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Himalayan pine planting and care. Pines are descendants of Pitis. Pine planting, cultivation and care. Features of growing Griffith pine

Himalayan pine- one of 120 varieties of pine trees. They are combined into one family. One hundred species grow in the middle climate zone. Other pines are found in the tropics. The homeland of the Himalayan tree is clear from its name. Pine is typical of the mountain belt of Asia, in particular China and Tibet.

Description and features of the Himalayan pine

The Himalayan pine differs from ordinary pine in its long needles. The needles in it reach 20 centimeters, collected in bunches of 5 pieces. The cones of the Himalayan pine are also impressive. Otherwise it is called Griffith tree. The length of the cones on it is 30 centimeters. The fruits grow upward, not downward, like a regular pine tree.

The upward growth of cones is similar to the Himalayan pine and fir. The latter has soft needles. This does not happen with pine trees. The needles of the Himalayan tree are hard and elastic.

Himalayan pine cones, like its needles, are large for a reason. reaches a height of 50 meters. This is comparable to a 25-story building. The lower branches are almost not far from the ground, wide. The upper shoots are shorter. Therefore, the crown of the Himalayan pine has a pyramidal shape.

In addition to size, it is also important what kind of cone does the Himalayan pine have?. In an ordinary tree it is round. The Himalayan cones are narrow and elongated, slightly curved. If they weren't scaly, they would look like bananas. When unripe, they, like real palm fruits, are green, but when ripe they are brown.

The young shoots also differ in appearance. They are smooth and yellow-green. Older pines have grey-green, lamellar bark. The mature bark is dry, while the young bark oozes resin. New needles, whose lifespan is approximately 5 years, are also saturated with resins and directed upward. The mature greenery of the Himalayan pine hangs down.

The seeds of the Himalayan pine are brown, have a 2-centimeter wing, and themselves are 7-9 millimeters long. The shape of the seeds is like an egg. Himalayan pine in the photo may be confused with Mexican. Her middle name is Weymouth. It also has long needles, cones, and a pyramidal crown. However, Weymouth pine plus has pubescent shoots and fruit scales that are bent back.

Types of Himalayan pine

The Himalayan pine has been in cultivation for almost 2 centuries. In “Russian Dendrology” the tree was first mentioned in 1970. However, in the Botanical Garden of the Emperor, and now the BIN at the Russian Academy of Sciences named after Vladimir Komarov, the Himalayan species has been grown since 1858.

Over the course of 2 centuries, dendrologists have developed the following varieties of Himalayan trees:

1. Zebrina. This pine has variegated needles. The bottom is decorated with a yellow transverse line. It extends approximately 2.5 centimeters from the base of the needle. Above, green blotches are formed into a circle. The variety was developed in France in 1874. Then the country was ruled by Louis Thiers. He was interested in history and botany.

2. Nana. This is a dwarf form of the Himalayan pine. The tree does not exceed 3 meters in height. Nana is distinguished by a rounded crown, silvery and shortened needles, and dense branches.

3. Vernisson. It is distinguished by the vertical orientation of the branches of young pines. Vernisson also has longer needles than other types of Himalayan trees.

4. Densa. The needles of this pine, on the contrary, are shortened. It is distinguished by densa and pin-shaped crown. It is dense, and not loose, like most Himalayan varieties.

5. Glauka. Distinguished by blue needles. Pines with these are found among seedlings.

As seen, description of Himalayan pine partly depends on its type. However, all Himalayan varieties are fast-growing and frost-resistant. You can grow mountain pines at -30 degrees.

Planting a tree and caring for it

New trees are grown from seedlings or seeds. The last method is the main one. The seeds must be fresh and ripe. Ripening ends by early November. High-quality seeds are extracted from the cones on the branches. The fallen ones are not suitable. Before extracting the seeds, the cones are dried on a cloth near the battery.

The seeds extracted from the cones are stored in glass jars. They must be tightly closed. Open 2 months before planting. The seeds are poured into a container with settled water at room temperature. Those remaining on the surface are thrown away. The seeds that have sunk to the bottom of the container are used. Their:

  1. Leave for half an hour in a weak solution of potassium permanganate. Its color is yellow or slightly pinkish.
  2. Rinse.
  3. Soak for 24 hours. During this time, the seeds swell. For soaking, use settled water at room temperature.
  4. Mix with wet sand, enclosing it in a nylon stocking.
  5. Place the product in the refrigerator for at least a month.

