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| − | Pine. What the apple is among the fruits, what the oak is among the broad- leaved trees of the temperate zone, the pines represent among the conifers, excelling all other genera in this most important family in number of species, in fields of distribution, in extent of area occupied, in usefulness and importance to the human race. No other trees of the temperate zone have contributed so much to the building up of civilization, and no other, it may be predicted, will continue longer to fill
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| − | the important place in the household of civilized men; for not only do they furnish in a number of species the most satisfactory qualities of wood for structural purposes, but their frugality in regard to soil conditions will preserve them a place as wood-producers in many of the poor sites, when the lands fit for agricultural use have all been turned over to food-production.
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| − | Among the seventy or more well-distinguished species —over 600 species and varieties of Pinus have been described—all inhabitants of the northern hemisphere, ranging from the arctics through plains and mountains to near the equator, occurring in the tropics at least on high mountains, a variety of adaptation, of form, of usefulness, may be found to satisfy every requirement; and since more than half the number of species (about forty) are indigenous to North America or the United States, it is hardly necessary to go out of this general region for plant material.
| + | A '''pine''' is a [[Pinophyta|coniferous]] [[tree]] in the [[genus]] '''''Pinus''''', in the [[family (biology)|family]] [[Pinaceae]]. They make up the monotypic subfamily '''Pinoideae'''. There are about 115 [[species]] of pine, although different authors accept anything from 105 to 125 species. |
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| − | For economic importance, as well as for a combination of points of excellence in all directions, ornamental as well as useful, rapidity and quantity of production and adaptability to climate and soil, the chief place belongs to the white pine (P.Strobus), and next in importance stands the longleaf pine (P.palustris) of the southern states. The red pine (P. resinosa), the shortleaf (P. echinata), the Loblolly (P. Taeda), with the Cuban pine (P. caribaea), add their stores to the enormous quantities furnished annually by the first and second. In the western mountains the bull pine (P. ponderosa), the sugar pine (P. Lambertiana), and the silver pine (P. monticola) are very large timber pines; and in Mexico P. Ayacahuite replaces the white pine, and P. arizonica and P. montezumae are the important yellow pines. In the Philippine Archipelago one species, P. insularis, forms important mountain forests. In Europe the Scotch pine (P. sylvestris) furnishes the bulk of supplies, with P. nigra in the more southern countries. In Japan and northern China P. densiflora and P. Thunbergii and in the Himalayas P. excelsa and P. longifolia are the important species.
| + | ==Distribution== |
| | + | Pines are native to most of the [[Northern Hemisphere]]. In [[Eurasia]], they range from the [[Canary Islands]] and [[Scotland]] east to the [[Russia|Russian Far East]], and the [[Philippines]], north to just over 70°N in [[Norway]] ([[Scots Pine]]) and eastern [[Siberia]] ([[Siberian Dwarf Pine]]), and south to northernmost [[Africa]], the [[Himalaya]] and [[Southeast Asia]], with one species ([[Sumatran Pine]]) just crossing the [[Equator]] in [[Sumatra]] to 2°S. In [[North America]], they range from 66°N in [[Canada]] ([[Jack Pine]]) south to 12°N in [[Nicaragua]] ([[Caribbean Pine]]). The highest diversity in the genus occurs in [[Mexico]] and [[California]]. |
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| − | Besides the timber, several of the species furnish from their resinous contents naval stores, turpentine, tar, and pitch, the bulk of which is now still derived from the native longleaf pine. Pine wool is made from the leaves of this and other species, essential oils are distilled from leaves and young shoots and used medicinally, and the seeds of the nut pines are used for food and flavors. While the economic importance of the genus can hardly be overrated, the ornamental value is undoubtedly less than that of other genera like the spruces and firs. Nevertheless, at least interest and picturesqueness, if not beauty and symmetry of form, attach to a large number of species.
| + | Pines have been introduced in subtropical and temperate portions of the [[Southern Hemisphere]], including [[Chile]], [[Brazil]], [[Australia]], and [[New Zealand]], where they are grown widely as a source of timber, and some are becoming [[invasive species]]. |
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| − | Choice of material for planting with such a wealth of species is difficult; yet climatic limitations reduce the number that may be grown within each climatic zone, and further assistance in the choice may be found in the fact that the botanical division of the species into three groups; viz., white pines, yellow pines (so called from the color of the wood), and nut pines, denotes at the same time differences of habit and form.
| + | ==Morphology== |
| | + | [[Image:Pinus pinea.jpg|thumb|left|Juvenile (left) and adult foliage of [[Stone Pine]] (''Pinus pinea''); note dark brown scale leaves as well as needles on adult shoot]] |
| | + | Pines are [[evergreen]] and [[resin]]ous [[tree]]s (rarely [[shrub]]s) growing to 3–80 m tall, with the majority of species reaching between 15-45 m tall. The smallest are [[Siberian Dwarf Pine]] and [[Potosi Pinyon]], and the tallest, [[Sugar Pine]]. Pines are long-lived, typically reaching ages of 100–1,000 years, and some even longer; the longest-lived is [[Great Basin Bristlecone Pine]], where one individual at 4,839 years (2007) is the oldest living organism in the world. |
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| − | In no other group, perhaps, is it Bo necessary to keep in mind that form and habit change through the different periods of life from the juvenile through the adolescent to the virile and senile stages of development: while symmetrical and pleasing in their youth and grand or picturesque in their age, in their intermediate stages the trees may be straggling and unsightly. Starting in its youth with the pyramidal aspiring habit of all the conifers, the shaft dominating over the branch system and the latter surrounding the former in regular whorls, later on the symmetry is disturbed and finally the towering old pine may have its bole split up into many stout branches and the crown may have broadened and flattened or rounded off in the umbrella-like fashion which the stone pine (P. Pinea) exhibits so strikingly
| + | The [[bark]] of most pines is thick and scaly, but some species have thin, flaking bark. The branches are produced in regular "pseudowhorls", actually a very tight spiral but appearing like a ring of branches arising from the same point. Many pines are ''uninodal'', producing just one such whorl of branches each year, from [[bud]]s at the tip of the year's new [[plant stem|shoot]], but others are ''multinodal'', producing two or more whorls of branches per year. The spiral growth of branches, needles and cone scales are arranged in [[Fibonacci number]] ratios. The new spring shoots are sometimes called "candles"; they are covered in brown or whitish bud scales and point upward at first, then later turn green and spread outward. |
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| − | in the Italian landscape. This flattening of crown is characteristic of most yellow pines, while the pinons or nut pines have a tendency to the broom-like or apple- tree appearance. Of the eastern species, the white pines alone preserve to some extent the conical habit of the crown in imitation of the spruces with more or less symmetrical horizontally spreading branches, which render them pleasing objects throughout all periods of life. On the Pacific Coast a number of species preserve the conical form. | + | ===Foliage=== |
| | + | Pines have four types of [[leaf|leaves]]: |
| | + | #''Seed leaves'' ([[cotyledon]]s) on seedlings, borne in a whorl of 4-24. |
| | + | #''Juvenile leaves'', which follow immediately on seedlings and young plants, 2-6 cm long, single, green or often blue-green, and arranged spirally on the shoot. These are produced for six months to five years, rarely longer (and also produced later in life after injury in some pines). |
| | + | #''Scale leaves'', similar to bud scales, small, brown and non-photosynthetic, and arranged spirally like the juvenile leaves. |
| | + | #''Needles'', the adult leaves, which are green (photosynthetic), bundled in clusters ("fascicles") of (1-) 2-5 (-6) needles together, each fascicle produced from a small [[bud]] on a dwarf shoot in the axil of a scale leaf. These bud scales often remain on the fascicle as a basal sheath. The needles persist for 1.5-40 years, depending on species. If a shoot is damaged (e.g. eaten by an animal), the needle fascicles just below the damage will generate a bud which can then replace the lost growth. |
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| − | In the choice and combination of plant material it should be kept in mind that the pines are essentially light-needing species, hence do not bear overtopping or crowding unless they have a chance by their rapid growth in height to escape from the pressure of their shade-making neighbors; the white pines, especially P. Strobus with its denser foliage, are more tolerant of shade than others; the dwarf P. montana is also tolerably shade-enduring.
| + | ===Cones=== |
| | + | [[Image:Pineflower9538.jpg|left|thumb|[[Loblolly Pine]] (''Pinus taeda''): male cones]] |
| | + | [[Image:Pine cone edit.jpg|right|thumb|A fully mature [[Monterey Pine]] cone on the forest floor.]] |
| | + | Pines are mostly [[Plant sexuality|monoecious]], having the male and female [[Conifer cone|cones]] on the same tree, though a few species are [[Plant sexuality|sub-dioecious]] with individuals predominantly, but not wholly, single-sex. The male cones are small, typically 1-5 cm long, and only present for a short period (usually in spring, though autumn in a few pines), falling as soon as they have shed their [[pollen]]. The female cones take 1.5-3 years (depending on species) to mature after [[pollination]], with actual fertilization delayed one year. At maturity the cones are 3-60 cm long. Each cone has numerous spirally arranged scales, with two seeds on each fertile scale; the scales at the base and tip of the cone are small and sterile, without seeds. The seeds are mostly small and winged, and are anemophilous (wind-dispersed), but some are larger and have only a vestigial wing, and are [[bird]]-dispersed (see below). At maturity, the cones usually open to release the seeds, but in some of the bird-dispersed species (e.g. [[Whitebark Pine]]), the seeds are only released by the bird breaking the cones open. In others, the ''fire climax pines'' (e.g. [[Monterey Pine]], [[Pond Pine]]), the seeds are stored in closed ("serotinous") cones for many years until a forest fire kills the parent tree; the cones are also opened by the heat and the stored seeds are then released in huge numbers to re-populate the burnt ground. |
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| − | In each of the three groups there are rapid growers (in height) and slow growers, although all are slow during the first two to seven years.
| + | ==Classification== |
| | + | Pines are divided into three subgenera, based on cone, seed and leaf characters: |
| | + | * Subgenus ''[[Pinus classification|Strobus]]'' (white or soft pines). Cone scale without a sealing band. Umbo terminal. Seedwings adnate. One fibrovascular bundle per leaf. |
| | + | * Subgenus ''[[Pinus classification|Ducampopinus]]'' (pinyon, lacebark and bristlecone pines). Cone scale without a sealing band. Umbo dorsal. Seedwings articulate. One fibrovascular bundle per leaf. |
| | + | * Subgenus ''[[Pinus classification|Pinus]]'' (yellow or hard pines). Cone scale with a sealing band. Umbo dorsal. Seedwings articulate. Two fibrovascular bundles per leaf. |
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| − | The common white pine (P. Strobus) and the Cuban pine (P. caribaea), with the European, Scotch, and Austrian pines, are good examples of the first class, making under favorable conditions annual shoots of 1 to 2 feet for a number of years; while the Swiss stone pine (P. Cembra) and other pines of high altitudes, like P. flexilis and P. albicaulis, are examples of slow growers. There are persistent growers reaching great heights, and laggards, remaining dwarfs or medium- sized trees; again the king of pines, the common white pine, and its giant congener the sugar pine, with the bull pine in favorable situations, take first rank, the first with a maximum height of 160 feet and more, the last with over 200 feet, while many of thp so-called scrub pines, like P. virginiana, P. serotina,P. Banksiana, the Alpine white pines, P. flexilis, P. aristata, P. Peace, P. pungens, P. densiflora, and most nut pines reach rarely over 40 feet; some, like P. koraiensis, P. Bungeana, P. montana, with several of the nurserymen's varieties, remain actually dwarfs and maintain a compact bush-like appearance for a long time.
| + | ==Ecology== |
| | + | [[Image:Dead pines.jpg|thumb|left|Mountain pine beetles killed these [[Lodgepole Pine]]s in Prince George, British Columbia.]] |
| | + | Pines grow well in acid [[soil]]s, some also on calcareous soils; most require good soil drainage, preferring sandy soils, but a few, e.g. [[Lodgepole Pine]], will tolerate poorly drained wet soils. A few are able to sprout after forest fires, e.g. [[Canary Island Pine]]. Some species of pines, e.g. [[Bishop Pine]], need fire to regenerate and their populations slowly decline under fire suppression regimes. Several species are adapted to extreme conditions imposed by elevation and latitude; see e.g. [[Siberian Dwarf Pine]], [[Mountain Pine]], [[Whitebark Pine]] and the bristlecone pines. The pinyon pines and a number of others, notably [[Turkish Pine]], are particularly well adapted to growth in hot, dry semi-desert climates. |
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| − | In regard to foliage, quite a large variety can be secured. For grace and elegance nothing better again than the five-needled silver-lined white pine can be suggested, although P. excelsa from the Himalayas, with its slenderer and longer branches and more drooping foliage, and the dwarfs P. Peace from Macedonia and P. koraiensis, with their denser and more compact crowns, and some others of the white pine tribe, may vie with it. Among the yellow pines, the native almost entirely overlooked, P. glabra, deserves mention in this connection, where the climate permits its use, as well as the interesting sand pine, P. clausa.
| + | The [[seed]]s are commonly eaten by [[bird]]s and [[squirrel]]s. Some birds, notably the Spotted Nutcracker, Clark's Nutcracker and Pinyon Jay, are of importance in distributing pine seeds to new areas where they can grow. Pine needles are sometimes eaten by some Lepidoptera species and also the Symphytan species Pine Sawfly. |
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| − | For richness, fulness, and vigor of foliage, the red pine (P. resinosa) outranks even the much-planted more somber Austrian pine, and for interest in development nothing can compete with the longleaf pine (P. palustris). With its needles, which in young specimens exceed a foot in length, surrounding in dense graceful tufts the big silvery buds at the tip of the candelabra-like branches. P. palustris offers a most striking appearance. Unfortunately, it is not adapted for planting north of 32°.
