Virginia Tech Dendrology

pitchlob hybrid Pinaceae Pinus xrigitaeda [rigida x taeda] symbol: PIRI9
Leaf: Evergreen needles, 4 to 6 inches long, with three somewhat twisted needles per fascicle, yellow-green to green.
Flower: Species is monoecious; males cylindrical, red to yellow, in large clusters at twig tips; females yellow to red.
Fruit: Cones are ovoid, 3 to 5 inches long, light brown in color; umbo is armed with a short, stout prickle; maturing in fall.
Twig: Orange-brown and moderately stout; buds narrowly ovoid, light gray-brown.
Bark: Dark and scaly when young, developing red-brown or yellow-brown thick flat plates with deep furrows; sprouts of needles may be present.
Form: Extremely variable; short and poorly formed on poor sites, but can be a straight, medium sized tree reachin 80 feet tall on better sites; epicormic sprouting can be seen.
Looks like: pitch pine - loblolly pine

Additional Range Information: Pinus xrigitaeda is planted in the USDA hardiness zones shown above and is not known to widely escape cultivaton. Download the full-size PDF map.
External Links: USDA Plants Database
All material 2021 Virginia Tech Dept. of Forest Resources and Environmental Conservation; Photos and text by: John Seiler, Edward Jensen, Alex Niemiera, and John Peterson; Silvics reprinted from Ag Handbook 654; range map source information