Treated seeds are sown in mid-April. The soil is preferably light. Fertility is optional. You can plant seeds in river sand. It should be calcined at 200 degrees. Use an oven. The procedure lasts 20 minutes.

River sand is the basis of the “pie” for planting Himalayan pine seeds. The second layer is sawdust. Their thickness is 2 centimeters. The seeds are lightly pressed into the sawdust. Their sharp end should point down. A little fallen pine needles are poured on top of the seeds.

A centimeter thick is enough. It is sprayed with a spray bottle. All that remains is to cover the crops with film. This recreates the conditions of a greenhouse. It is periodically ventilated, the substrate is moistened, and the film is wiped dry.

With proper care, the seeds germinate by early May. This is the period of placing the seedlings in a bright place. It should be warm. When the seedlings have a second pair of needles, they are transplanted into pine soil. It is made up of peat, turf soil and broom - a mixture of fallen pine needles, bark particles, and small twigs.

Seedlings are planted in open ground in the 3rd year of life. The place is chosen to be sunny. The holes are deepened to at least 60 centimeters. The width of the hole should be 30 centimeters greater than the diameter of the pine earthen ball. It is impossible to expose its root system. If open for at least 10 minutes, it dies. You just need to trim the tip of the root. The cut is dipped in a mixture of humus and garden soil. Take 2 parts last. Humus needs 1 part.

The first landing in open ground is called school. In it, at a distance of 0.5 meters from each other, the seedlings spend 4 years. Every spring, the ground around them is fertilized with rotted manure. For 1 square meter you need half a kilo.

25 grams of superphosphate and 10 grams of potassium nitrate are added to the manure. The fertilizer is buried 10 centimeters. After 4 years, the seedlings are planted in a permanent place. At least 3 meters are left between the trees.

Propagation of Himalayan pine by cuttings also involves planting in open ground after 3 years. Seedlings are harvested on cloudy days. We need apical but woody shoots. They are taken from the middle part of the crown, choosing branches facing north. The cuttings are not cut, but plucked. First, they pull sharply down, and then to the side. A heel is required. This is a piece of bark from the mother branch.

The length of the cutting should be 10-12 centimeters. The heel is cleaned of burrs and needles and placed in a dark pink solution of potassium permanganate. The cuttings spend 6 hours there. Before planting, the heel and lower edge of the seedling are coated with Kornevin. Afterwards, the branches are stuck at an angle into a mixture of sand, leaf soil and humus. They are combined in equal shares.

The box with cuttings is covered with a greenhouse cap. It is removed daily to ventilate the plantings and clean them of condensation. With proper care, cuttings take root in 4-5 months. If they are winter, the plantings are kept in the basement. In the warm season, the box with cuttings is taken out into the open air.

Next spring, after planting the cuttings, their substrate is fertilized with Epin. After another year, the trees are ready for planting in open ground. Like other pine trees, Himalayan pine is resistant to drought. The exception in the family is the Rumelian species. Its representatives need watering 2-3 times a season. They spend about 20 liters at a time.

Actually, all pine care comes down to providing light and drainage, since stagnant water is detrimental to the tree. That is why it does not like heavy soils. It is possible to shape the crown of the Himalayan pine.

It is necessary to break off the light shoots by a third. This is a juvenile. The procedure will slow down the growth of the tree, making its crown as dense as possible. This is optional Himalayan pine care, but capable of enhancing her beauty.

Possible tree diseases and treatment methods

Himalayan Griffith pine may suffer from 18 diseases. Some of them are associated with pests that attack the tree trunk. We're talking about:

  • pine subbark bug, destroyed by spraying with pyrethroids or biologically - by egg eaters or red ants
  • pine longhorned pupae, which are destroyed by birds attracted to the site
  • pine beetle, trees affected by it are cut down
  • blue borer, the larvae of which are killed by spraying with insecticides
  • spot tar, affected pines are cut down and burned

A number of other pests will attack pine needles. Aphids are destroyed with “Carbofox” and “Aktara”. Hermes is destroyed in 3 stages. First, a relative of the aphid is burned along with the galls. These are young cones inhabited by larvae. Then the branches of the tree are washed with a stream of water. Solid pressure is needed. Then, the pine tree is sprayed with insecticides.

