Eastern white pine is a valuable and versatile tree native to the eastern U.S. and the eastern provinces of Canada. Fast growth enhances eastern white pine's practicality for timber, landscaping, and reforestation purposes. Eastern white pine needles are 3 to 5 inches long, and occur in bundles of 5.
Light 
Eastern white pine is especially suited for shelterwood regeneration. Clearcut, seed-tree, and group selections are also successfully used.
Water
White pine is found on many different sites, ranging from dry ridges to bogs. It aggressively seeds into abandoned fields. It can compete with hardwoods on better sites.
Growth
Size
A large tree with a very straight trunk often reaching well over 100 feet in height. The crown is conical when young, later developing wispy, horizontal, upturning branches.
Timber Value 
Eastern white pine is used for lumber, furniture, doors, moldings, trim, siding, paneling, cabinets, matches, extracts, and Christmas trees.
Wildlife Value 
Seeds, bark, and foliage are eaten by wildlife. Black bear mothers and cubs utilize large eastern white pines for climbing to safety.
Attracts birds, mice, squirrels, beaver, porcupines, rabbits, hare, deer, bear, pocket gophers
Fun Facts
White pine (also called ship-mast pine) had a pivotal role in the American revolution, and provided lumber for colonial expansion westward. Eastern white pine has the distinction of being the tallest tree in eastern North America. While the tallest known tree today is ~185 feet tall, there are pre-colonial accounts of the trees over 200 feet tall.
Latin Meaning
Pinus: Latin name for pine from Greek "pitus" /
strobus: incense-bearing or a gum-yielding tree (pitchy) or Greek "strobus" (cone)
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Landowner Factsheets © 2004 Virginia Tech Forestry Department, all rights reserved. Text, images, and programming by: Dr. Jeff Kirwan, Dr. John R. Seiler, John A. Peterson, Edward C. Jensen, Guy Phillips, or Andrew S. Meeks.