Pinus serotina

Pinus serotina
Conservation status
Least Concern (IUCN 2.3)
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
Division:	Pinophyta
Class:	Pinopsida
Order:	Pinales
Family:	Pinaceae
Genus:	Pinus
Subgenus:	Pinus
Species:	P. serotina
Binomial name
Pinus serotina Michx.

Pinus serotina (Pond Pine, Marsh Pine, Pocosin Pine) is a tree found along the Atlantic coastal plain of the eastern United States, from southern New Jersey south to Florida and west to southern Alabama. This pine often has a crooked growth pattern and an irregular top and attains the height of 15-20 m, occasionally up to 30 m.

The needles are in bundles of three or four, and of length 15-20 cm. The almost round cones are 5-9 cm long with small prickles on the scales. Its cones are serotinous and require fire to open. The Pond Pine is found in wet habitats near ponds, bays, swamps, and pocosins.^[1]

The species name is derived from the persistently unopened cones that may remain closed for several years before they release their seeds; the opening is often in response to forest fires.

At the north end of its range, it intergrades and hybridises with Pitch Pine (P. rigida); it is distinguished from that species by the longer needles and on average slightly larger cones. Some botanists treat Pond Pine as a subspecies of Pitch Pine.

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  Natural range.

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  Pond pine cones are smaller and rounder than loblolly pine cones.

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  Unlike loblolly pines, pond pines have the ability to grow needles directly from the trunk[1].

External links

• Flora of North America, Profile and map: P. serotina
• USDA FS: Silvics of Trees of North America. Pinus serotina Michx. Pond Pine

References

1. ^ Moore, Gerry; Kershner, Bruce; Craig Tufts; Daniel Mathews; Gil Nelson; Spellenberg, Richard; Thieret, John W.; Terry Purinton; Block, Andrew (2008). National Wildlife Federation Field Guide to Trees of North America. New York: Sterling. p. 73. ISBN 1-4027-3875-7. 

• Conifer Specialist Group (1998). Pinus serotina. 2006. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. IUCN 2006. www.iucnredlist.org. Retrieved on 12 May 2006.