Coniferous scale insects also feed on the greenery of the tree. These whitish larvae cover the needles like frost. Insects can be easily knocked off with a stream of water. Once on the ground, the scale insects die. Therefore, insect colonies “dissolve” in rainy weather. Bugs manage to damage pine trees during periods of drought.

The red pine sawfly also damages tree needles. This is an orange caterpillar. The insect is active in early May. By the end of summer, the sawfly lays larvae, placing them inside the needles. The embryos spend the winter there. Glue helps get rid of the sawfly. It is applied to the bottom of the trunk. You need a non-drying and moisture-resistant composition. Sawfly larvae pupate on the ground. Going down to it, the insects fall into a trap.

Virin Diprion helps in the fight against sawfly. They can also get rid of pine silkworms. As an adult, it is a butterfly. Pine trees are damaged by silkworm caterpillars. It is related to the mulberry, from whose cocoons silk is obtained. True, fabric cannot be made from pine insect threads.

Another pest of Himalayan pine is the moth. The peak of its development is the butterfly. Pine trees are damaged by larvae. They can be destroyed with organophosphorus compounds. They spray trees.

Compared to most pine trees, the Himalayan pine tree is resistant to pests. So pine cutworms, moths, moths and mites do not attack the tree. Other pests, for the most part, only attack weakened pines. Their “immunity” can be reduced by a lack of mineral elements, drought or, on the contrary, excessive humidity, mechanical damage to the roots and trunk.

Himalayan pine price

On average, a Himalayan pine seedling costs 300-500 rubles. This is the price of 3-year-olds - the most popular product. If you purchase older trees, replanting can cost tens of thousands of rubles.

Pines are grown to impressive sizes in unique tubs. Their bottom is made to writhe naturally by the pine taproot. If you give it freedom, it will go many meters deep into the earth. It is impossible to dig up and replant such a tree.

Griffith pine ( With. Himalayan) - Pinus Griffithii McClelland. (P. excetsa Wa 11.)

tree height up to 30-50 m. The crown is wide-pyramidal, with branches starting from the ground itself. Bark in young trees it is smooth, gray-green, in old trees it is lamellar. Young branches are bare, shiny, yellowish-green. Needles 5 in a bunch (on short shoots), long, thin (10-18 cm long, 0.75 mm wide), hanging, bluish-green (gray). Mature buds long 15-27 cm and 5-7 cm wide, straight cylindrical or slightly curved, light brown. Cones ripen in the second year in October, the seeds quickly fly out of the opened cones. Seeds ovoid, brown, 8-9 mm long, with a long (up to 2 cm) wing.

From Mexican Weymouth pine-Pinus ayacahuite, which also has long hanging needles and very long cones, differs in that the latter has drooping shoots, and the scales of the cones are long pointed and bent back at the ends. One of the fastest growing pines, quite frost-resistant, grows successfully in places with an absolute minimum temperature of -25-30°. Only at a young age is it sensitive to cold. Does not tolerate dry soil well, developing best in fresh, rich soils. Tolerates shade when young. Immune against rust fungus- Cronartium ribicola damaging common Weymouth pine.

Spreading. It grows wildly in the Western and Southern Himalayas, at an altitude of 180 to 400 m. in Bhutan, in Nepal, at an altitude of 23!)0-3500 m, in Kashmir, at an altitude of 1600-3S00 in Afghanistan, from altitudes from 2300 to 4000 m, Chashe forms mixed forests with Himalayan cedar, Himalayan cedar and other species.

Copies are available in Ukraine and Belarus. In Kyiv (zoo) it reaches a height of 11 m and bears fruit well. In Belarus, in Igiatnchakh, it reaches a height of 12 hours. In Crimea it grows well in Simferopol, but on the southern coast it suffers from dry air and soil and grows poorly. In the Nikitsky Botanical Garden (Yalta) in a humid location, at 35 years old it has a height of 10 m, a trunk diameter of 15 cm and a crown of 4.1 X 3.9 i.

It is most common and grows very well on the Black Sea coast of the Caucasus. In Tuapse at the age of 40 it reaches a height of 13 m and a trunk diameter of 27 cm, and in Sochi at the age of 45 - a height of 23 m and a trunk diameter of 65 cm in Kraskaya Polyak, Adler region (at an altitude of 550 m above world level) n 40 years - a height of 19 m trunk diameter (50 cm', on the state farm "Southern Cultures" of the Adler region at 30 years old - height 21, trunk diameter 66 cm and crown diameters 13 X 15 i: in Batumi, in the Botanical Garden, at 30 years - height 23 m.

