North Carolina State Tree
Longleaf Pine (common name) Pinus palustris (scientific name) Overview Longleaf pine is a tall, stately native of the southern United States, and the official state tree of Alabama and North Carolina. It is one of several pines that characterize the southern pine savannahs. Longleaf pine thrives in areas with long, hot summer conditions and acidic soils that are low in organic matter. Like most savannah species, longleaf pine depends on fire to maintain its habitat. Its seeds germinate best on land recently burned.   Close-up STATUS Official PHYSICAL DETAILS Longleaf pine is a long-lived, native, evergreen conifer with scaly bark. The tree reaches up to 100 feet in height and up to 4 feet in diameter. Longleaf pine has the largest cones and, as its name implies, the longest needles of any North American pine. Its long, bright green needles occur in dense bundles of three that reach 8-18 inches in length and last for about two years. The fruit is a suspended, dull gray-brown woody cone 6-10 inches long which matures in two years. At the tip of the cone's scales is a small prickle that bends toward the base of the cone. This species has an open, irregular crown of a few spreading branches, with one row added each year. Mature trees provide high, airy, fragrant canopies. Height: 80-100 ft Diameter: 2½-4 ft Bark: thick, scaly, coarse, light, orange-brown/reddish-brown Seed: ovoid-oblong, brown cones, 6-10 in long, up to 5 inches wide at base Leaves: flexible, dark green needles are in groups of 3, 6-18 inches long LIFESPAN Longleaf pine is a slow-growing tree that lives 200 to 300 years, with the potential of living up to five centuries. HABITAT Longleaf pine grows on coastal plains requiring a low to moderate amount of moisture. It grows in open to moderately dense groups of pine with various grasses and shrubs, and shares its habitat with a variety of oak species, as well as flowering dogwood, blackgum, sweetgum, persimmon and sassafras. IMPORTANCE TO LIVESTOCK AND WILDLIFE Many species feed on the seeds of longleaf pine. Rabbits, gophers, and hogs graze seedlings. Ants eat germinating seeds. This tree also attracts deer, squirrels, gophers, rabbits, and various birds, such as quail and turkeys. Old hollow trees are a favorite home for the endangered red-cockaded woodpecker. OTHER USES AND VALUES This pine produces valuable lumber. The wood is used as timber for posts, structural beams, flooring, and shipbuilding. Longleaf pine is also a leading world producer of pine spa products. The trees are tapped to produce turpentine, rosin, and tar. Longleaf pine's needles are used for mulch. Logging and conversion of the land for other uses has eliminated 97 percent of the longleaf pine forests that existed in pre-colonial times. Modern methods of reforestation are helping to restore longleaf pine to previously cleared land. REPRODUCTION The winged seeds are dispersed a short distance by wind with 71 percent of the seeds falling within 66 feet of the base of the parent tree. Seeds (including dormant seeds if pre-chilled) can be sown in the fall or spring. Seeds germinate one to two weeks following seedfall. For the first two to as many as 20 years after germination, the pine stays in a tufted, grass-like stage, growing slowly while the root system develops. Following the grass stage, it grows at a medium to fast rate. Branch production is delayed until the seedling reaches 10 to 16 feet in height.  SITE CHARACTERISTICS Longleaf pine grows in a warm, wet, temperate climate with an annual precipitation of 43 to 69 inches. The species occupies a wide variety of upland and flatwood sites, but is most common on sandy, infertile, well-drained soils. It is intolerant of shade and competition. LOCATION/ELEVATION Longleaf pine is found 10 states. Its range includes the Atlantic and Gulf coastal plains, from southeast Texas to southern Virginia and south to central Florida. Elevations range from near sea level to 1,970 feet, although most longleaf pine grows below 660 feet. TRIVIA Longleaf pine was designated as the state tree of North Carolina in 1963. Alabama's state tree was listed as the "Southern pine" in 1949. But many pines are native to the South, and this name was not specific. Loblolly pine was planted in the National Grove of State Trees in 1989 to represent a "Southern pine." In 1997, legislation designated longleaf pine as the Alabama state tree, and the planting for the state will therefore be changed. The stumps and taproots of old longleaf pine trees become saturated with resin and will not rot. Farmers sometimes find old buried stumps in fields, even in fields that were cleared a century ago. These stumps are usually dug up and sold as fatwood, which is used as kindling for fireplaces, wood stoves, and barbecue pits.
	Click to enlarge an image Longleaf Pine in Grass Stage Longleaf Pine Needles Longleaf Pine Cone Longleaf Pine Bark Closeup of Longleaf Pine Needles Longleaf Pine Distribution Map (pdf) CLASSIFICATION Kingdom: Plantae Subkingdom: Tracheobionta Superdivision: Spermatophyta Division: Coniferophyta Class: Pinopsida Order: Pinales Family: Pinaceae Genus: Pinus L. Species: Pinus palustris
	Sources: U.S. Forest Service U.S. National Arboretum U.S. Department of Agriculture Author: World Trade Press