Virginia Tech Dendrology

sugar pine Pinaceae Pinus lambertiana Douglas symbol: PILA
Leaf: Evergreen needles, 2 to 4 inches long, fascicles of 5, blue-green with white lines of stomatal bloom on all needle surfaces, persist 2 to 3 years, tend to droop, fascicle sheath is deciduous, apex pointed.
Flower: Species is monoecious; male cones are small, yellow, and clustered near the ends of branches; female cones are small, pale green, round, and clustered near the tips of branches in the upper part of the crown.
Fruit: Large cylindrical woody cones, 10 to 18 inches long (sometimes longer); yellowish brown when mature; scales thickened but unarmed; long, thick stalk.
Twig: Moderately stout and grayish brown.
Bark: Young bark is thin and grayish green later becoming up to 3 inches thick, reddish brown, with narrow, broken, scaly ridges separated by deep furrows.
Form: Tall and straight evergreen conifer growing to 200 feet tall and 7 feet in diameter with an open crown and long horizontal branches.
Looks like: western white pine - whitebark pine - Rocky Mountain bristlecone pine - limber pine

Additional Range Information: Pinus lambertiana is native to North America. Range may be expanded by planting. Download the full-size PDF map.
More Information: Wood - Landowner Factsheet
External Links: USDAFS Silvics of North America - USDAFS FEIS Silvics - USDA Plants Database - USDAFS Forest Products Lab
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