Shapes:

striped- f. zebrina C g o u x - with needles having transverse ring-shaped white stripes;

single-coniferous- F. monophylla Sag g., - in which 5 needles in a bunch have grown together into one.

In addition, there is a hybrid of Griffith pine and c. Weymouth, which arose in culture (P. G g if-fithii X P-sirobus - P. Schwerini Fitsсh).

Application. Griffith pine is a very impressive tree for park construction in group plantings, alleys, and especially in the form of single specimens in the open, which develop a lush crown that reaches down to the ground. Long bluish color hanging pine with very decorative large hanging cones complements the beauty of the slender trunk and lush crown of this pine, which stands out especially contrastingly against the background of other tree species with dark green foliage or needles (evergreen cypress, common spruce, large-flowered magnolia, horse chestnut).

Taking into account also the exceptional growth rate and resistance against rust fungus, it should be recognized that Griffith pine deserves wide distribution in the parks and forests of the Caucasus (wetter areas), as well as in the forest and forest-steppe parts of the southwest of the European part.

Himalayan pine is so named because it grows in the Himalayas, at altitudes of 1800-3750 m above sea level. Mature trees reach a height of 30-50 meters and a width of 8-20. The root system of Himalayan pines spreads widely and relatively superficially, the crown of these trees is very lacy, growth is about 40-50 cm per year, young shoots are light green, resinous, the branches grow large and spreading. Most popular varieties Griffta, Densa Hill, Frosty, Nana, Paquita, Zerbina and others. This is one of the most beautiful coniferous plants.

Himalayan pine Densa Hill

The homeland of this wonderful tree is Asia; the trees reach only 7 meters in height and 2.5 meters in width. The needles are dark green with a blue tint, grow in bunches, cylindrical cones of a beautiful regular shape, in the second year they hang down, the roots are rubbing.

Moderately light-loving, grows in any soil, but requires loosening and fertilizing from time to time. Purchased seedlings at an early age require protection from pests, since they do not grow weakened under natural conditions. Widely used in urban landscapes.

Himalayan pine. Planting and care

Winter hardiness. Himalayan pine is a low-frost resistant type of pine. Nevertheless, there are more frost-resistant varieties, but the general recommendation is to cover the plant for the winter in its young years to protect it from wind and snow.

Pine seedlings better to plant until new shoots form. You need to work carefully, without injuring the roots. After filling the planting hole, the plant must be watered abundantly and covered around with straw, peat or mown grass so that moisture does not evaporate from the surface. The same should be done before each winter. This will slightly reduce root freezing and spring drying.

The species is named after the English and Danish surgeon and botanist Nathaniel Wallich. Introduced to Europe in 1823 by the English botanist E. B. Lambert. In nature, it grows in the Himalayas, on the Karakoram and Hindu Kush mountain systems, from the eastern part of Afghanistan to the Yunnan province in China, at an altitude of 1800-4300 m above sea level. In nature, it forms vast forests with Himalayan spruce and Himalayan cedar. Lives up to 300 years.

Medium-tall (30-50 m) fast-growing tree 8-20 m wide. Annual growth is 35-60 cm in height and 15-20 cm in width. The root system is powerful, flat-spread. The crown is openwork, loose, wide-pyramidal in shape, the branches are horizontal, spreading, in nature they grow to the ground. The bark at a young age is smooth, dark gray in color, later it becomes dark ash-gray, fissured, with peeling plates. Young branches are shiny, bare, yellowish-green.

Needles collected in bunches of 5 pieces, thin, long (12-18 cm), width 0.75 cm, standing upright on young shoots, hanging down on older shoots, sharp, bluish-green (gray), with white stomatal lines with on the inside, the edges are soft-sawed. Keeps on the tree for 3-4 years.


Blooms in the end of April. The cones are 16-32 cm long and 5-7 cm wide, vertical when young, hanging in maturity, cylindrical, straight or slightly curved, light brown with resin drops, hanging on a 2-5 cm stalk. The cones ripen for the second year in October. The seeds are ovoid, 5-6 mm in length, brown, the seed wing is 20-30 mm in length.

Frost resistance zone 6b.

Varieties: Griffith, Densa Hill, Frosty, Nana, Paktia, Winter light, Zebrina.

