Pinus serotina

Pond pine
Conservation status
Least Concern  (IUCN 3.1)
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
Division:	Pinophyta
Class:	Pinopsida
Order:	Pinales
Family:	Pinaceae
Genus:	Pinus
Subgenus:	Pinus
Species:	P. serotina
Binomial name
Pinus serotina Michx.
Natural range

Pinus serotina, the pond pine, marsh pine or pocosin pine, is a tree found along the Atlantic coastal plain of the eastern United States, from southern New Jersey south to Florida and west to southern Alabama. This pine often has a crooked growth pattern and an irregular top and grows up to 21 metres (69 ft) high,^[1] rarely to 29 metres (95 ft).^[2]

The needles are in bundles of three or four, and 15–20 cm (6–8 in) long. The almost round cones are 5–8 cm (2–3 ¹⁄₄ in) long with small prickles on the scales. Its cones are usually serotinous, requiring fire to open.^[1] The pond pine is found in wet habitats near ponds, bays, swamps, and pocosins.^[3]

The species name serotina is derived from the persistently unopened cones that may remain closed for several years before they release their seeds; the opening is often in response to forest fires.

At the north end of its range, it intergrades and hybridises with pitch pine (P. rigida); it is distinguished from that species by the longer needles and on average slightly larger cones. Some botanists treat pond pine as a subspecies of pitch pine.

• 
  Pond pine cones are smaller and rounder than loblolly pine cones.
• 
  Unlike loblolly pines, pond pines have the ability to grow needles directly from the trunk.^[4]

References

1. "Pinus serotina". Flora of North America (FNA). Missouri Botanical Garden – via eFloras.org.
2. Bramlett, David L. (1990). "Pinus serotina". In Burns, Russell M.; Honkala, Barbara H. Conifers. Silvics of North America. Washington, D.C.: United States Forest Service (USFS), United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). 1 – via Northeastern Area State and Private Forestry (www.na.fs.fed.us).
3. Moore, Gerry; Kershner, Bruce; Craig Tufts; Daniel Mathews; Gil Nelson; Spellenberg, Richard; Thieret, John W.; Terry Purinton; Block, Andrew (2008). National Wildlife Federation Field Guide to Trees of North America. New York: Sterling. p. 73. ISBN 1-4027-3875-7.
4. Trees, Shrubs, and Woody Vines of North Carolina: Pond Pine (Pinus serotina)

• Conifer Specialist Group (1998). "Pinus serotina". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2006. International Union for Conservation of Nature. Retrieved 12 May 2006.