| + | ==Uses== |
| | + | [[Image:Young pine trees.jpg|thumb|Commercial planting of young Longleaf Pine (Pinus palustris)]] |
| | + | Pines are commercially among the most important of species used for timber and wood pulp in temperate and tropical regions of the world. This is because they are fast-growing softwoods that can be planted in relatively dense stands, and because their acidic decaying needles may inhibit the growth of other competing plants in the cropping areas. Commercial pine crops are grown in [[plantation]]s. |
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| − | The thin, grayish, short foliage of the frugal Bank- sian pine and of several other of the scrub pines, and the stouter, also grayish, foliage of the Scotch pine, make a pleasing color contrast against the somber dark background of spruces and firs, while the short stiff needles of the nut pine, P. edulis, and the interesting one-needle pine (P. monophylla) resemble the spruce foliage. Color of bark varying in species from silvery gray through red and yellow tints to almost black, and character or size of cones from the diminutive globose forms of P. contorta to the long pendulous cones of the sugar pine, 2 feet in length, and the hooked, ponderous cones of P. Torreyana and P. Sabiniana, may also influence choice of material. | + | The [[resin]] of some species is important as the source of turpentine. |
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| − | With wide range of distribution and hence adaptiveness as far as climate is concerned, we have the short- leaf pine (P. echinata), which is found from Massachusetts to Texas, and in the West the bull pine (P. ponderosa), which ranges from the moist Pacific Coast in Washington to the dry slopes of Arizona. In Europe, the Scotch pine comes nearest to such wide distribution. Besides the native northern species, there have been found hardy in the northeastern states the Scotch and Austrian pines, P. Bungeana, P. Cembra, P. koraiensis, P. montana, P. Thunbergii, while the Mexican pines and those of southern Asia will endure only the light frosts of the southern states. Yet in the parks of Washington, D. C., the following pines are to be found: P. Strobus, P. Cembra, P. excelsa, P. Lambertiana, P. Ayacahuite, P. koraiensis, P. palustris, P. Taeda, P. ponderosa, P. rigida, P. nigra, P. glabra, P. virginiana, P. echinata, P. montana, P. Pinaster, P. edulis, P. pungens, P. sylveslris, P. Massoniana; and the probability is that most of the other species could find a place there to live if not to thrive.
| + | Many pines are also very attractive ornamental trees planted in [[park]]s and large [[garden]]s. A large number of dwarf [[cultivar]]s have been selected, suitable for planting in smaller gardens. Some pines are also used for [[Christmas tree]]s, and pine cones are also widely used for Christmas decorations. Pine trees are also noted for their pleasant smell. |
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| − | The pines are essentially inhabitants of the poor sandy soils and dry situations, their stout root-system enabling them to seek the scanty water-supplies where other species find it difficult. Some, like the white pine, are adapted to a variety of soil conditions, but only a few can endure a surplus of water: P. resinosa will follow the white cedar into the swamp and thrive there as well as with the Banksian pine on the poorest gravels; P. rigida is at home both in wet and dry places; the Scotch pine of the Baltic sand plains may be found in the peat-bogs, but only eking out a miserable existence, while P. Taeda, the old field pine, makes magnificent trees in the southern swamp, and with its slow growth under such conditions an excellent timber. P. contorta and P. serotina also are indifferent to water conditions at the root; so is the Cuban pine, but P. palustris belies its name, for it is only very rarely found in poorly drained places and does not thrive there.
| + | Pine needles serve as food for various [[Lepidoptera]]. |
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| − | The propagation of pines does not offer any difficulties. The seed usually has a high germination percentage in most species if kept dry and cool, and it retains vitality for several years, deteriorating of course somewhat from year to year. To avoid deterioration hi transoceanic shipments, packing in charcoal dust has been found very serviceable. While most of the pine seeds sprout readily, the white pine, with some others, has the bad habit of lying over for one year in part, unless treated to a hot-water bath for twenty-four hours before sowing; or perhaps by sowing in autumn immediately after coming out of the cone, which is during the first two weeks of September. The seeds should be sown in light mold early, rather thinly to permit a good root-system to develop, covering them thinly according to size of seed, not over 1/4 inch, which is best done by sifting sand over the seed with a sieve. During the first year special care is necessary to regulate the water-supply and transpiration for the young seedlings; they need to be kept humid, not wet, but resent drought as much as a surfeit; and especially sudden changes from drought to wet are likely to produce "damping-off." To prevent too rapid transpiration, the familiar lath screens should be applied.
| + | ===Food uses=== |
| | + | [[Image:umbrella.pine.in.rome.arp.jpg|thumb|right|[[Stone Pine]] ''Pinus pinea'' in a [[Rome]] ([[Italy]]) street]] |
| | + | {{main|Pine nut}} |
| | + | Some species have large [[seed]]s, called [[pine nut]]s, that are harvested and sold for cooking and baking. |
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| − | To prevent the formation of excessively long taproots which some species form, mechanical means may be adopted; but the best plan is to manure near the surface, so that fibrous roots will be formed. Such manure consists of one-third steamed bone-meal and two-thirds ammonia superphosphate. Root- pruning and transplanting in nursery rows when one or two years old is practised to secure a stocky root-system. In Germany one-year-old Scotch pines are planted by the million for forest purposes, but for ornamental purposes older plants are to be used; yet it is safest not to use them older than three or four years for permanent situations. In the third year usually the first branching occurs, indicating that the root-system is now well established.
| + | The soft, moist, white inner bark ([[vascular cambium|cambium]]) found clinging to the woody outer [[bark]] is edible and very high in vitamins [[vitamin A|A]] and [[vitamin C|C]]. It can be eaten raw in slices as a snack or dried and ground up into a powder for use as a thickener in stews, soups, and other foods. A tea made by steeping young, green pine needles in boiling water (known as "tallstrunt" in Sweden) is high in vitamins A and C as well. |
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| − | In transplanting, the utmost care must be taken not to expose the roots to drying influences, a thin loam puddle answering best to keep them moist. While transplanting can be done at any time of the year, it is safest to do so in early spring, except when a droughty season is likely to follow, in which case fall planting is to be preferred.
| + | ==Etymology== |
| − | | + | The modern [[English language|English]] name ''pine'' derives from [[Latin]] ''Pinus'' by way of [[French language|French]] ''pin''; similar names are used in other Romance languages. In the past (pre-19th century) they were often known as ''fir'', from Old Norse ''fyrre'', by way of Middle English ''firre''. The Old Norse name is still used for pines in some modern north European languages, in Danish, ''fyr'', in Norwegian and Swedish, ''furu'', and ''Föhre'' in German, but in modern English, "fir" is now restricted to [[Fir]] (''Abies'') and ''[[Douglas-fir]] (''Pseudotsuga''). |
| − | A large number of nurserymen's varieties, dwarf and pendulous, varicolored, and the like, have been developed, especially from P. sylvestris and P. Strobus. The most interesting freaks perhaps are those bushy forms derived from P. canariensis and P. Pinea produced by layering, in which single needles instead of the usual bundles of two in one sheath are produced, imitating the primary single needles of seedlings. The manner in which nurserymen's varieties are propagated by grafts or cuttings is discussed under Pinus.