Location: when young it needs shelter for the winter. Conditionally tolerates urban environments. Needs a place protected from the wind. Does not tolerate heavy snow well. Grows on all cultivated soils, even sandy ones. Prefers moderately moist, fertile, well-drained substrates, from acidic to neutral. Photophilous, but does not tolerate direct rays. Does not like drought and heat. When kept indoors, it requires a cool winter.

Landing: depth of the planting hole - 0.8-1 m. The distance between plants is at least 4 m. On heavy soils with excess moisture, it is recommended to make drainage 20 cm thick. Soil mixture: sand, peat and topsoil in a ratio of 2:1:1 - for planting in soil with a neutral reaction. For acidic soils, add 200-300 g of lime to the pit. Superphosphate 150g/hole is added to the planting mixture, and phosphorus-potassium fertilizers are added in the fall.

Care: In the second year after planting, it is necessary to apply complex fertilizer, and in the 2nd half of summer - phosphorus-potassium fertilizers 40-50 g per 10 liters of water.

Trimming: sanitary pruning. When formative pruning, it is recommended to remove no more than 1/3 of the green mass. To increase the density of the crown, a third of the current year's growth is removed, while maintaining the shape of the crown. You cannot leave bare branches without needles. Formative pruning should not be carried out earlier than a year after planting. It is recommended to prune from early spring to late autumn.

Reproduction: reproduces by seeds.

Diseases and pests: resistant to rust fungus.

Usage: looks impressive in group plantings in parks and alleys, and is also beautiful in single plantings in open areas. It stands out in contrast against the background of other trees with dark foliage or needles: common spruce, evergreen cypress, large-flowered magnolia, horse chestnut. Can be used to create bonsai.

Himalayan pine is also known as Griffith pine (Pinus Griffithii McClell) and Wallichiana pine. It is sometimes mistakenly called Bhutanese (in fact, it is a separate subspecies) or Wallich pine. Also, Himalayan pine can be confused with Weymouth pine, which has the same color and arrangement of needles, but a different shape of branches and scales on the cones.

Description of Himalayan pine

In nature, this tree, as you can guess from the name, is found in the Himalayas, at an altitude of 1.5 - 4.5 km, forming dense mountain forests together with Himalayan spruce and cedar trees. It is found in the region from eastern Afghanistan to western China, including Nepal and northern Myanmar. Wild Himalayan pine lives up to 300 years or more, can reach a height of up to 50m and a crown width of up to 20m.

Himalayan pine was brought to Europe, namely to England, in 1823. The annual growth under favorable conditions can be up to 60 cm in height and up to 20 cm in width annually, and this is quite a lot for a pine tree.

In the CIS countries, it is able to live in almost all regions, with the exception of the northern ones. So, in Ukraine and Belarus it reaches 10–12 m in height by the age of 35, and in Sochi and Batumi by the same age it grows to 20–23 m. However, this is only possible with a successful choice of location and the absence of extreme weather conditions, because the wood of this pine is very fragile and cannot withstand strong winds and snowfalls. Perhaps the extreme northern latitude where it is possible to grow Griffiti pine is the Moscow region, but this is already a very risky undertaking that rarely leads to success.


The frost resistance of this pine is determined by zones 6b - 7a, that is, it tolerates frosts down to -25 - -30 0 C without shelter. However, often this tree cannot withstand heavy snowfalls or blizzards, and the branches break. Winter thaw can also have a detrimental effect on the development of Griffiti pine - this species easily “makes mistakes” and begins to awaken from the first warmth, dying when frost returns. If the pine tree survived such a mistake, you can’t expect any growth from it this year; this season it will be sick and recovering strength. The last factor that harms Himalayan pine in winter is bright sun. “Frost and sun - a wonderful day” - not for this tree, because its needles can burn from the sun's rays, enhanced by reflection from fresh snow.

The crown of the Wallich pine is loose, wide-pyramidal, composed of long flexible horizontal branches that usually start right from the ground.

Needles are the main decoration of this type of pine. It is long, up to 20 cm, and thin, less than 1 mm thick, sharp, collected in bunches of 5 pieces. The young needles stick out like those of an ordinary pine, and the adult ones bend and hang down like the branches of a willow. The color of the needles is gray, bluish-green, with a silvery tint. Each needle is stored on the shoot for no more than 3–4 years.

The bark of young trees is dark gray and smooth, but with age it becomes ashen in color and begins to crack and peel. Young shoots grow bare, without bark, shiny, yellow-green.

