Red pine

Leaves

Form

• Needles evergreen
• In bundles of 2
• Straight, brittle (breaking in half when bent)
• Pointed
• Edges finely and sharply toothed
• Bundle-sheath persistent
• Dry scale leaves remain at the annual nodes

Length

• 10–16 cm

Colour

• Shiny dark green

Buds

Form

• Sharp-pointed, resinous
• Scales overlapping, loose, hairy

Length

• To 2 cm

Colour

• Reddish-brown

Twigs

Form

• Stout, shiny, grooved and ridged

Colour

• Orange to reddish-brown

Seed cones (mature)

Form

• Ovoid, almost stalkless

Length

• 4–7 cm

Structure

• Scales slightly thickened at the tips, without prickles

Timing

• Opening in autumn at maturity to release the seeds
• Cones are shed the following year, sometimes leaving a few basal scales on the branchlets

Seeds

Form

• Dull, often mottled

Length

• Seed about 5 mm
• Seed wing about 15 mm

Seedlings

Form

• 5–10 cotyledons, toothless

Length

• 15–25 mm

Bark

Form

• Scaly, becoming furrowed into broad, flat, scaly plates with age

Colour

• Reddish to pinkish

Wood

Texture

• Relatively light, moderately hard

Colour

• Pale brown to reddish-brown

Morphology

• Straight-grained
• Latewood prominent
• Sapwood wide

Uses

• Wood poles and pilings, structural timber

Size

Height

• To 25 m

Diameter

• To 75 cm

Maximum age

• 200 years

Tree form

Forest-grown

Trunk

• Slender, straight
• Distinct to the tip on young trees
• Dead branches soon fall, leaving the trunk clear

Crown

• Conical on young trees, becoming irregular and flat-topped
• Upper principal branches upcurved
• Lower branches spreading horizontally or somewhat drooping, with the foliage crowded toward the tips

Root system

• Moderately deep, wide-spreading
• Sometimes with a taproot
• Lateral roots with sinkers
• Windfirm

Habitat

Site

• Sand plains, rock outcrops, and sites where soil fertility is low

Light tolerance

• Intolerant of shade

Associated species

• In pure stands or mixed with eastern white pine, jack pine, aspens

Range

Southeastern Manitoba to Newfoundland