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| − | According to the nature of the pines, if there is choice of location possible, the well-drained situations, even dry ones, should be reserved for them. They belong, with few exceptions, to the hilltops not the bottoms, to the sands not clay soils, and will stand southern exposures better than the spruces.
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| − | Pines are frugal by nature, and can stand poverty better than surfeit,—nevertheless they respond best to medium conditions, namely, a mellow surface and well- drained deep loamy sand, not too rich in organic matter and loose enough to permit the natural development of the heavy tap-root system. Under such conditions, the peculiar rich foliage gives most satisfaction and the rank luxuriant growth which leads to poor form is checked; disease from fungi is obviated; the cottony scale (almost the only enemy of the white pine) is more readily fought, and injuries from caterpillars and beetles are more easily repaired. Two enemies of the white pine have developed which require attention. The one, a fungous disease, seems to be an importation from Germany, the white pine blister rust (Peridermium strobi), which attacks young trees and young foliage of the white pine tribe. It needs gooseberry and currant as intermediary host plants. The other pest is the white pine weevil, which works in the young shoots and disfigures the tree by inducing repeatedly new leaders to develop.
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| − | To prune evergreens, and especially pines, requires an artist, or else the result will be malformation: the best plan is to correct form by breaking out the center bud from such shoots as project beyond proper limits; thereby also a more compact growth is induced, which in the pines with their open habit is desirable. If it becomes necessary to prune the branches, the cut must remove also the bolster at the base of the branch; the resinous exudation will prevent decay, and the cambium soon covers the scar if the cut has been made properly. For hedge planting the pines furnish no specially desirable material, being' light-needing and therefore thinning out soon in the interior; yet the white pine will stand as a hedge for a considerable time and also the dwarf P. montana. Perhaps some others may answer the purpose.
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| − | Pinus (ancient Latin name). Pinaceae. Pine. Pine- Tree. Ornamental trees grown for their handsome evergreen foliage and symmetrical or picturesque habit, some also for their conspicuous large cones; many species are valuable timber trees. | |
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| − | Resinous evergreen trees with usually whorled branches, rarely shrubby: winter buds covered with imbricate scales: lvs. of 2 kinds; the primary lvs. are spirally arranged and as they appear on young seedling plants and occasionally on shoots from the old wood, are green and subulate, but commonly they are reduced to small scarious bracts bearing in their axils the acicular, semi-terete or triangular secondary lvs. borne on an undeveloped branchlet in clusters from 2-5, or occasionally more, rarely reduced to 1, surrounded at the base by sheaths of 8-12 bud-scales: fls. monoecious; the staminate ones axillary, clustered at the base of the young shoots, catkin-like, yellow, orange, or scarlet, composed of spirally arranged numerous 2-celled anthers with the connective enlarged and scale-like at the apex (Fig. 2956); pistillate lateral or subterminal, greenish or purplish, consisting of numerous spirally arranged scales each in the axil of a small bract and bearing 2 ovules inside near the base (Fig. 2957): cone subglobose to cylindric, with woody scales closely appressed before maturity and tightly inclosing the seeds, which are usually furnished with a long thin wing, but in some species are wingless or short-winged; the apex of the scales is usually more or less thickened and the exposed part, which is usually rhombic in outline and termed apophysis, is often protracted into prominent bosses or knobs; the apophysis is terminated by the umbo, usually differing in color and ending mostly in a spine or prickle. In P. Strobus and the allied species the apophysis is flat and thin, and bears the spineless umbo at the upper end, while in most other pines the apophysis is thickened and transversally keeled and bears the umbo in the middle. These differences belong to the most important characters in the grouping of the species: other valuable characters are furnished by the structure of the lvs., which contain either 1 or 2 fibro- vascular bundles and usually 2 or more resin-ducts, being either external (or peripheral), i.e., situated beneath the epidermis; or medial (or parenchymatous), i.e., inclosed by the tissue of the lf.; or internal, i.e., close to the fibro-vascular bundles; some species, as P. Armandi, P. resinosa, P. sinensis, also P. excelsa, P. Lambertiana, P. virginiana, and the like, have resin-ducts in 2 positions, either external and medial or internal and medial, but such combinations are not found in all the lvs. of these species. Strengthening cells, i.e., cells with thickened walls, are mostly present beneath the epidermis and often surround the resin- ducts, sometimes also along the fibro-vascular bundles. (See Figs. 2958-2961.) The number of the fibro-vascular bundles and the position of the resin-ducts can be readily seen with a common magnifying glass in thin cross-sections made with a sharp razor from the middle of the lf. and placed on a glass plate.—About 80 species are known, distributed throughout the northern hemisphere from the arctic circle to Mex. and the W. Indies. N. Afr., and the Malayan Archipelago; in the tropical and subtropical regions they are confined to the mountains. In the following enumeration the species are grouped according to Shaw's classification. To facilitate the determination of the cult, species, a key is given to determine plants without cones, but owing to the great variability in pines this key may fail, if the plant in hand represents some uncommon variation. Good illustrations are found in Sargent, Silva of N. America, vol. 11; Lambert, Description of the Genus Pinus; Lawson, Pinetum Britannicum; Forbes, Pinetum Woburnense; Antoine, Die Coniferen: Clinton-Baker, Illustrations of Conifers, vol. I; Parde, Iconographie des Coniferes (in course of publication). For the horti- cultural varieties, see Beissner, Nadelholzkunde, second edition (1909), and the new edition by A. H. Kent of Veitch's Manual of the Coniferae. Among other important works may be mentioned E. A. Carriere's Traite general des Coniferes, second edition, 1867; Heinrich Mayr's Die Waldungen von Nordamerika, 1890; G. Engelmann's Revision of the Genus Pinus, in Transactions of the Academy of Science of St. Louis, published in 1880; Maxwell T. Masters in Journal of the Linnean Society, vols. 22 (1886) and 27 (1889); Conifer Conference in Journal Royal Horticultural Society, vol. 14 (1892); Silva Tarouca's Unsere Freiland-Nadel- holzer (1913); G.R. Shaw's The Pines of Mexico (1909) and The Genus Pinus (1914), both well illustrated.
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| − | Leaf with two fibro-vascular bundles (a); several medial resin- ducts (b); strengthening cells (c) around the resin-ducts, several layers beneath the epidermis and along the inner and outer side of the fibro-vascular bundles; stomata (d) all around.
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| − | The pines are usually tall trees, rarely shrubby, with spreading branches forming a pyramidal or round- topped, in old age often very picturesque head, and clothed with acicular leaves in clusters of 2-5, rarely solitary. The flowers are catkin-like, appearing in spring, the staminate yellow or purple, often conspicuous by their abundance, and the pistillate greenish or purplish, developing into subglobose to cylindric, usually brown cones, which sometimes attain 18 or more inches in length, ripening mostly not before the second or rarely the third year. The pines are among the most important timber trees of the northern hemisphere, and many of them are valuable for the decoration of parks and gardens.
