Eastern white pine
- Latin name: Pinus strobus L.
- French name: Pin blanc
- Synonym(s): Northern white pine Weymouth pine
- Taxonomic Serial Number: 183385
Description
Leaves
Form
- Needles evergreen
- Remaining on tree for 1–4 years
- In bundles of 5
- Slender, straight
- Triangular in cross-section
- Flexible, soft
- Edges finely toothed
- Bundle-sheath scales deciduous during first season
Length
- 5–15 cm
Colour
- Bluish-green with lines of white dots
Buds
Form
- Slender, sharp-pointed
- Scales overlapping
Length
- To 15 mm
Colour
- Reddish-brown
Twigs
Form
- Microshoot scars round or oval, set in a crescent-shaped leaf-cushion
- Hairy, becoming hairless in second season
Colour
- Green, becoming orange-brown in second season
Seed cones (mature)
Form
- Cylindrical
- Pendulous
Colour
- Yellowish-green to light brown when mature
Length
- 8–20 cm
- Stalk 2 cm
Structure
- Scales 50–80, usually in 5 spiral rows
- Thin, rounded at the tip, without prickles
Timing
- Seeds and cones shed soon after cones mature
Seeds
Form
- Mottled
Length
- Seed 5–8 mm
- Seed wing about 20 mm
Colour
- Reddish-brown
Seedlings
Form
- 6–11 cotyledons, minutely toothed
Length
- 20–30 mm
Bark
Form
- Thin, smooth when young
- With age broken into broad scaly ridges 2–5 cm thick, separated by deep longitudinal furrows
Colour
- Greyish-green when young, with age becoming dark greyish-brown
Wood
Texture
- Soft, light, moderately strong
Colour
- Creamy-white to yellow
Morphology
- Straight-grained, easily worked
- Heartwood moderately decay-resistant
Uses
- Patterns because of its low shrinkage and uniform texture
- Also doors, moldings, trim, siding, paneling, plywood, furniture, and cabinetwork
Size
Height
- To 30 m, occasionally larger
Diameter
- To 100 cm
Maximum age
- 200 years, occasionally older
Tree form
Open-grown
Crown
- In young trees, crown conical with regular whorls of branches
- Fast-growing
- In mature trees, crown irregular with a few long, stout branches set roughly at right angles to the trunk
- Branches in upper crown ascending, giving a broadly oval flat-topped outline
- Often becomes one-sided because of the prevailing wind
Forest-grown
Trunk
- Often branch-free for lower two-thirds of its height
Crown
- Columnar
Root system
- 3–5 moderately deep lateral roots
- Often sinker roots growing down from them
Habitat
Site
- Dry sandy soils and rocky ridges to sphagnum bogs
- Grows best on moist, sandy loam
Light tolerance
- Thrives in full sunlight
- Seedlings moderately shade-tolerant
- Can survive under an open canopy and attain full vigour if shade removed within 20 years
Associated species
- Usually mixed with other species
Photos
Photos
Anthony Scullion
Anthony Scullion
Insects and mites
Insects that cause damage to this tree.
-
Pales weevil
Scientific name: Hylobius pales (Herbst)
Cones or seeds
- Eupithecia placidata (Taylor)
-
Fir coneworm
Scientific name: Dioryctria abietivorella (Grote)
-
Jack pine budworm
Scientific name: Choristoneura pinus pinus Freeman
Foliage or buds
Hemlock looper
-
Lambdina fiscellaria
(Guenée)
- Lambdina fiscellaria fiscellaria
- Lambdina fiscellaria lugubrosa
- Lambdina fiscellaria somniaria
-
Eastern pine shoot borer
Scientific name: Eucosma gloriola Heinrich
- Feralia comstocki Grote
-
Fir coneworm
Scientific name: Dioryctria abietivorella (Grote)
-
Gray spruce looper
Scientific name: Caripeta divisata Walker
-
Green larch looper
Scientific name: Semiothisa sexmaculata (Packard)
-
Hemlock looper
Scientific names:
-
Lambdina fiscellaria
(Guenée)
- Lambdina fiscellaria fiscellaria
- Lambdina fiscellaria lugubrosa
- Lambdina fiscellaria somniaria
-
Lambdina fiscellaria
(Guenée)
-
Introduced pine sawfly
Scientific name: Diprion similis (Hartig)
-
Jack pine budworm
Scientific name: Choristoneura pinus pinus Freeman
-
Lodgepole terminal weevil
Scientific name: Pissodes terminalis (Hopping)
-
Pero moth
Scientific name: Pero morrisonaria (Hy. Edwards)
-
Pine leaf adelgid
Scientific name: Pineus pinifoliae (Fitch)
-
Pine measuringworm moth
Scientific name: Hypagyrtis piniata (Pack.)
-
Pine needle scale
Scientific name: Chionaspis pinifoliae (Fitch)
-
Pine zale
Scientific name: Zale duplicata (Bethune)
- Protoboarmia porcelaria (Guenee)
-
Small pine looper
Scientific name: Eupithecia palpata Pack.
-
Western pine elfin
Scientific name: Callophrys eryphon (Boisduval)
-
White pine weevil
Scientific name: Pissodes strobi (Peck)
-
White slaut
Scientific name: Tetracis cachexiata (Guenée)
-
Whitetriangle leafroller
Scientific name: Clepsis persicana (Fitch)
Roots, bark, stem or trunk, or branches
Diseases caused by pathogens
Diseases caused by pathogens that cause damage to this tree.
-
Brown cubical sap rot
Pathogen name: Gloeophyllum sepiarium (Wulfen: Fr.) P. Karst.
-
Diplodia blight
Pathogen name: Diplodia sapinea (Fr.) Fuckel
Cones or seeds
-
Sirococcus Shoot Blight
Pathogen name: Sirococcus conigenus (Dc.) Cannon & Minter
Foliage or buds
-
Diplodia blight
Pathogen name: Diplodia sapinea (Fr.) Fuckel
-
Needle cast (Lophodermium pinastri )
Pathogen name: Lophodermium pinastri (Shrad.:Fr.) Chev.
-
Sirococcus Shoot Blight
Pathogen name: Sirococcus conigenus (Dc.) Cannon & Minter
-
Snow blight
Pathogen name: Phacidium infestans P. Karst
Roots, bark, stem or trunk, or branches
Annosus root and butt rot (Heterobasidion irregulare)
Pathogen name: Heterobasidion irregulare (Underw.) Garbel. & Otrosina
Pitted sap rot
Pathogen name: Trichaptum abietinum (Dicks.) Ryvarden (Common names for this fungus: purple conk fungus, purple-toothed polypore)
Schweinitzii butt rot
Pathogen name: Phaeolus schweinitzii (Fr.) Pat. (Common names for the fungus: velvet-topped polypore, dyer’s polypore)
Scleroderris canker, European strain
Pathogen name: Gremmeniella abietina var. Eu (Lagerberg) Morelet
Distribution map
