Lodgepole Pine

Lodgepole Pine
Lodgepole Pines in Montana
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae Division: Pinophyta Class: Pinopsida Order: Pinales Family: Pinaceae Genus: Pinus Species: contorta
Binomial name
Pinus contorta

Lodgepole Pine (Pinus contorta) is a common tree in western North America. Like all pines, it is evergreen.

There are three subspecies and one variety:

• Pinus contorta subsp. contorta (Shore Pine) - Pacific Coast, southern Alaska to California
  • Pinus contorta subsp. contorta var. contorta (Shore Pine) - Pacific Coast, Alaska to northwest California
  • Pinus contorta subsp. contorta var. bolanderi (Mendocino Shore Pine) - Mendocino, California Coast
• Pinus contorta subsp. murrayana (Tamarack Pine or Sierra Lodgepole Pine) - Cascades Mountains, Sierra Nevada and adjacent mountain ranges, Washington to northern Baja California
• Pinus contorta subsp. latifolia (Lodgepole Pine) - Rocky Mountains, Yukon to Colorado

This tree can be 30-40 m tall, but is often much smaller, particularly subsp. contorta, while subsp. murrayana can be larger, to 50 m. The needles are paired and often twisted, and 3-7 cm long. The 3-7 cm cones often need exposure to high temperatures (such as from forest fires) in order to open and release their seeds, though in subsp. murrayana they open as soon as they are mature. The cones have prickles on the scales.

It is occasionally known under several English names: Black Pine, Scrub Pine, and Coast Pine. The species name contorta arises from the twisted, bent pines found in the coastal area.

External links

• http://www.bcadventure.com/adventure/wilderness/forest/lodgepole.htm
• http://www.domtar.com/arbre/english/p_pitor.htm
• http://www.uwsp.edu/geo/projects/virtdept/ipvft/stop1.html -- good pictures!
• http://www.cnr.vt.edu/dendro/dendrology/syllabus/pcontorta.htm -- great pictures!