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| − | Young pines are with few exceptions of more or less regular, pyramidal habit; but in old age they are often very picturesque, especially P. Strobus, P. radiata, P, rigida, P. Pinea, P. Cembra, P. nigra, P. parviflora, and others. Of very graceful habit, with slender branches and more or less drooping foliage, are P. excelsa, and the tender P. Ayacahuite, P. longifolia, and P. canariensis. The very large cones of some species, as P. Lam- bertiana, P. Ayacahuite., P. Sabiniana, and P. Coulteri, are a conspicuous ornament. Most species are of vigorous growth when young, but the foreign species usually grow rather slowly and are therefore well suited for smaller gardens, especially P. koraiensis, P. Peuce, P. Bungeana, P. parviflora; the American P. aristata, and P. flexilis may also be recommended for this purpose. For planting rocky slopes P. Banksiana, P. rigida, P. virginiana, and some western species are valuable; and if dwarf forms are desired P. montana is one of the best, thriving better than any other species in shaded positions and as undergrowth in open woods.
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| − | Leaf with two fibro-vascular bundles (a); several internal resin- ducts (b), one layer of strengthening cells (c) beneath the epidermis and on the inner side of the fibro-vascular bundles; stomata (d) all around.
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| − | A great number of the species are hardy North. Among the hardiest are P. Strobus, P. Cembra, P. parviflora, P. Bungeana, P. koraiensis, P. rigida, P. Banksiana, P. Thunbergii, P. resinosa, P. sylvestris and P. montana. The Mexican species and those from southern Asia stand only a few degrees of frost.
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| − | The pines are not very particular as to the soil, and in their native habitats they usually occupy the less fertile situations, as dry uplands and sandy plains. Some, as P. rigida, P. caribxa, and P. Taeda, can be grown both in dry and in swampy ground. P. palustris is very unhappily named, since it almost never grows in swamps. Pines are much used for the afforestation of barren sandy plains and dry rocky mountain slopes. For seaside planting P. rigida and the more tender P. radiata, P. Pinaster, P. halepensis, and P. canariensis are valuable; the last three species are now much planted in California, both for timber and ornament.
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| − | Leaf with two fibro-vascular bundles (a) and several medial resin-ducts (b) ; only one layer of strengthening cells (c) beneath the epidermis; stomata (d) all around.
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| − | Pines cannot be transplanted as successfully as large plants on account of their long tap-roots, and only younger nursery-grown trees should be used for planting. As they cannot usually be taken up with a good ball of earth, it is well to immerse the roots in a loam puddle immediately after the trees are dug up.
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| − | Pines are propagated by seeds sown in spring in prepared beds or frames, or in boxes or pans; the seeds should be covered slightly with fine soil, but the larger ones about 1/4 inch, and the young seedlings shaded and watered when necessary. Varieties and rarer kinds are grafted on their types or allied species, usually by veneer-grafting on potted stock in the greenhouse in winter, or in spring outdoors by cleft-grafting in the terminal bud (M.D. 1901, p. 15). Cuttings even of the dwarf forms do not root readily; the easiest to root are young shoots with primary foliage, as they sometimes appear on older branches or on the trunk.
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| − | The pines belong to the most important timber trees in their native countries; these are, in eastern North America, P. palustris, P. Strobus, and P. echinata; in the western states, P. Lambertiana, P. monticola, and P. ponderosa; in Europe, P. sylvestris and P. nigra; in eastern Asia, P. Thunbergii and P. densiflora, and in the Himalayas, P. excelsa. From the resinous secretions of many species, chiefly P. palustris, P. caribaea, P. Pinaster, P. halepensis, and P. longifolia, turpentine, tar, and pitch are obtained. An essential oil used medicinally is distilled from the leaves and young shoots of several species. Edible seeds are produced by some species, in America by P. edulis and P. cembroides; in Europe by P. Pinea and P. Cembra; in East India by P. Gerardiana. Mats similar to cocoa mats are manufactured from the leaves of P. palustris, and pine wool for stuffing mattresses is made from leaves of European and American species.
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| − | ==Cultivation==
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| − | ===Propagation===
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| − | ===Pests and diseases===
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| − | ==Species==
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| − | There are about 115 [[species]] of pine, although different authors accept anything from 105 to 125 species{{wp}}.
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| − | Pines are divided into three subgenera, based on cone, seed and leaf characters{{wp}}:
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| − | * Subgenus ''[[Pinus classification|Strobus]]'' (white or soft pines). Cone scale without a sealing band. Umbo terminal. Seedwings adnate. One fibrovascular bundle per leaf{{wp}}.
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| − | * Subgenus ''[[Pinus classification|Ducampopinus]]'' (pinyon, lacebark and bristlecone pines). Cone scale without a sealing band. Umbo dorsal. Seedwings articulate. One fibrovascular bundle per leaf{{wp}}.
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| − | * Subgenus ''[[Pinus classification|Pinus]]'' (yellow or hard pines). Cone scale with a sealing band. Umbo dorsal. Seedwings articulate. Two fibrovascular bundles per leaf{{wp}}.
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| − | {{Inc|
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| − | The list of species hardy in the Arnold Arboretum (Boston) comprises the following:
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| − | 1. Thriving wett.
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| − | Banksiana. Lambertiana. resinosa.
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| − | Bungeana. montana. rigida.
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| − | Cembra. monticola. Strobus.
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| − | donsiflora. nigra. sylvestris.
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| − | echinata. parviflora. Thunbergii.
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| − | Jeffreyi. Peuce. virginiana.
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| − | koraiensis. pungens.
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| − | P. excelsa and P. ponderosa pendula thrive well in a sheltered place, but are probably not quite hardy here.
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| − | 2. Hardy, but not of promising growth.
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| − |
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| − | aristata. flexilis.
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| − | contorta var. Murrayana. monophylla.
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| − | edulis.
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| − | In the interior middle states the number which would stand the extremes of drought and cold would probably be reduced; a partial list found in the Missouri Botanical Garden is given below:
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| − | The best are given first. All of the later ones on the list die out sooner or later, as the city smoke is very detrimental to conifers. None does very well on that account.
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| − | Mughus (Pumilio). Virginiana.
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| − | austriaca. } best three. resinosa.
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| − | Strobus. nigra.
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| − | Cembra. sylvestris.
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| − | rigida. ponderosa.
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| − | For seaside planting, P. rigida has shown itself most fit, and of foreigners in proper climate, P. Pinaster and P. halepensis, while P. contorta on the northwest coast and the frugal P. radiata on the southwest coast are the seacoast trees par excellence.
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| − | {{SCH}}
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| − | }}
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| − | {{Inc|
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| − | INDEX.
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| − | Aberdoniae, 37. flexilis, 4. parviflora, 5.
