BOTANICAL AND ECOLOGICAL CHARACTERISTICS
SPECIES: Pinus palustris | Longleaf Pine 



GENERAL BOTANICAL CHARACTERISTICS : 
Longleaf pine is a long-lived, native, evergreen conifer with scaly
bark.  Needles are 8 to 18 inches (20-46 cm) long; cones are 6 to 8
inches (15-20 cm) long.  Mature trees attain a height of 100 to 120 feet
(30.5-36.6 m) and have the potential of living 4 to 5 centuries.  The
longleaf pine seed is the largest of all southern pines.  On good sites,
longleaf pine grows an 8- to 12-foot-long (2.4-3.7 m) taproot and
extensive lateral roots [7,38,54].


RAUNKIAER LIFE FORM : 
   Phanerophyte (mesophanerophyte)
   Phanerophyte (megaphanerophyte)


REGENERATION PROCESSES : 
Seed production and dissemination:  Longleaf pine is monoecious.  It
begins producing cones when it reaches about 30 years of age or 10
inches (25 cm) in diameter [18,38].  The best cone producers are
15-inch-diameter (38 cm) open-grown trees.  Cones contain, on average,
35 seeds [7].  Longleaf pine masts every 7 to 10 years, but healthy
trees will produce a fair to good seed crop every 3 to 4 years
[2,37,38].  The winged seeds are dispersed a short distance by wind with
71 percent of the seeds falling within 66 feet (20 m) of the base of the
parent tree [7].

Germination and seedling development:  Seeds germinate 1 to 2 weeks
after seedfall.  Germination is epigeal and requires mineral soil.  The
seed's large size and persistent wing prevent it from penetrating
through the litter.  Seedlings are stemless after one growing season and
this "grass-stage" lasts from 2 to many years [7,18,38].  It may last as
long as 20 years if brown-spot needle blight or competition is severe
[18,45].  During the grass-stage, the seedling develops an extensive
root system, and the root collar increases in diameter.  When the root
collar diameter approaches 1 inch (2.5 cm) in diameter, height growth
begins.  An open-grown seedling grows 10 feet (3 m) in 3 years once
height growth is initiated [7,37,54].  Branch production is delayed
until the seedling reaches 10 to 16 feet (3-5 m) in height [43].

Vegetative reproduction:  If grass-stage seedlings are top-killed, they
can sprout from the root collar.  Once height growth begins, sprouting
ability decreases rapidly [7].


SITE CHARACTERISTICS : 
Longleaf pine grows in a warm, wet, temperate climate with an annual
precipitation of 43 to 69 inches (109-175 cm).  The species occupies a
wide variety of upland and flatwood sites, but is most common on sandy,
infertile, well-drained soils.  Soil types include Ultisols, Entisols,
and Spodosols.  Elevations range from near sea level to 1,970 feet (600
m), although most longleaf pine grows below 660 feet (200 m) [7].

Associated hardwoods on mesic coastal plain sites include southern red
oak (Quercus falcata), blackjack oak (Q. marilandica), water oak (Q.
nigra), flowering dogwood (Cornus florida), blackgum (Nyssa sylvatica),
sweetgum (Liquidambar styraciflua), persimmon (Diospyros virginiana) and
sassafras (Sassafras albidum).  Associated hardwoods on xeric sandhill
sites include turkey oak (Q. laevis), bluejack oak (Q. incana), sand
post oak (Q. stellata var. margaretta), and live oak (Q. virginiana) [7].

Associated shrubs include gallberry (Ilex glabra), yaupon (I.
vomitoria), large gallberry (I. coriacea), southern bayberry (Myrica
cerifera), shining sumac (Rhus copallina), blueberry (Vaccinium spp.),
huckleberry (Gaylussacia spp.), blackberry (Rubus spp.), saw palmetto
(Serena repens), sweetbay (Magnolia virginiana), swamp cyrilla (Cyrilla
racemiflora), and buckwheat-tree (Cliftonia monophylla) [7].

In longleaf pine's western range, groundcover includes bluestem
(Andropogon spp.) and panicum (Panicum spp.).  In its eastern range,
pineland threeawn or wiregrass (Aristida stricta) is the primary
groundcover [7].


SUCCESSIONAL STATUS : 
Longleaf pine is intolerant of shade and competition.  With frequent
fire, uneven-aged pure stands of longleaf pine form parklike savannahs
[7,20,37].  Because longleaf pine regenerates in openings created by the
death of mature trees, small clusters of trees of the same age are
dispersed throughout the stand [43].  In the absence of frequent fire,
longleaf pine is replaced by hardwoods and other southern pines [7,54].
Loblolly pine and shortleaf pine will invade and soon dominate a site of
grass-stage longleaf pine [11].  Recruitment of longleaf pine ceases 15
years after fire.  Invasion by hardwoods accelerates the decline of
mature longleaf pine [24].

Longleaf pine is classified as a fire subclimax [18,19,20,45].
Lightning, which historically ignited the frequent fires, is a component
of a long-term climatic pattern.  As long as there is lightning,
longleaf pine can perpetuate itself indefinitely on a site.


SEASONAL DEVELOPMENT : 
Longleaf pine seed develops in a 3-year process.  Strobili are initiated
during midsummer.  Conelets emerge in late winter.  Catkins emerge in
November, then remain dormant until late winter.  Pollination occurs
from late February in the South to early April in the North.
Fertilization does not occur until the following spring.  Cones reach
maturity in mid-September to mid-October after their second season of
growth.  Seed is dispersed from late October to November and the
majority of seed falls in 2 to 3 weeks.  Seed germinates 1 to 2 weeks
later.  Primary needles appear soon after germination and secondary
needles about 2 months later [7,18].

Related categories for Species: Pinus palustris | Longleaf Pine