The cones of the Himalayan pine are cylindrical, long (up to 32 cm) and rather narrow (up to 7 cm), straight or slightly curved. They appear in April, and ripen only by October after 1.5 years, acquiring a light brown, almost yellow color and becoming covered with drops of resin. Seeds easily fly out of mature cones - about 5 mm long, with a long wing, up to 3 cm.

The root system of Griffith pine spreads mainly along the surface of the soil, and the central root can reach a depth of 1.5 m.

Features of growing Griffith pine

We have already mentioned in which regions Himalayan pine can be grown: this is the entire territory of Ukraine, Belarus (except for the north and swamps), as well as the middle zone and south of Russia. However, for successful cultivation you should know more about this pine, because it is quite capricious.

You should choose a place for the Himalayan pine according to the following criteria:

  • Availability of protection from strong winds, especially northern ones - for example, a high, windproof fence.
  • The lighting is bright, but diffused, otherwise the beautiful needles of the Griffiti pine may burn in the bright sun, especially in the summer heat or during the February thaw.
  • The soil is light, non-alkaline, without stagnant moisture. Fresh, nutritious soil is ideal, but in general this pine grows in any area except wetlands. It is advisable to fill the planting hole for Himalayan pine with a mixture of sand, tofa and soil in a ratio of 2:1:1. On dense, heavy soils, a drainage layer of about 20 cm is required.

When planting seedlings, be sure to water them thoroughly before removing them from the container. Planting holes need to be prepared approximately 2 times larger than the container with the roots of the tree, up to 1 m deep, at a distance of at least 4 m from each other.

It is advisable to mulch the tree trunk circle with a 10-centimeter layer of conifer bark, this will ensure the looseness of the top layer of soil - it will not dry out as a crust after each watering - and will also protect the roots from overheating and hypothermia.

Himalayan pine can be cut and shaped. In this case, branches can be shortened by no more than a third of the total length. To form a denser crown, at the beginning of autumn, 30% of the current year's growth is removed, equally from all branches. However, only sanitary pruning is mandatory after each wintering, during which dry, frostbitten and broken branches are removed.

The first couple of years, regular watering, protection from direct sunlight and fertilizing are especially important so that the pine tree takes root well. Fertilizers can be used complex or superphosphate in the spring and potassium-phosphorus closer to autumn. Under no circumstances use nitrogen fertilizers later than July - they stimulate the growth of shoots, and the pine will not be able to prepare for winter, and the risk of its complete or partial freezing will significantly increase.

Young Himalayan pines need to be covered for the winter. Do not forget that the wood of this pine is very fragile, so it is better not to tie the branches with string or twine. The most convenient and effective material for covering Himalayan pine is rare burlap. It will protect the branches from the excessive weight of snow, and will not block the access to light (after all, needles continue photosynthesis even in winter) and air. Also, burlap will protect the needles from fading in the sun in February - May.

You can use other covering materials - thin non-woven or regular spruce branches, but you need to build a frame for them. Otherwise, the fragile branches of griffiti will be subject to stress not only from snow, which accumulates well on spruce branches and provides warmth, but also from the covering material itself.

The shelter is built in late autumn, when the temperature stabilizes at -5 - -10 0 C, and removed in early spring, when sub-zero temperatures during the day become rare. In southern regions with little snowy winters, shelter is not necessary.

This pine is practically not susceptible to pests and diseases; it is even resistant to rust fungus, which often affects conifers. It also tolerates urban environments with polluted air well. Occasionally may be attacked by pine aphids.


Varieties

  1. Species Griffiti pine (Walliha, Himalayan) is the most common on sale; we described it at the beginning of the article.
  2. Nana is a dwarf version of the Himalayan pine, forms a ball up to 2m in diameter. With age, the lower branches drop and the overall shape becomes a hemisphere. Its needles are shorter than those of Griffiti pine, up to 12 cm, but just as thin, drooping with age, highly decorative.
  3. Schwerinii Wiethorst - a variety of German origin, is a hybrid of the Himalayan pine with Weymouth. From the second he received winter hardiness (up to -40 0 C), but also susceptibility to rust. Also a dwarf variety, it forms a very dense and fluffy ball about 2.5 m in diameter.
  4. Densa Hill is a slow growing variety, with a maximum annual growth of 15cm and a maximum height of 6 – 7m. The needles are about 10cm long, with longitudinal white stripes.
  5. Zebrina is a rather rare, but very impressive variety with transverse white stripes on the needles.

