Virginia Pine

A species of coniferous plant of the genus Pine in the family Pinaceae. In the wild it occurs in the eastern part of North America. The northern boundary is the states of Pennsylvania and Ohio, the western – Tennessee, Kentucky and the northern part of Mississippi, the southern – the northern parts of Georgia and Alabama.

A small tree 10-18 m tall, trunk 0.5 m in diameter, crown rounded, irregular, widely open, branches reaching to the ground. The tree is fast-growing. Bark is gray-brown, in the upper part of the trunk scaly-ridged, reddish. Shoots are purplish or reddish, bare, thin, covered with a bluish-white bloom, then darken to gray or reddish-brown. Red-brown buds are dry or covered with resin, cylindrical or ovoid, up to 1 cm in length.

Needles are stiff, in bundles of 2, up to 8 cm long, straight, serrated at the edge, sharp, yellow-green, often twisted. They persist on the tree for 3-4 years. Detached needles have a pleasant aroma.

Male strobili cylindrical, 1.5 cm long, reddish-brown or yellow. Female – biennial, fall off a few years after seed release. Immature cones are narrowly ovoid or lanceolate, later becoming ovoid, reddish-brown, 3-8 cm long. Scales pointed at the tips, stiff. Cones grow singly or in pairs on a short stalk or are sessile, pendant or spreading, 2.5-3.5 cm long, dark red-brown. Seeds are obovoid, 4-7 mm long, spotted, with a short wing (up to 2 cm).

Hardiness zone 8b.

Cultivars: Driscoll, Ed’s Broom, Top Knot, Tyler, Wate’s Golden (Gold)

Site: prefers well-drained light fertile soils. Requires sunny sites sheltered from strong winds. Prefers warm conditions. Can grow on dry rocky soils.

Planting and pruning: planting and pruning are carried out as for Scots pine.

Propagation: propagated by seed.

Diseases and pests: resistant to most diseases and pests.

Uses: used in group and solitary plantings. Effective on rock gardens and heather slopes, and in Japanese-style gardens. Grown in some botanical gardens. Looks good with white oak, American red oak, red maple, hickory, eastern white pine, and Virginia juniper.