The green links below add additional plants to the comparison table. Blue links lead to other Web sites.
enable glossary links

limber pine, pin blanc de l'ouest

pine à blanche écorce, scrub pine, white-bark pine

Habit Trees to 26m; trunk to 2m diam., straight to contorted; crown conic, becoming rounded. Trees to 21m; trunk to 1.5m diam., straight to twisted and contorted; crown conic, becoming rounded to irregularly spreading.
Bark

gray, nearly smooth, cross-checked in age into scaly plates and ridges.

pale gray, from distance appearing whitish to light gray and smooth, in age separating into thin plates.

Branches

spreading to ascending, often persistent to trunk base;

twigs pale red-brown, puberulous (rarely glabrous), slightly resinous, aging gray, smooth.

spreading to ascending, often persistent to trunk base;

twigs stout, pale red-brown, with light brown, often glandular puberulence, somewhat roughened by elevated scars, aging gray to pale gray-brown.

Buds

ovoid, light red-brown, 0.9–1cm, resinous;

lower scales ciliolate along margins.

ovoid, light red-brown, 0.8–1cm;

scale margins entire.

Leaves

5 per fascicle, spreading to upcurved and ascending, persisting 5–6 years, 3–7cm × 1–1.5mm, pliant, dark green, abaxial surface with less conspicuous stomatal bands than adaxial surfaces, adaxial surfaces with strong, pale stomatal bands, margins finely serrulate, apex conic-acute to acuminate;

sheath 1–1.5(–2)cm, shed early.

5 per fascicle, mostly ascending and upcurved, persisting 5–8 years, 3–7cm × 1–1.5(–2)mm, mostly connivent, deep yellow-green, abaxial surface less so, adaxial surface conspicuously whitened by stomates, margins rounded, minutely serrulate distally, apex conic-acute;

sheath 0.8–1.2cm, shed early.

Pollen cones

broadly ellipsoid-cylindric, ca. 15mm, pale red or yellow.

cylindro-ovoid, ca. 10–15mm, scarlet.

Seed(s)

cones maturing in 2 years, shedding seeds and falling soon thereafter, spreading, symmetric, lance-ovoid before opening, cylindro-ovoid when open, 7–15cm, straw-colored, resinous, sessile to short-stalked, apophyses much thickened, strongly cross-keeled, umbo terminal, depressed.

cones remaining on tree (unless dislodged by animals), not opening naturally but through animal agency, spreading, symmetric, broadly ovoid to depressed-ovoid or nearly globose, 4–8cm, dull gray- to black-purple, sessile to short-stalked;

scales thin-based and easily broken off;

apophyses much thickened, strongly cross-keeled, tip upcurved, brown;

umbo terminal, short, incurved, broadly triangular, tip acute.

2n

=24.

=24.

Pinus flexilis

Pinus albicaulis

Habitat High montane forests, often at timberline Thin, rocky, cold soils at or near timberline, montane forests
Elevation (1000–)1500–3600m ((3300–)4900–11800ft) 1300–3700m (4300–12100ft)
Distribution
from FNA
AZ; CA; CO; ID; MT; ND; NE; NM; NV; OR; SD; UT; WY; AB; BC
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
CA; ID; MT; NV; OR; WA; WY; AB; BC
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Pinus flexilis, much branched with a strongly tapering trunk, is little utilized because of its form and relative inaccessibility. It reportedly forms intermediates with P. strobiformis where the two overlap. The fresh-cut wood has the odor of turpentine.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)

Although two reliable dendrologists, G. B. Sudworth (1917) and N. T. Mirov (1967), include Utah in the distribution of Pinus albicaulis, more recent workers have not found it to occur there.

The fresh-cut wood of Pinus albicaulis is sweet-scented. Seeds are dispersed mainly by Clark's nutcracker [Nucifraga columbiana (Wilson), family Corvidae].

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)

Source FNA vol. 2. FNA vol. 2.
Parent taxa Pinaceae > Pinus Pinaceae > Pinus
Sibling taxa
P. albicaulis, P. aristata, P. attenuata, P. balfouriana, P. banksiana, P. cembroides, P. clausa, P. contorta, P. coulteri, P. echinata, P. edulis, P. elliottii, P. engelmannii, P. glabra, P. jeffreyi, P. lambertiana, P. leiophylla, P. longaeva, P. monophylla, P. monticola, P. muricata, P. palustris, P. ponderosa, P. pungens, P. quadrifolia, P. radiata, P. resinosa, P. rigida, P. sabiniana, P. serotina, P. strobiformis, P. strobus, P. sylvestris, P. taeda, P. torreyana, P. virginiana, P. washoensis
P. aristata, P. attenuata, P. balfouriana, P. banksiana, P. cembroides, P. clausa, P. contorta, P. coulteri, P. echinata, P. edulis, P. elliottii, P. engelmannii, P. flexilis, P. glabra, P. jeffreyi, P. lambertiana, P. leiophylla, P. longaeva, P. monophylla, P. monticola, P. muricata, P. palustris, P. ponderosa, P. pungens, P. quadrifolia, P. radiata, P. resinosa, P. rigida, P. sabiniana, P. serotina, P. strobiformis, P. strobus, P. sylvestris, P. taeda, P. torreyana, P. virginiana, P. washoensis
Synonyms Apinus flexilis Apinus albicaulis
Name authority E. James: Account Exped. Pittsburgh 2: 27, 35. (1823) Engelmann: Trans. Acad. Sci. St. Louis 2: 209. (1863)
Web links