Durango Pine

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iDurango Pine
Conservation status

Least concern (LR/lc)
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Division: Pinophyta
Class: Pinopsida
Order: Pinales
Family: Pinaceae
Genus: Pinus
Subgenus: Pinus
Species: P. durangensis
Binomial name
Pinus durangensis
Martínez

Durango Pine (Pinus durangensis) is a pine native to the Sierra Madre Occidental mountains of northwestern Mexico, from Chihuahua and Sonora south through Durango and Jalisco to Michoacán. It is a moderately high altitude species, growing at 1500-2800 m.

It is related to Ponderosa Pine and included in the same subsection Ponderosae. It is an evergreen tree reaching 25-40 m in height, with a trunk up to 1 m diameter and a broad, rounded crown. The bark is thick, dark gray-brown, and scaly or fissured. The leaves are needle-like, dark green, five to seven per fascicle (mostly six, this high number unique in the genus), 14-24 cm long and 0.7-1.1 mm wide, the persistent fascicle sheath 1.5-3 cm long. The cones are ovoid, 5-9 cm long, green ripening brown, opening when mature in spring to 5-6 cm broad. The seeds are winged, 5-6 mm long with a 1.5-2.5 cm wing. Pollination is in late spring, with the cones maturing 20-22 months after.

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