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| − | alba, 8. Fremontiana, 15. pendula, 22, 25, 27.
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| − | albo- terminata, 22. frutescens, 26. 30.
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| − | albo-variegata, 4, 14.funebris, 29. pentaphylla, 5.
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| − | alepensis, 36. glauca, 5, 8. peuce, 6.
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| − | arborea, 26. gracilis, 26, Pinaster, 37.
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| − | argentea, 25. halepensis, 36. pindica,27.
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| − | aristata, 18. Hamiltonii, 37. Pinea, 19.
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| − | Armandi, 3. Henryi, 29. Pityusa,36.
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| − | attenuata, 47. heterophylla, 35. Poiretiana, 27.
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| − | aurea, 8, 22, 25. horizontalis,27. ponderosa, 30, 31.
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| − | aureo- variegata, 26. inops, 39, 40. prominens, 29.
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| − | australis, 34. insignis, 46. prostrata, 8, 26, 27.
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| − | austriaca, 27. Jeffreyi, 31. pumila, 1, 25.
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| − | Ayacahuite, 11. koraiensis, 2. pumilio, 26.
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| − | Balfouriana, 17, 18. Lambertiana, 10. pungena, 38.
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| − | Banksiana, 41. lapponica, 25. pygmaea, 8, 27.
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| − | Beissneriana, 25. Laricio, 27. pyramidalis, 8, 25.
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| − | Benthamiana, 30. latifolia, 42. pyrenaica, 27, 36.
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| − | Bolanderi, 42. Lemoniana, 37. quadrifolia, 12.
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| − | Bonapartea, 11. leucodermis, 27. radiata, 46.
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| − | Boursieri, 42. leucosperma, 29. reflexa, 4.
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| − | brevifolia, 8. longifolia, 21. resinosa, 24.
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| − | brutia, 36. loudoniana, 11. rigensis, 25.
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| − | Bungeana, 16. macrocarpa, 48. rigida, 45.
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| − | calabrica, 27. Malletii, 36. rostrata, 26.
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| − | californica, 47. mandshurica, 2. rotundata, 26.
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| − | canariensis, 20. maritima, 37. Roxburghii, 21.
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| − | caribaea,35. Mastersiana, 23,28.Sabiniana, 49.
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| − | carpatica, 26. mastersiana,3. salzmannii,27.
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| − | cebennensis,27. minor, 37. scipioniformis, 3.
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| − | Cembra, 1. mitis, 32. Scopulgrum, 30.
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| − | cembroides, 13. monophylle, 15. serotina, 14.
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| − | clausa, 39. monspeliensis, 27. sibirica, 1.
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| − | columnaris, 1, 25. montana, 26. sinensis, 29.
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| − | compacta, 1, 25. montereyensis, 46. strobiformis, 4.
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| − | cotorta, 42. monticola. 9. Strobus, 8.
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| − | corsicana, 27. Moseri, 27. sylvestris, 25.
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| − | Coulteri, 48. Mughus, 20. tabuliformis, 29.
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| − | crispata, 25. muricata, 43. Taeda, 33.
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| − | cubensis, 35. Murrayana, 42. tenuifolia, 27.
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| − | densata, 29. nana, 8. Thunbergii, 28.
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| − | densiflora, 22. nepalensis, 7. Torreyana, 50.
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| − | divaricata, 41. nigra, 27. tuberculata, 47.
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| − | Don-Pedrii, 11. nigricans, 27. umbraculifera, 8, 22.
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| − | echinata, 32. nivea, 8, 25. uncinata, 26.
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| − | edulis, 14. Oculus-draconis,22,variegata, 7. 22, 28.
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| − | eldarica, 36. 28. virgata, 25.
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| − | Elliotii, 35. osteosperma, 13. virginiana, 40.
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| − | engadinensis, 25. Pallasiana, 27. Wilsonii, 29.
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| − | excelsa, 6, 7. palustris, 34. yunnanensis, 29.
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| − | fastigiata, 8, 25. Parryana, 12. zebrina. 7.
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| − | NO. I. KEY TO THE SPECIES WITH THE CONES.
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| − | I. Soft Pines (Haploxylon).
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| − | Wood soft, close-grained, light-colored, the sap-wood
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| − | thin and nearly white: sheaths of the lf.-clusters deciduous;
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| − | lvs. with 1 fibro-vascular bundle.
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| − | II. Pitch Pines (Diploxylon).
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| − | Wood usually heavy, coarse-grained, generally dark- colored, sap-wood pale, often thick: sheaths of lf .-clusters persistent (in the following species): lvs. with 2 fibro-vascular bundles, serrulate: umbo of cone-scales dorsal.
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| − | Section I. CEMBRA.
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| − | Group 1. Cembrae.
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| − | P. Abies, Linn. equals Picea excelsa.—P. albicaulis, Engelm. Pyramidal tree, to 30, rarely 60 ft-, sometimes shrubby, allied to flexilis: bark whitish or light brown. cones smaller, 1 1/2- 3 1/2 in., subglobose or oval purplish brown. Brit.col.to Calif. and wyo S.S.11:548. G.C.II. 24:9.probably as hardy as P. flexilis.-P arizonica, Engelm. (P. ponderosa var. arizonica, Shaw). Tree, to 100 ft, with pyramidal or open round-topped head, allied to P ponderosa: lvs. shorter, 5-7 in. long: cones smaller, 2-2 1/2 in., with recurved spines. Ariz. S.S. 11:559. — P. chihuahuana, Engelm.~- P. leiophylla var. chihuahuana. — P. Gerardiana, Wall. Tree, to 60 ft., with broad round-topped head, allied to P. Bungeana: lvs. bluish green, 2 1/2-4 in. long: cones 6-9 in. long, with the tips ofscales reflexed; seeds short-winged, to 1 in. long, edible. Himalayas. Not hardy N. — P. glabra, Walt. Cedar Pine. Spruce Pine. Pyramidal tree, to 80, rarely 120 ft., allied to P. echinata: lvs. darte green, 1 1/2 -3 in. long: cones broadly to oblong- ovate, 1 1/4 -2 in. long. S. C. to Fla. and La. S.S. 11:583. Hardy only S. — P, Gordoniana, Hartw. =P. Montezumae. — P. Grenvilleae, Gord.=P. Montezumae. — P. Heldreichii, Christ. Small tree, allied to P. nigra: lvs. 3-4 in. long: cone 3 in. long, with impressed dull umbo furnished with a small curved prickle. Greece. G.C. II. 21:740.—P. insularis, Endl. Tall tree: lvs. 3, flaccid and very slender, 7-9 in. long: conea conic-ovate, 2 1/2- 3 in. long; scales with low pyramidal, sharply keeled apex and obtuse or on the upper scales mucronulate umbo. Philippine Isls. Not yet intro.—P. latifolia, Sarg. (P. Mayriana, Sudw.) Tree, to 60 ft., allied to P. ponderosa: lvs. 12-15 in. long and 1/14 in. wide: conea oblique at the base, 3-4 in. long. Ariz. S.S. 11:565. G.F. 2:496; 8:25. Not hardy N.—P. latisquama, Engelm.=P. Pinceana.— P. leiophylla, Schlecht. & Cham. Allied to P. Lambertiana. Tall tree: lvs. usually 5, slender, grayish green, 4-6 in. long: conea ovoid, nearly symmetrical, 2-3 in. long, with small recurved prickles. Mex. Var. chihuahuana, Shaw (P. chihuahuana, Engelm.). Lvs. usually 3 or 4, stouter and shorter. Calif, to New Mex. and Mex. S.S.11:566. G.F. 8:24.—P. macrophylla, Lindl., not Engelm. «=P. Montezumae.—P. Mayriana, Sudw.=P. latifolia.—P. montezumae. Lamb. (P. Gordoniana, Hartw. P. Grenvillae;, Gord. P. macrophylla, Lindl., not Engelm.). Tree, to 80 ft. and more: allied to P. Torreyana: lvs. glaucous or green, 7-16 in. long: Cones 4-14 in. long, light brown; apophysis depressed pyramidal, with a short, recurved spine. Mex. G.C. III. 8:405-7, 475; 15:271, 273. Gn. 66, p. 481; 68, p. 397. Very variable species, as the numerous (about 70) synonyms show. Not hardy N.—P. Nelsonii, Shaw. Allied to P. cembroides. Low bushy tree to 30 ft.: lvs. with persistent sheaths 3, 2 1/2 - 3 1/2 in. long, serrulate: cones on stout curved peduncles, cylindric; seeds wingless. Mex. G.C. III. 36:122; 37: 306.—P. patula, Schiede. Allied to P. Taeda. Tree, to 80 ft.: lvs. sometimes 4 or 5, drooping, light green, 7—9 in. long: cones oblong- ovate, oblique with depressed knobs, 4 in. long. Mex. G.C. II. 23:108, 109, 117; III. 9:435. Graceful tree, but not hardy N.—P. Picea, Linn.=Abies Picea.—P. Pinceana, Gord. (P. latisquama, Engelm.). Allied to P. cembroides. Low tree with slender branches: lvs. usually 3, entire, 5-6 in. long: cones oblong-ovate, long-stalked, 2 1/2 - 3 1/2 in. long; seeds wingless. Mex. G.C. II. 18:713; III. 38: 122.—P. pumila, Regel (P. Cembra var. pumila, Pall.). Shrubby, often procumbent, allied to P. Cembra, but resin-ducts of lvs. external: lvs. 1 3/4 - 3 in. long: cone 1 1/2 in. long; seed 2/5 in. long. N.E. Siberia to Japan. Hardy.
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| − | ==Gallery==
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| − | {{photo-sources}}<!-- remove this line if there are already 3 or more photos in the gallery -->
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| − | | |
| − | <gallery>
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| − | Image:Pinus pinea.jpg|Juvenile (left) and adult foliage of [[Stone Pine]] (''Pinus pinea''); note dark brown scale leaves as well as needles on adult shoot
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| − | Image:Pineflower9538.jpg|[[Loblolly Pine]] (''Pinus taeda''): male cones
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| − | Image:Pine cone edit.jpg|A fully mature [[Monterey Pine]] cone on the forest floor.
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| − | Image:Dead pines.jpg|[[Mountain pine beetle]]s killed these [[Lodgepole Pine]]s in [[Prince George, British Columbia]].
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| − | Image:Young pine trees.jpg|Commercial planting of young Longleaf Pine (Pinus palustris)
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| − | Image:umbrella.pine.in.rome.arp.jpg|[[Stone Pine]] ''Pinus pinea''
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| − | </gallery>
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| | ==References== | | ==References== |
| − | *[[Standard Cyclopedia of Horticulture]], by L. H. Bailey, MacMillan Co., 1963 | + | * Farjon, A. 1984, 2nd edition 2005. ''Pines''. E. J. Brill, Leiden. ISBN 90-04-13916-8 |
| − | <!--- xxxxx *Flora: The Gardener's Bible, by Sean Hogan. Global Book Publishing, 2003. ISBN 0881925381 -->
| + | * Little, E. L., Jr., and Critchfield, W. B. 1969. ''Subdivisions of the Genus Pinus (Pines)''. US Department of Agriculture Misc. Publ. 1144 (Superintendent of Documents Number: A 1.38:1144). |
| − | <!--- xxxxx *American Horticultural Society: A-Z Encyclopedia of Garden Plants, by Christopher Brickell, Judith D. Zuk. 1996. ISBN 0789419432 -->
| + | * Richardson, D. M. (ed.). 1998. ''Ecology and Biogeography of Pinus''. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge. 530 p. ISBN 0-521-55176-5 |
| − | <!--- xxxxx *Sunset National Garden Book. Sunset Books, Inc., 1997. ISBN 0376038608 -->
| + | * Mirov, N. T. 1967. ''The Genus Pinus''. Ronald Press, New York (out of print). |
| − | | + | * [http://www.pinetum.org/Lovett/classification.htm Classification of pines] |
| − | ==External links==
| + | * [http://www.conifers.org/pi/pin/index.htm Gymnosperm Database - Pinus] |
| − | *{{wplink}} | |
| − | | |
| − | {{stub}}
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| − | [[Category:Categorize]] | |
| − | | |
| − | <!-- in order to add all the proper categories, go to http://www.plants.am/wiki/Plant_Categories and copy/paste the contents of the page here, and then follow the easy instructions! -->
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Plant Characteristics
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Cultivation
| Exposure:
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?"?" is not in the list (sun, part-sun, shade, unknown) of allowed values for the "Exposure" property.
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?"?" is not in the list (wet, moist, moderate, dry, less when dormant) of allowed values for the "Water" property.
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A pine is a coniferous tree in the genus Pinus, in the family Pinaceae. They make up the monotypic subfamily Pinoideae. There are about 115 species of pine, although different authors accept anything from 105 to 125 species.
Distribution
Pines are native to most of the Northern Hemisphere. In Eurasia, they range from the Canary Islands and Scotland east to the Russian Far East, and the Philippines, north to just over 70°N in Norway (Scots Pine) and eastern Siberia (Siberian Dwarf Pine), and south to northernmost Africa, the Himalaya and Southeast Asia, with one species (Sumatran Pine) just crossing the Equator in Sumatra to 2°S. In North America, they range from 66°N in Canada (Jack Pine) south to 12°N in Nicaragua (Caribbean Pine). The highest diversity in the genus occurs in Mexico and California.
Pines have been introduced in subtropical and temperate portions of the Southern Hemisphere, including Chile, Brazil, Australia, and New Zealand, where they are grown widely as a source of timber, and some are becoming invasive species.
