Pinus echinata | Short Leaf Pine | General Inquiry

Horticulture
21

@StephenV, those appear to be hybrids. The bark seems to be exfoliating more than pure SLPs and with lots of Loblollys in the area that further increases the odds of that. The tree in the 3rd photo has the highest likelihood of being a pure Shortleaf Pine. Those smaller cones are definitely an indicator of SLP genetics in my experience in mixed stands.

Here is a link to a species bark comparison between Shortleaf Pine, Loblolly & Longleaf Pine | Loblolly, Shortleaf or Longleaf? The Bark Will Help | N.C. Cooperative Extension

Attached are two photos showing what a common cone and bark pattern looks like on pure / non-hybridized Shortleaf Pines.

Pinus echinata_Bark
Pinus echinata_Bark720×960 131 KB

Pinus echinata_Cone
Pinus echinata_Cone1920×1440 528 KB

If you want absolute certainty, you can collect leaf material and send it to a university extension lab and have it tested (probably a bit spendy).

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22

Thanks @Kurt - appreciate the insight. Not surprised to hear that these are likely Hybrid varieties. Still very cool trees - much shorter needles and much smaller cones. Seems like I am just outside the native range.

Thanks for all the information and for exposing me to this species of pine!

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23

@StephenV, no problem at all. If you find young ones that you can collect they will respond very well to bonsai culture. Smaller needles than a Loblolly and a bit bigger than a SLP, but both can be reduced via decandeling like JBP, so all the techniques are the same.

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