slash pine

Slash Pine
Slash Pine plantation
Conservation status
Least Concern (IUCN 2.3)
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
Division:	Pinophyta
Class:	Pinopsida
Order:	Pinales
Family:	Pinaceae
Genus:	Pinus
Subgenus:	Pinus
Species:	P. elliottii
Binomial name
Pinus elliottii Engelm.
Varieties
Pinus elliottii var. elliotti Pinus elliotti var. densa

The Slash Pine (Pinus elliottii) is a pine native to the southeast United States, from southern South Carolina west to southeastern Louisiana, and south to the Florida Keys.^[1] It is fast-growing, but not very long-lived by pine standards (to 200 years), and prefers humid climates and moist soil. Slash Pine is named after the "slashes" – swampy ground overgrown with trees and bushes – that constitute its habitat.

Grand Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve. Maritime slash pine Pinus elliottii savanna on MS/AL state line near Bayou Heron (1998)

This tree reaches heights of 18–30 m (59–98 ft) with a trunk diameter of 0.6–0.8 m (2.0–2.6 ft). The leaves are needle-like, very slender, in clusters of two or three, and are 18–24 cm (7.1–9.4 in) long. The cones are glossy red-brown, 5–15 cm (2.0–5.9 in) in length with a short (2–3 mm/0.079–0.12 in), thick prickle on each scale. It is known for its conical shape.

It can be distinguished from the related Loblolly Pine by the somewhat longer, glossier needles, and larger red-brown cones, and from Longleaf Pine by the shorter, slenderer needles and smaller cones with less broad scales. This species reproduces sexually through pine cones and cones with "sperm-like" seeds attached to the male's cone. Like the saw palmetto, the Slash Pine reproduces with the assistance of wind, which pushes the cones off of the tree so that they may be fertilized.

There are two varieties:

• P. elliottii var. elliotti (typical Slash Pine). South Carolina to Louisiana, south to central Florida. Leaves in bundles (fascicles) of twos and threes, mostly threes. Cones larger, 7–15 cm (2.8–5.9 in).
• P. elliotti var. densa (South Florida Slash Pine). Pine rocklands of Southern Florida and Florida Keys, including the Everglades.^[2] Leaves nearly all in bundles of two. Cones smaller, 5–12 cm (2.0–4.7 in).

Unlike the typical variety of Slash Pine, seedlings of P. elliotti var. densa pass through a "grass stage", in a manner similar to Longleaf Pine.

The Slash Pine is also known as the Yellow Slash Pine, Swamp Pine, and Pitch Pine, though it should not be confused with the tree more usually called the Pitch Pine, Pinus rigida.

This tree is widely grown in plantations, and is also used in horticulture.

References

• Conifer Specialist Group (1998). Pinus elliottii. 2006. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. IUCN 2006. www.iucnredlist.org. Retrieved on 10 May 2006.