VALUE AND USE
SPECIES: Pinus echinata | Shortleaf Pine 



WOOD PRODUCTS VALUE : 
Shortleaf pine, an important commercial species, ranks second to
loblolly pine in total softwood volume harvested in the southeastern
United States [6,37].  After 36 years, an even-aged stand yields 5,000
to 6,000 total merchantable cubic feet per acre (350-415 cubic m/ha)
[1].  The strong wood is used for lumber, plywood, structural material,
and pulpwood [24].


IMPORTANCE TO LIVESTOCK AND WILDLIFE : 
Shortleaf pine seeds are an important food source for birds and small
mammals [24].  Deer browse on seedlings.  Stands of seedlings and
saplings provide cover for bobwhite quail and wild turkey [24,42].
Old-growth shortleaf pine provides habitat for cavity dwellers [10].


PALATABILITY : 
NO-ENTRY


NUTRITIONAL VALUE : 
NO-ENTRY


COVER VALUE : 
The federally endangered red-cockaded woodpecker lives in old-growth
shortleaf pine with decayed heartwood [10].


VALUE FOR REHABILITATION OF DISTURBED SITES : 
Because of its adaptability, shortleaf pine has potential for
rehabilitating eroded areas and mine sites [24].  For best success, mine
sites should have a pH between 4.5 and 6.5 and be below 2,500 feet (762
m).  Shortleaf pine does best on mine sites when planted as a pure stand
or mixed with other pines.  It also grows well with European alder
(Alnus glutinosa) [39].


OTHER USES AND VALUES : 
Shortleaf pine is used as an ornamental [24].


MANAGEMENT CONSIDERATIONS : 
Shortleaf pine is usually managed in even-aged stands with clearcutting
followed by artificial regeneration.  Natural regeneration can be used,
but seedbed preparation is recommended.  Seed tree silviculture requires
11 square feet basal area per acre (2.5 m sq/ha) of shortleaf pine seed
trees.  A shelterwood system requires 20 to 30 square feet of basal area
per acre (4.6-6.9 m sq/ha) of shortleaf pine [1].  Seedbed preparation
should be done early to benefit from the high viability of early
released seeds [42].

Uneven-aged management requires frequent harvest of single trees and
seedling establishment once every 10 years [1,24].  Shortleaf pine
seedlings will establish if overstory is reduced to 45 to 60 square feet
basal area per acre (10.3-13.8 m sq/ha) [1].

Control of competing understory is generally considered necessary for
maintenance of shortleaf pine stands [17,37].  Hardwoods suppress
shade-intolerant seedlings and saplings, and a thick litter discourages
seedling establishment.  However, hardwoods also prevent soil moisture
loss and discourage competing herbaceous vegetation.  Cain [8] suggests
that the coexistence of hardwoods with shortleaf pine may be an
antagonistic symbiosis.  Yocum and Lawson [47] found that intensive
hardwood control on southern exposures actually decreased the rate of
establishment of shortleaf pine seedlings.

Control of dense understory can increase the growth rate of shortleaf
pine [17,29].  Lloyd and others [29] reported a 17 percent increase in
2-year shortleaf pine diameter growth after a spring felling of
competing hardwoods and a 22 percent increase in diameter growth after a
winter felling followed by an herbicide treatment.  Cain [7] reported
that control of herbaceous vegetation resulted in increases in pine
growth, while control of hardwoods had little effect.  After 5 years,
pines on herbaceous control plots averaged more than 4 feet taller than
pines on untreated plots or woody control plots.  However, even on the
untreated plots, pines exceeded the herbaceous and woody competitors by
6 feet.  Cain [7] concluded that control of hardwood competition is not
necessary if pines, hardwoods, and herbaceous species establish on a
site at the same time.  The relatively fast-growing shortleaf pine
seedlings dominate over hardwoods in 5 to 7 years [8].

Loblolly pine outperforms shortleaf pine in loblolly's natural range
because it grows faster as a juvenile.  If planted together, however,
shortleaf pine can survive and attain a codominant crown position in
mature even-aged stands [6].

Littleleaf disease, the most serious disease afflicting shortleaf pine,
affects 30 to 50 year-old trees and causes needles to turn yellow and
fall off.  Littleleaf disease is a recent phenomenon and occurs only
where shortleaf pine has colonized severely eroded agricultural land.
The disease is caused by a combination of factors:  low soil nutrients,
poor internal drainage, and the presence of Phytophthora cinnamomi, a
soil fungus.  The poor drainage allows the fungus, which attacks the
feeder roots, to sporulate abundantly.  Hardwoods should not be
controlled where littleleaf disease is present because the soil needs to
build up.  Afflicted trees respond positively to large doses of nitrogen
[33,42].  Mueller-Dombois and others [33] claim it is not a disease, but
a dieback or decline phenomenon.

Other common diseases are root rot and red heart rot.  Seedlings are
subject to damping off [24].

Nantucket pine tip moth (Rhyacionia frustrana) larvae bore into the
shortleaf pine buds of young trees and kill the tips.  Southern pine
beetle (Dendroctonus frontalis) attacks the bark of shortleaf pine and
individuals usually die in less than 1 year [24,42].  Redheaded pine
sawfly (Neodiprion lecontei), loblolly pine sawfly (N. taedae linearis),
pine engraver beetle (Ips spp.), and black turpentine beetle
(Dendroctonus terebrans) attack and damage shortleaf pine.

The decline of old growth shortleaf pines has resulted in a decline in
population of the federally endangered red-cockaded woodpecker.  Death
of old growth shortleaf pine is primarily from southern pine beetle.  In
order to minimize cavity tree mortality, site disturbances should be
limited when southern pine beetle populations are elevated [10].

Acid rain is suspected of causing an abnormal decrease in growth of
shortleaf pine in the past 25 years [19].  Ozone concentrations two and
a half times the ambient ozone concentration cause decreased growth in
shortleaf pine [36].

Related categories for Species: Pinus echinata | Shortleaf Pine