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Pinus echinata
Also called Arkansas Pine, Southern Pine, Short Leaf Pine, Shortleaf Yellow Pine, Shortstraw Pine, Southern Yellow Pine, Yellow Pine
Shortleaf pine is a large conifer native to the eastern and central United States, with the widest range of the southern yellow pines. It is a tree rather than a houseplant and grows best in full sun in moist to moderately dry soils.
The shortleaf pine or Pinus echinata is a species of coniferous tree in the family Pinaceae, a pine endemic to the United States. The shortleaf pine is sometimes referred to as the "old field", "spruce", "rosemary", "yellow", "two-leaf" and "heart" pine. The common name "shortleaf pine" may refer to other species like loblolly pine (Pinus taeda), based on a custom in the Southeastern United States to only refer to pines as either "long-leaf" or "short-leaf". However, P. echinata can be distinguished from other pines by examining its short leaves and small cones.
Shortleaf pine has the largest range of the southern US yellow pines. It is found from southernmost New York, south to northern Florida, west to eastern Texas and Oklahoma. This pine occupies a variety of habitats from rocky uplands to wet flood plains.
Shortleaf pine is a source of wood pulp, plywood veneer, and lumber for a variety of uses. The shortleaf pine is one of the southern US "southern yellow pines"; it is also occasionally called southern yellow pine or the shortstraw pine. The wood from the shortleaf pine is used commercially for creating flooring and beams. In the past, it was used in building ship masts, and during the Revolutionary War and into the 1800s, it was a major timber source for homes. The shortleaf pine is famous for lightwood, also known as fat wood: a resinous wood that is well known for lighting fires. A strong fire with this wood only requires a kitchen match.
Rocky Mountains Bristlecone Pine · Arizona Pine · Chinese White Pine · Mexican White Pine · Jack pine · Turkish Pine · Lacebark Pine · Canary Islands Pine · Caribbean pine · Swiss Pine · Mexican Pinyon · Sand Pine
Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Pinus echinata by its contributors, under CC BY-SA 4.0; the excerpts and the care summary drawn from them are shared under the same licence.
The care summary was written by AI (Claude, Anthropic) from the sources on this page, with general growing knowledge where they are silent. Check before relying on it.
Life form, climate and native range: World Checklist of Vascular Plants, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (CC BY 3.0), reformatted; see Plants of the World Online.