There are other varieties - Frosty, Pakita, Winter Light - but they are practically never found in our nurseries.

Himalayan pine is so named because it grows in the Himalayas, at altitudes of 1800-3750 m above sea level. Mature trees reach a height of 30-50 meters and a width of 8-20. The root system of Himalayan pines spreads widely and relatively superficially, the crown of these trees is very lacy, growth is about 40-50 cm per year, young shoots are light green, resinous, the branches grow large and spreading. Most popular varieties Griffta, Densa Hill, Frosty, Nana, Paquita, Zerbina and others. This is one of the most beautiful coniferous plants.

Himalayan pine Densa Hill

The homeland of this wonderful tree is Asia; the trees reach only 7 meters in height and 2.5 meters in width. The needles are dark green with a blue tint, grow in bunches, cylindrical cones of a beautiful regular shape, in the second year they hang down, the roots are rubbing.

Moderately light-loving, grows in any soil, but requires loosening and fertilizing from time to time. Purchased seedlings at an early age require protection from pests, since they do not grow weakened under natural conditions. Widely used in urban landscapes.

Himalayan pine. Planting and care

Winter hardiness. Himalayan pine is a low-frost resistant type of pine. Nevertheless, there are more frost-resistant varieties, but the general recommendation is to cover the plant for the winter in its young years to protect it from wind and snow.

Pine seedlings better to plant until new shoots form. You need to work carefully, without injuring the roots. After filling the planting hole, the plant must be watered abundantly and covered around with straw, peat or mown grass so that moisture does not evaporate from the surface. The same should be done before each winter. This will slightly reduce root freezing and spring drying.

Pine (lat. Pinus)- a type genus of coniferous shrubs, dwarf trees or trees of the Pine family, which includes about 120 species. Pines grow throughout the Northern Hemisphere from the Arctic to the equator. In subarctic and temperate climates, they form forests both on the plains and in mountainous regions, and in the subtropical and tropical zones, pines grow mainly in the mountains.

There are three versions of the origin of the scientific name of the genus: from the Celtic word pin, meaning “mountain” or “rock”, from the Greek name for pine, pinos, mentioned by Theophrastus, and from the Latin words picis, pix, meaning “resin”. According to ancient Greek myth, pine trees originated from the nymph of the dawn Pitis, whom the god of the north wind Boreas, tormented by jealousy, turned into this tree. The Chinese believe that pine trees ward off misfortune from the house and bring happiness and longevity, so they should be planted near the house. Nowadays, pine trees are so popular in every corner of the world that work on developing varieties and hybrids of this crop is carried out tirelessly.

Planting and caring for pine (in brief)

  • Landing: from late August to mid-September or from late April to early May.
  • Lighting: bright sunlight.
  • The soil: To fill the planting pit, prepare a mixture of 2 parts of soil from the top fertile layer, 2 parts of turf soil, one part of sand or clay, 100 g of Kemira-universal and 50 g of Nitrophoska. Add 200-300 g of slaked lime to acidic soil.
  • Watering: An adult pine tree does not need artificial moisture, and seedlings need moisture-recharging irrigation in October for the first two years after planting. Only Rumelian pine requires 2-3 waterings per season, using 15-20 liters of water per plant.
  • Feeding: the first two years after planting, once a season, a solution of complex mineral fertilizer is added to the root circle at the rate of 40 g per m². In the future, nutrition will come from coniferous litter.
  • Reproduction: seeds, cuttings and grafting.
  • Pests: aphids, hermes, pine scale insects, pine scale insects, pine underbark bugs, spider mites, red pine sawflies, pine silkworms, shoot moths, pine moth caterpillars and pine leafminer moths, pine cone moths, pine cone moths, large and small pine beetles, longhorned beetles, golden beetles, elephant moths and point tars.
  • Diseases: rust, pine spinner, rust (tar) cancer, snow shute, scleroderriosis (umbrella disease), bark necrosis.

Read more about growing pine trees below.

Pine tree - description

Pines are evergreen monoecious trees with a pyramidal crown at a young age, which becomes umbrella-shaped or spherical in old age. Pines can be trees, shrubs, or trailing shrubs. The height of a pine tree can be 2, 20, or 50 m. The root system of pine trees is developed - a rod or anchor type. The pine bark on the trunk is deeply fissured, red-brown, and on the branches it is reddish or yellowish, thinly flaky.

