Scientific Name:
Pinus ponderosa
Pronunciation:
PYE-nus pon-dur-OH-suh
Common Name:
Ponderosa pine, yellow pine
Family Name:
Pinaceae
Plant Type:
Conifer
Key ID Features:
Bark scaly and black when young, maturing thick and orange-brown; broken twigs smell like oranges; needles 3 (often 2; rarely 4 or 5) per fascicle, most 15-20cm long x 1.2-1.5mm wide; seed cones, dark-reddish purple, maturing brown before opening late in second year, brodly ovoid, (5-)8-9(-14)cm long; seedlings with 8-10(-12) cotyledons, 3.5-5cm long, no teeth. Conifers.org
Habit:
Upright
Form:
Pyramidal - narrowly
Texture:
Medium - fine
Mature Height:
> 30m
Mature Spread:
7 - 10m
Growth Rate:
Moderate
Origin:
B.C. west of Cascades, U.S. - northwest
Hardiness Rating:
Zone 4: (-34 to -29 °C)
Exposure:
Part sun/part shade
Soil/Growing Medium:
Rocky or gravelly or dry, Well-drained
Water Use:
Low, Summer dry
Landscape Uses:
Forestry, Group or mass planting, Reclamation
Additional Info:
Leaf Morphology:
Form:
Needle-like
Arrangement:
Fascicles
Texture/Venation:
Leathery
Surfaces:
Distinctive smell
Colour in Summer:
Dark-green, Green-yellow
Colour in Fall:
Dark-green
Shapes:
Acicular
Apices:
Acute
Bases:
Truncate
Margins:
Entire
Additional Info:
Lvs. in groups of 3, 12-28cm long; straight, slender, very sharp, sharply serrated. Juvenile lvs. 2.5-3cm long, grey-green. Lvs. smell when crushed; young twigs smell like oranges when crushed.
Inflorescence Type:
n/a (male cone)
Flower Morphology:
Monoecious plant
Colour (petals):
Male cone, No flowers, Yellow, Dark-red
Flower Time at Peak:
Apr, May
Fruit Type:
Cone (winged seeds)
Fruit Colour:
Brown
Fruiting Time:
Aug, Sep, Oct
Additional Info:
Persistent
Bark Morphology:
Exfoliating, Plated, Deeply fissured, Single stem trunk
Bark or Stem Colour:
Yellow, Orange, Brown
Organ Modifications:
Ectomycorrhizae
Propagation:
Seed
Pest Susceptibility:
Aphids or adelgids, Beetles or weevils, Mites (Deer resistant, Drought tolerant)
Specific Pests:
