Pinus clausa

Pinus clausa
Pinus clausa forest
Conservation status
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Division: Pinophyta
Class: Pinopsida
Order: Pinales
Family: Pinaceae
Genus: Pinus
Subgenus: Pinus
Species: P. clausa
Binomial name
Pinus clausa
(Chapm. ex Engelm.) Sarg.

Pinus clausa (Sand Pine, Sandhill Pine) is a small, often shrubby tree from 5–10 m (16–33 ft), exceptionally to 21 m (69 ft) tall, found in two separate locations, one across central peninsular Florida, and the other in the western Florida panhandle and the Alabama coast; there is a range gap of about 200 km (120 mi) between the populations (from Apalachicola to Cedar Key). It is largely confined to very infertile, excessively well-drained, sandy habitats where competition from larger-growing species is minimized by the harsh growing conditions, as in the Florida scrub.

The leaves are needle-like, in pairs, 5–10 cm (2.0–3.9 in) long, and its cones are 4–8 cm (1.6–3.1 in) long. Over much of its range, it is fire-adapted to stand-replacing wildfires, with the cones remaining closed for many years (clausa = closed), until a natural forest fire kills the mature trees and opens the cones. These then reseed the burnt ground. Some populations differ in having cones that open at maturity, with seed dispersal not relying on fires.[1]

Sand Pine woods are an important habitat for the endangered Florida Sand Skink.

The dense branching makes this tree unsuitable for wood production, and when used at all, it mainly is used for wood pulp.

This pine is also sometimes known as Scrub Pine, but this name more commonly refers to the closely related Pinus virginiana.

References

  1. ^ Moore, Gerry; Kershner, Bruce; Craig Tufts; Daniel Mathews; Gil Nelson; Spellenberg, Richard; Thieret, John W.; Terry Purinton; Block, Andrew (2008). National Wildlife Federation Field Guide to Trees of North America. New York: Sterling. p. 70. ISBN 1-4027-3875-7.