LONGLEAF PINE
(Pinus palustris)
THE young longleaf pine forms one of the most striking
features of southern forests. When five to 10 years of
age, the single upright stem with its long, dark, shiny
needles, forms a handsome plume of sparkling green; while
in later youth the stalwart sparingly branched sapling, with
its heavy twigs and gray bark, attracts immediate attention.
The older trees have tall, straight trunks, mostly one to two
feet in diameter, and open, irregular crowns, one-third to
one-half the length of the tree.
Longleaf pine is found throughout the State, except for
the southern tip of the peninsula. Longleaf pine stands
today reflect a history of extensive naval stores operations,
logging, and burning following the logging. As a result
many longleaf pine forests have been replaced by other
species.
The leaves or needles are from 10 to 15 inches long, in
clusters of three, and gathered towards the ends of the
thick, scaly twigs. The flowers, appearing in early spring
before the new needles, are a deep rose-purple turning to
silver-white. The male flowers grow in prominent, short,
dense clusters, and the female flowers in inconspicuous groups
of two to four.
The cones, or burrs, are six to 10 inches long, slightly
curved, the thick scales armed with small curved prickles.
The cones usually fall soon after the seeds ripen, leaving
their bases attached to the twigs.
The wood is heavy, hard, strong, tough, and durable. Known as yellow
pine, pitch pine, and southern pine, it is
used for all kinds of building and other construction. Naval
stores, consisting of tar, pitch, rosin, and turpentine, are
obtained from this tree and its close relative, the slash pine,
by bleeding the trees for their gum.
SLASH PINE (Yellow Slash)
(Pinus elliottii, var. elliottii [Little])
SLASH pine is a fast-growing tree common to all parts of Florida. Because of its abundant seed production, it has replaced longleaf pine naturally on large areas protected from fire. Second growth stands of slash pine now form a large part of the pine forests of Florida.
Slash pine and longleaf pine are the two pines that produce crude pine gum for naval stores products. Slash pine is the better gum producer.
A variety of slash pine (Pinus elliottii. var. densa), known by the common name of South Florida slash, is found alone the lower east and west coasts and on adjacent islands. South Florida slash produces gum sparingly.
Because of its rapid growth, easy propagation, and early yield of timber and crude gum, slash pine (Pinus elliottii, var. elliottii [Little]) promises excellent returns when planted and grown as a crop.
The trunk is straight, clears itself easily of branches, and is crowned with numerous small branches forming a round-topped head.
The needles, which occur in clusters of two or, more often, three in a sheath, are from eight to 12 inches long, dark green, shiny, and thickly-set on the branches, forming a dense head.
The cones are mostly three to six inches long, brown, and glossy or varnished; the thin scales are armed with fine prickles. Slash may best be distinguished from all other pines by these characteristics of its leaves and cones.
The wood is heavy, hard, strong, tough, durable, and very resinous. It is sawed into lumber and sold without discrimination as longleaf pine; and is used for general building and heavy construction purposes, for which it brings good prices.
POND PINE (Black Pine)
(Pinus rigida serotina)
THE pond pine, also known as pocosin pine, bay pine or black-bark pine, is found in small swamps and on flat, undrained, poor, sandy, or low, peaty soils of the coast regions of north Florida. It averages 40 to 50 feet in height and one to two feet in diameter. The trunk is often slightly crooked and somewhat rough with knots or bulges.
The tree somewhat resembles loblolly pine, but can he distinguished most easily by the broader and shorter cones, and its location generally on wet or very sour lands.
The Leaves occur in clusters of three, or occasionally four, and range in length from five to eight inches. They persist on the branches for three to four years. Small tufts or dwarf branches of leaves often occur on the trunks and larger limbs. The cones, or burrs when open are noticeably globular in outline, somewhat flattened, two to two and one-half inches long. Like all pines, they require two seasons for ripening, but remain closed for one to two years afterward, and persist on the branches for several years.
The bark is dark red-brown and irregularly divided by shallow furrows.
The wood is resinous, heavy, often coarse-grained, orange colored, with pale yellowish, wide sapwood. It is sawed and sold without discrimination along with lumber of other southern pines. In the earlier days of lumbering this pine was not much used for lumber. It is one of the few species of pine which, following cutting or killing back by fire, sprouts from the stumps of young vigorous saplings.
LOBLOLLY PINE (Oldfield Pine)
(Pinus taeda)
THIS pine, which is important throughout most of the South, is found in north Florida, generally in the narrow strips of alluvial soil along streams and rivers. It requires good soil. It occurs from central Florida northward. Young slash pine has been frequently mistaken for loblolly, which has much shorter needles, always three in a sheath, while slash has either two
or three in a sheath. The cone is larger and more prickly than that of the pond pine.
