Scientific name: Pinus serotina A.Michaux 1803
Synonyms: Pinus alopecuroides Gordon, Pinus rigida subsp. serotina (Michx.) Engelm., Pinus rigida var. serotina (Michx.) Loudon ex Hoopes
Common names:Pond pine, Marsh pine, Pocosin pine
Description
Tree to 20(-22) m tall, with trunk to 0.6 m in diameter, often crooked. Bark reddish brown to dark grayish brown, thin, with small, elongate, scaly plates separated by narrow, shallow furrows. Crown deeply dome-shaped, open and irregular, with slender horizontal to upwardly angled branches densely clothed with foliage just at the tips. Twigs coarse, orange-brown, sometimes with a thin coating of wax, hairless, a little rough with the bases of scale leaves. Buds 10-15(-20) mm long, resinous. Needles in bundles of three to four, each needle (12-)15-20(-21) cm long, thick, stiff (hence the scientific name), and twisted, lasting 2-3 years, yellowish green. Individual needles with inconspicuous lines of stomates on both the inner and outer faces, and 2-11 resin canals at the corners and in between midway between the needle surface and the two-stranded midvein or some touching the midvein. Sheath 9-20 mm, weathering to 5-12 mm and persisting and falling with the bundle. Pollen cones 20-30 mm long, pale yellowish brown. Seed cones typically remaining closed at maturity, about 3.5-5 cm wide on a stalk 1-1.5 cm long and with the umbos bearing fragile prickles. Seed scales paddle-shaped, the exposed face horizontally diamond-shaped, slightly pyramidal and crossed by a distinct ridge topped by a large umbo bearing a fragile to persistent, sharp prickle. Seed body 5-6 mm long, the firmly attached wing another 15-20 mm longer.
Southern portion of the range of the species north to southern New Jersey, eastern Virginia, eastern North Carolina, eastern South Carolina, southern Georgia, and central Mississippi. Commonly on seasonally flooded sites; 0-200 m.
Conservation Status
Red List Category & Criteria: Least Concern
(Pinus serotina is widespread and abundant across its range in suitable habitat and is therefore assessed as Least Concern)
References
Farjon, A. (2010). A Handbook of the World's Conifers. Koninklijke Brill, Leiden.
Eckenwalder, J.E. (2009) Conifers of the World: The Complete Reference. Timber Press, Portland.
IUCN Red List of Threatened Species, International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources. Cambridge, UK /Gland, Switzerland
Copyright © Aljos Farjon, James E. Eckenwalder, IUCN, Conifers Garden. All rights reserved.