Oldfield Pine Pinus taeda
Other Common Name(s):
- Phonetic Spelling
- PY-nus TAY-duh
- Description
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Loblolly pine is a needled evergreen tree in the pine family (Pinaceae) and is native to the southeastern United States. It has the most rapid growth rate of all pines and may grow 60 to 90 feet tall with a 20 to 40 foot width.
Grow Loblolly pine in medium to wet soils and in full sun. It prefers moist, acidic soils with poor drainage but will tolerate alkaline soils. It performs best in climates with hot and humid summers and mild winters. It sometimes grows in pure stands and commonly spreads into old fields by self-seeding.
It is loosely pyramidal in youth and develops a dense oval crown at maturity as it loses its lower branches. As the tree ages, the bark thickens forming irregular, flaky plates that reveal a dark chocolate color when removed. In spring, red to yellow male cones and yellow to purple female cones mature in clusters. The straight trunk can grow up to 3 feet in diameter, making this an important timber tree whose wood is used for paper pulp, plywood, and general construction. Its wood value and rapid growth rate make it an important tree for forest management. It is also often seen in subdivisions with homes built among existing pines, a setting which is not recommended due to its fire hazard.
This tree is good for fast screening when it is young and is easily transplanted from containers. Plant it away from the house in a mass planting in a meadow, woodland, or other naturalized area. Its characteristics also make it appropriate in a native, rain, or winter garden.
Fire Risk: This plant has a high flammability rating and should not be planted within the defensible space of your home. Select plants with a low flammability rating for the sites nearest your home.
Quick ID Hints:
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Pine tree with tall, straight trunk
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Needles are medium length and in threes
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Needs are borne in clusters at the tips of twigs, which are bare below
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Cones are persisting, with sharply pointed umbo on each cone scale
A food source for the Eastern elfin (callophrys niphon) butterfly as well as larvae of the Imperial moth (Eacles imperialis).
Insects, Diseases, or Other Plant Problems: Southern pine beetle and pine engraver beetle. Fusiform rust and rots may occur. This tree is susceptible to wind damage.
VIDEO Created by Elizabeth Meyer for "Trees, Shrubs and Conifers," a plant identification course developed in partnership with Longwood Gardens.
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- Profile Video:
- See this plant in the following landscapes:
- Japanese Garden at JC Raulston Arboretum Pollinator Haven Garden in Sanford, Lee County Woodland Backyard Garden Walk
- Cultivars / Varieties:
- 'Nana'
- Tags:
- Cultivars / Varieties:
- 'Nana'
- Tags:
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Attributes:
- Genus:
- Pinus
- Species:
- taeda
- Family:
- Pinaceae
- Uses (Ethnobotany):
- Native Americans used this tree for its lumber. They would use the lumber for carving and in building canoes.
- Life Cycle:
- Woody
- Country Or Region Of Origin:
- Southeastern United States
- Fire Risk Rating:
- high flammability
- Wildlife Value:
- It provides winter cover. This plant supports Imperial Moth (Eacles imperialis) larvae which have one brood per season and appear from April-October in the south. Adult Imperial Moths do not feed. This plant also supports Eastern Pine Elfin (Callophrys niphon) which have one flight from March-June. Squirrels and birds eat the seeds.
- Play Value:
- Easy to Grow
- Textural
- Wildlife Cover/Habitat
- Wildlife Food Source
- Wildlife Nesting
- Particularly Resistant To (Insects/Diseases/Other Problems):
- This tree is moderately resistant to damage from deer.
- Dimensions:
- Height: 60 ft. 0 in. - 90 ft. 0 in.
- Width: 20 ft. 0 in. - 40 ft. 0 in.
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Whole Plant Traits:
- Plant Type:
- Native Plant
- Perennial
- Tree
- Woody Plant Leaf Characteristics:
- Needled Evergreen
- Habit/Form:
- Horizontal
- Pyramidal
- Rounded
- Growth Rate:
- Rapid
- Maintenance:
- Low
- Texture:
- Medium
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Cultural Conditions:
- Light:
- Full sun (6 or more hours of direct sunlight a day)
- Soil Texture:
- Clay
- Loam (Silt)
- Sand
- Soil pH:
- Acid (<6.0)
- Soil Drainage:
- Good Drainage
- Moist
- Occasionally Dry
- Occasionally Wet
- Available Space To Plant:
- 24-60 feet
- more than 60 feet
- NC Region:
- Coastal
- Mountains
- Piedmont
- USDA Plant Hardiness Zone:
- 6a, 6b, 7a, 7b, 8a, 8b, 9a, 9b
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Fruit:
- Fruit Color:
- Brown/Copper
- Red/Burgundy
- Fruit Value To Gardener:
- Edible
- Display/Harvest Time:
- Fall
- Fruit Length:
- > 3 inches
- Fruit Description:
- The stalkless, ovoid-cylindrical to narrow conical cones (3-6” long) with sharply-spined scales appear in groups of 1-3. They release their seeds from fall to winter and stay on the tree for a year before dropping. They are rusty-brown, umbo dorsal and bearing a recurved spine. Smaller pollen cones are yellow-brown in groups of 6-12. Fruit displays from October to November.
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Flowers:
- Flower Color:
- Gold/Yellow
- Purple/Lavender
- Red/Burgundy
- Flower Inflorescence:
- Insignificant
- Flower Bloom Time:
- Spring
- Flower Description:
- In the spring, the loblolly pine has red to yellow male cones and yellow to purple female cones. Coning is from March to April.
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Leaves:
- Woody Plant Leaf Characteristics:
- Needled Evergreen
- Leaf Color:
- Gold/Yellow
- Green
- Leaf Feel:
- Prickly
- Leaf Type:
- Needles
- Leaf Arrangement:
- Other/more complex
- Leaf Shape:
- Acicular
- Leaf Margin:
- Denticulate
- Hairs Present:
- No
- Leaf Length:
- > 6 inches
- Leaf Width:
- < 1 inch
- Leaf Description:
- Dark yellow-green needles ( 3 per fascicle) in bundles of three 6"-10" long with 1" long sheaths and are clustered on dwarf shoots. They are finely-toothed, stiff and slender. They drop during the tree's third year.
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Bark:
- Bark Color:
- Dark Brown
- Dark Gray
- Red/Burgundy
- Surface/Attachment:
- Peeling
- Ridges
- Shredding
- Bark Plate Shape:
- Irregular
- Bark Description:
- Red to grey brown scaly young bark and red-brown furrowed rounded scaly plates with maturity. The plates are broad and flat.
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Stem:
- Stem Is Aromatic:
- No
- Stem Description:
- Stems are erect, straight, tall, bearing branches typically above one's head. Young twigs quickly abort fascicles except at apex. The upper branches tend to curve upwards while the lower branches droop, eventually falling off the tree as it ages.
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Landscape:
- Landscape Location:
- Meadow
- Naturalized Area
- Recreational Play Area
- Woodland
- Landscape Theme:
- Children's Garden
- Garden for the Blind
- Native Garden
- Nighttime Garden
- Rain Garden
- Winter Garden
- Design Feature:
- Mass Planting
- Screen/Privacy
- Attracts:
- Moths
- Small Mammals
- Songbirds
- Resistance To Challenges:
- Deer
- Wet Soil