Morphology
Juvenile (left) and adult foliage of
Stone Pine (
Pinus pinea); note dark brown scale leaves as well as needles on adult shoot
Pines are evergreen and resinous trees (rarely shrubs) growing to 3–80 m tall, with the majority of species reaching between 15-45 m tall. The smallest are Siberian Dwarf Pine and Potosi Pinyon, and the tallest, Sugar Pine. Pines are long-lived, typically reaching ages of 100–1,000 years, and some even longer; the longest-lived is Great Basin Bristlecone Pine, where one individual at 4,839 years (2007) is the oldest living organism in the world.
The bark of most pines is thick and scaly, but some species have thin, flaking bark. The branches are produced in regular "pseudowhorls", actually a very tight spiral but appearing like a ring of branches arising from the same point. Many pines are uninodal, producing just one such whorl of branches each year, from buds at the tip of the year's new shoot, but others are multinodal, producing two or more whorls of branches per year. The spiral growth of branches, needles and cone scales are arranged in Fibonacci number ratios. The new spring shoots are sometimes called "candles"; they are covered in brown or whitish bud scales and point upward at first, then later turn green and spread outward.
Foliage
Pines have four types of leaves:
- Seed leaves (cotyledons) on seedlings, borne in a whorl of 4-24.
- Juvenile leaves, which follow immediately on seedlings and young plants, 2-6 cm long, single, green or often blue-green, and arranged spirally on the shoot. These are produced for six months to five years, rarely longer (and also produced later in life after injury in some pines).
- Scale leaves, similar to bud scales, small, brown and non-photosynthetic, and arranged spirally like the juvenile leaves.
- Needles, the adult leaves, which are green (photosynthetic), bundled in clusters ("fascicles") of (1-) 2-5 (-6) needles together, each fascicle produced from a small bud on a dwarf shoot in the axil of a scale leaf. These bud scales often remain on the fascicle as a basal sheath. The needles persist for 1.5-40 years, depending on species. If a shoot is damaged (e.g. eaten by an animal), the needle fascicles just below the damage will generate a bud which can then replace the lost growth.
Cones
Pines are mostly monoecious, having the male and female cones on the same tree, though a few species are sub-dioecious with individuals predominantly, but not wholly, single-sex. The male cones are small, typically 1-5 cm long, and only present for a short period (usually in spring, though autumn in a few pines), falling as soon as they have shed their pollen. The female cones take 1.5-3 years (depending on species) to mature after pollination, with actual fertilization delayed one year. At maturity the cones are 3-60 cm long. Each cone has numerous spirally arranged scales, with two seeds on each fertile scale; the scales at the base and tip of the cone are small and sterile, without seeds. The seeds are mostly small and winged, and are anemophilous (wind-dispersed), but some are larger and have only a vestigial wing, and are bird-dispersed (see below). At maturity, the cones usually open to release the seeds, but in some of the bird-dispersed species (e.g. Whitebark Pine), the seeds are only released by the bird breaking the cones open. In others, the fire climax pines (e.g. Monterey Pine, Pond Pine), the seeds are stored in closed ("serotinous") cones for many years until a forest fire kills the parent tree; the cones are also opened by the heat and the stored seeds are then released in huge numbers to re-populate the burnt ground.
Classification
Pines are divided into three subgenera, based on cone, seed and leaf characters:
- Subgenus Strobus (white or soft pines). Cone scale without a sealing band. Umbo terminal. Seedwings adnate. One fibrovascular bundle per leaf.
- Subgenus Ducampopinus (pinyon, lacebark and bristlecone pines). Cone scale without a sealing band. Umbo dorsal. Seedwings articulate. One fibrovascular bundle per leaf.
- Subgenus Pinus (yellow or hard pines). Cone scale with a sealing band. Umbo dorsal. Seedwings articulate. Two fibrovascular bundles per leaf.
Ecology
Mountain pine beetles killed these
Lodgepole Pines in Prince George, British Columbia.
Pines grow well in acid soils, some also on calcareous soils; most require good soil drainage, preferring sandy soils, but a few, e.g. Lodgepole Pine, will tolerate poorly drained wet soils. A few are able to sprout after forest fires, e.g. Canary Island Pine. Some species of pines, e.g. Bishop Pine, need fire to regenerate and their populations slowly decline under fire suppression regimes. Several species are adapted to extreme conditions imposed by elevation and latitude; see e.g. Siberian Dwarf Pine, Mountain Pine, Whitebark Pine and the bristlecone pines. The pinyon pines and a number of others, notably Turkish Pine, are particularly well adapted to growth in hot, dry semi-desert climates.
The seeds are commonly eaten by birds and squirrels. Some birds, notably the Spotted Nutcracker, Clark's Nutcracker and Pinyon Jay, are of importance in distributing pine seeds to new areas where they can grow. Pine needles are sometimes eaten by some Lepidoptera species and also the Symphytan species Pine Sawfly.
Uses
Commercial planting of young Longleaf Pine (Pinus palustris)
Pines are commercially among the most important of species used for timber and wood pulp in temperate and tropical regions of the world. This is because they are fast-growing softwoods that can be planted in relatively dense stands, and because their acidic decaying needles may inhibit the growth of other competing plants in the cropping areas. Commercial pine crops are grown in plantations.
The resin of some species is important as the source of turpentine.
Many pines are also very attractive ornamental trees planted in parks and large gardens. A large number of dwarf cultivars have been selected, suitable for planting in smaller gardens. Some pines are also used for Christmas trees, and pine cones are also widely used for Christmas decorations. Pine trees are also noted for their pleasant smell.
Pine needles serve as food for various Lepidoptera.
Food uses
- Main article: Pine nut
Some species have large seeds, called pine nuts, that are harvested and sold for cooking and baking.
The soft, moist, white inner bark (cambium) found clinging to the woody outer bark is edible and very high in vitamins A and C. It can be eaten raw in slices as a snack or dried and ground up into a powder for use as a thickener in stews, soups, and other foods. A tea made by steeping young, green pine needles in boiling water (known as "tallstrunt" in Sweden) is high in vitamins A and C as well.
Etymology
The modern English name pine derives from Latin Pinus by way of French pin; similar names are used in other Romance languages. In the past (pre-19th century) they were often known as fir, from Old Norse fyrre, by way of Middle English firre. The Old Norse name is still used for pines in some modern north European languages, in Danish, fyr, in Norwegian and Swedish, furu, and Föhre in German, but in modern English, "fir" is now restricted to Fir (Abies) and Douglas-fir (Pseudotsuga).
References
- Farjon, A. 1984, 2nd edition 2005. Pines. E. J. Brill, Leiden. ISBN 90-04-13916-8
- Little, E. L., Jr., and Critchfield, W. B. 1969. Subdivisions of the Genus Pinus (Pines). US Department of Agriculture Misc. Publ. 1144 (Superintendent of Documents Number: A 1.38:1144).
- Richardson, D. M. (ed.). 1998. Ecology and Biogeography of Pinus. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge. 530 p. ISBN 0-521-55176-5
- Mirov, N. T. 1967. The Genus Pinus. Ronald Press, New York (out of print).
- Classification of pines
- Gymnosperm Database - Pinus
