the best commercial cultivars will not produce at all without a scheduled spray program. They are also brittle and subsequently messy as a yard tree. Limbs snap off with great regularity.

Being that you are in Texas, I would assume that there are more than enough pecan trees around to pollinate your neighbors tree. I have lots of pecan trees and agree with farmerdill on the fact that they are somewhat brittle wooded. Unless you live in a high risk hurricane area (like I do), I wouldn't worry about that though. In my area, the major disease of pecan is bunch disease which causes witch's brooms at the end of branches.

:o( We have to evacuate for Rita does that count? :o(

She heard that what her neighbor calls a wild pecan would make her pecans taste like its and that is not so good??? Any idea there?

If the new tree is pollinated by a wild pecan that doesn't mean the nuts will be the "wild" variety.

Agreed. The pollen from a wild tree would not adversely affect the cultivar. Be nice if it would. Some the wild seedlings have a much better flavor than the "Improved" cultivars.

Farmer,

You mentioned spraying. Now nut raising sounds good, but bugs and diseases are a real pain often-times. My english walnuts did pretty well in '04 but most were not good in '05 when cracked open. A nut grower out in northern California said that his nut trees are sprayed by helicopter!!

Yep, it is pretty difficult to spray a mature pecan tree with a handheld sprayer. It takes some pretty expensive equipment.