The bark is dark in color and deeply furrowed, and often attains a thickness of as much as two inches on large-sized trees. The needles, six to nine inches long, are borne three in a cluster; in the spring, bright green clumps of them at the ends of the branches give a luxuriant appearance to the tree. The fruit is a cone, or burr, about three to five inches long, which ripens in the autumn of the second year, and, during fall and early winter, sheds many seeds which, by their inch-long wings, are widely distributed by the wind.
The resinous wood is coarse-grained, with marked contrast (as in the other yellow pines) between the bands of early and late wood. The wood of second-growth trees has a wide range of uses where durability is not a requisite, such as for interior building material, box shooks, shipping barrels, basket veneers, pulpwood, lath, fuel, and mine props and piling when treated.
SHORTLEAF PINE
(Pinus echinata)
THE shortleaf pine, also known as yellow pine, rosemary pine, and old-field pine, is widely distributed throughout the South, but finds its true home in the Piedmont section and Arkansas. It is in north Florida, but sparse, and mostly on dry hills. The young tree in the open has a straight and somewhat stout stem with slightly ascending branches. In maturity the tree has a tall, straight stem and an oval crown, reaching a height locally of about 60 feet and a diameter, of about two and one-half feet. The young tree, when cut or burned back, reproduces itself by sprouting from the stump.
The leaves are in clusters of two or three, from three to five inches long, slender, flexible, and dark blue-green. The cones or burrs are the smallest of all our pines, one and one-half to two and one-half inches long, oblong, with small sharp prickles, generally clustered, and often holding to the twigs for three or four years. The small seeds are mottled and have a wing, which is broadest near the center. The bark is brownish red, broken into rectangular plates; it is thinner and lighter-colored than that of loblolly pine. This is most readily identified by its leaves and cones.
The wood of old trees is rather heavy and hard, of yellow-brown or orange color, fine-grained and less resinous than that of the other important southern pines. It is used largely for interior and exterior finishing, general construction, veneers, paper pulp, excelsior, cooperage, mine props, and other purposes.
SPRUCE PINE (Smooth Bark or Cedar Pine)
(Pinus glabra)
USUALLY growing singly or in small groves among hardwoods in rich soils of hammocks or river swamps, mostly in the northwestern portion of the State, the spruce pine may be easily recognized by its dark, almost smooth bark, unlike that of any other kind of tree found within its range. It is a large tree for it reaches a height of 80 to 100 feet and a diameter of two to over three feet. It has comparatively small horizontal branches which form a narrow open crown. This pine resembles considerably the true white pine of the mountains for which it is not uncommonly mistaken.
The leaves occur in clusters of two and are soft, slender, dark green and mostly from two to three inches long. They fall at the end of their second year. The cones are single or in clusters of two to three on short stout stalks. They are one and one-half to two inches long, reddish brown in color and rather lustrous, with thin scales armed with small weak prickles. They soon open and shed their seeds but remain on the tree for several years. The bark on young trees and on the upper part of the trunks is smooth pale gray, becoming noticeably dark on the lower part of the older trees, and slightly and irregularly divided by shallow fissures into flat connected ridges.
The wood is light, soft, brittle, close-grained, and not very strong. When sawed into lumber, the wood warps easily. It is increasingly used for various purposes and is well adapted for use in making paper pulp. With the growing scarcity of timber and closer utilization of our forest trees, this pine will likely be of more value in the future because of its large size and easy accessibility.
SAND PINE
(Pinus clausa)
THE sand pine grows in very sandy soil throughout the State, except in the more southern portion. It is most abundant in eastern Florida and the middle of the peninsula. It comes in extensively following fires when weather conditions are favorable; the seed has special protective equipment and holds its vitality well. Its growth is rapid considering that it is confined to the poorer sandy soils. In several
points, this tree resembles the Virginia, or scrub pine, and the jack pine of the Great Lakes region.
Florida recognizes two varieties of sand pine: the west coast, or Choctawhatchee variety; and the central, or Ocala, type which is found on the Ocala National Forest and nearby. In open or exposed positions the growth is somewhat irregular and picturesque.
The needles are two in a sheath, two to three inches long, slender, and dark green. The fruit is a cone, or burr, about two to three inches in length, and persists in the tree for a long time. Some of them open when mature, while others remain closed for two to four years, and still others remain closed and even become overgrown and embedded in the wood. The seeds are small and winged and are widely dispersed by winds. These characteristics explain why an excellent young stand often follows a sweeping fire. The bark is rough and dark colored over the lower part of the tree, but light reddish or ashy gray on the young blanches and twigs.
The wood is orange or yellowish, with thick, nearly white sapwood. It is light, soft, brittle, and not very strong. For a long time it was used principally for firewood but is now used for pulpwood and knotty pine paneling.
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