Pinus strobus L.

Eastern White Pine

Tree

Perennial

Vascular

Eastern White Pine is a non-native evergreen needle-leafed tree in the Pine family (Pinaceae). Its natural range extends from Canada south to north Georgia and Tennessee and disjunct in Mexico and Guatemala. In Alabama it is sometimes planted and can persist or escape. It is a large tree reaching heights of 200 feet. The trunk is straight and the bark is gray-brown in color, fissuring into long rectangular plates. The crown is conic, often becoming flat topped with age. The branches are whorled in groups of 5-6. Needle leaves occur in fascicles of 5. The leaves are 2-4 inches in length, straight, and blue-green in color. They are soft and flexible in texture. Pollen cones are about 1/2 inch in length and yellow-brown in color. Seed cones are slender, cylindrical in outline, 3-8 inches in length, and gray-brown in color. The seed cones are pendent, mature in 2 years, and quickly drop after releasing the seed. The seed are winged. White Pine is a large, straight tree valued for timber and pulp production. It was once highly prized for ship masts. The needles of White Pine are high in vitamin C and have been used for a herbal tea. Eastern White Pine is available in the nursery trade. Its soft, blue-green foliage and pleasing shape make it a desirable ornamental. However, its fast growth and large size at maturity limit its use in the home landscape.—A. Diamond.

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Not Native FACU (NWPL)

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