Part 18

=Pinus rigida=, Mill.

=Form=.—Usually 50-60 feet high, 1-2½ feet in diameter; trunk not straight, tapering; crown rounded, usually open; limbs coarse, gnarled, with thick bark, and persistent old cones.

=Leaves=.—In clusters of three; stout, rigid, somewhat twisted, often standing at right angles with the branches; yellow-green.

=Flowers=.—Appear April-May; monoecious; the staminate in crowded spikes, at base of new growth, yellow; the pistillate short-stalked, nearly round, green tinged with rose.

=Fruit=.—Cones maturing autumn of second year; ovoid, often clustered, divergent from stem, 1-3 inches long, adhering for several years; scales thin, armed with stiff recurved prickles; triangular seeds ¼ inch long with wing ¾ inch long, one-third inch wide, dark brown to black, sometimes spotted with gray or red dots.

=Bark=.—Twigs green becoming dull orange and then gray-brown with age; trunk with rough, thick, deeply-and irregularly-furrowed, red-brown bark.

=Wood=.—Light, soft, brittle, coarse-grained, durable, resinous; with thick yellowish sapwood.

=Range=.—New Brunswick and Lake Ontario, south to Georgia, and west to the Alleghany foothills of West Virginia, Kentucky and Tennessee.

=Distribution in West Virginia=.—Found locally in the following counties: Boone, Braxton, Berkeley, Clay, Doddridge, Fayette, Gilmer, Grant, Hampshire, Hardy, Jefferson, Kanawha, Logan, Mercer, Monroe, Mingo, Nicholas, Preston, Pocahontas, Randolph, Roane, Summers, Tyler and Wayne. Rare in McDowell, Wyoming, and Webster.

=Habitat=.—Prefers dry sandy soils of hillsides, sometimes found in swamps.

=Notes=.—This is our only native pine having all the leaves in bundles of three. It is of much less value than the White Pine but wall often grow where other pines will not. and is resistant to fire. Wood used chiefly for mine props, fuel, charcoal, boxes, crates, and construction. Tar is sometimes made from this wood, and the resin-filled knots and wood are excellent for kindling fires.

TABLE MOUNTAIN PINE

=Pinus pungens=, Lamb.

=Form=.—A small tree 30-50 feet high, 1-2½ feet in diameter; trunk sometimes with limbs almost to the ground, the lower drooping, the upper ascending; often bearing cones when only a few feet tall.

=Leaves=.—Two in a bundle, stiff, usually twisted, sharp-pointed, 1½-3 inches long; dark blue-green.

=Flowers=.—April-May; monoecious; staminate in long, loose spikes, anthers yellow; pistillate clustered on sides of new growth.

=Fruit=.—Cones large, oblong-conical, oblique at base, 2-3½ inches long, hanging on for many years; scales with very stout, curved prickles.

=Bark=.—On the trunk broken by fissures into irregular plates with loose red-brown scales.

=Wood=.—Light, soft, brittle, coarse-grained, resinous, brown with yellowish sapwood.

=Range=.—Pennsylvania and New Jersey to northern Georgia, in the Appalachian mountains.

=Distribution in West Virginia=.—Scattered sparingly in the counties along the Alleghany Mountains.

=Habitat=.—Usually found on dry gravelly slopes and ridges.

=Notes=.—This species is most easily distinguished from the other pines of the State by the very large and prickly cones and by the bundles of two stiff, short leaves. The yellow pine which has some of its leaves grouped in twos has very small and nearly smooth cones. Not valuable for lumber; used chiefly for fuel and charcoal.

YELLOW PINE

=Pinus echinata=, Mill.

=Form=.—From 80-100 feet high, 2-3½ feet in diameter; trunk straight, slightly tapering; crown pyramidal or rounded; limbs not tolerant of shade and in dense stands dropping off early leaving a long, clean trunk.

=Leaves=.—In clusters of 2 and 3, the leaves in threes more often near the ends of twigs; slender, flexible, 3-5 inches long, blue-green.

=Flowers=.—April-May; monoecious, pale purple, staminate flowers in clusters at base of new growth; pistillate flowers 2-4 in a whorl near end of new growth, pale rose-colored.