Pines are plants with whorled branching and shoots of two types: shortened (brachyblasts) and elongated (auxiblasts). The needles are located only on brachyblasts. Based on the number of needles on a shoot, pine plants are divided into three types: two-coniferous (they are represented by Scots pine and maritime pine), three-coniferous (Bunge pine) and five-coniferous (Siberian and Japanese white pine). Pine needles reach a length of 5-9 cm and sit in bunches of 2-5 pieces, surrounded by membranous sheaths. On long shoots, pine leaves are brown and scaly. Sometimes, as a result of mechanical damage, rosette shoots can form on a pine tree - shortened, with bunches of wide and short needles.

Male strobili form spikes at the base of young branches, female strobili form symmetrical oblong or ovoid-conical drooping cones located in the upper part of the plant. After the seeds ripen, the cones fall off. Pine cones consist of imbricated leathery or woody fruit scales with thickenings in the form of a faceted shield at the ends. Pine seeds are usually winged, but there are species with wingless seeds. Pines are pollinated by the wind. Seed germination lasts up to 4 years.

Pines are long-lived. Among them there are specimens whose age is estimated not in hundreds, but in thousands of years.

Planting a pine tree

When to plant pine

The best pine seedlings are three to five year old trees with a closed root system: the roots of a young pine die in the open air in 10-15 minutes. It is better to purchase planting material from specialized nurseries located in your area. Before planting a pine tree, you need to immerse the container with the roots of the seedling in water for three hours. Pine should be planted in open ground in early autumn (from late August to mid-September) or in spring (from late April to early May).

How to plant a pine tree

A pit for pine is dug about a meter deep. If the soil on the site is heavy, it is necessary to lay a 20 cm thick layer of expanded clay or broken brick in the planting hole for drainage and sprinkle it with sand. Prepare an earthen mixture in advance: 2 parts of fertile topsoil are mixed with 2 parts of turf soil and 1 part of sand or clay. You need to add 50 g of Nitrophoska or 100 g of Kemira-universal to the soil mixture and mix everything thoroughly. An additional 200-300 g of slaked lime is added to the acidic soil.

Pour the soil mixture into the hole, then very carefully remove the seedling from the container, trying not to destroy the earthen lump, lower the tree into the hole and fill the remaining space with the soil mixture, adding it gradually and then lightly compacting it. After planting, an earthen dump is made around the tree so that the water does not spread when watering, and 2 buckets of water are poured under the seedling. After the water is absorbed and the soil settles, the root collar of the seedling should be at surface level. If you are planting a large plant, then its neck should be 10 cm above ground level: over time it will end up where it should be.

When planting several trees on a site, maintain a distance of at least 4 m between them, although a spacing of 1.5 m is sufficient for low-growing pines.

Caring for pine in the garden

How to grow a pine tree

The pine plant is surprisingly drought-resistant; natural precipitation is sufficient for it, and only trees planted in the current or last season need autumn moisture-recharging watering, which is carried out after leaf fall: moist soil does not freeze so much during severe frosts. Stagnation of water in the roots is detrimental to pine trees. The only plant that is not drought-resistant is the Rumelian pine, which is watered 2-3 times per season, using 15-20 liters of water at a time.

The first two years after planting, young pines need to be fed by adding a solution of complex mineral fertilizer to their root circle once a season at the rate of 40 g per 1 m². In the future, the pine will have enough organic matter that accumulates in the coniferous litter.

Pine does not need pruning, but the crown can be made denser, while slowing down its growth, if you break off young (light) pine branches by a third of the length with your hands.

Replanting a pine tree

It is better to replant any coniferous plant in the spring: from mid-April to early May. The fact is that the survival rate of coniferous plants compared to deciduous trees is much lower, their roots develop more slowly, and they need a longer period of heat to adapt to a new place.

The forest pine tree that you are planning to transplant to your site needs to be dug up correctly: first, it is dug along the projection of the perimeter of the crown, gradually exposing the roots of the tree while trying not to damage them. The depth of the circular trench should be at least 60 cm, and the width - 30-40 cm. Then the pine tree is carefully removed along with the earthen lump and quickly delivered to the planting site. Keep in mind that the pine roots must be submerged in the soil at all times.

The plant is lowered into a pre-prepared hole, in which a drainage layer and half a kilo of manure have already been laid, and on top is a layer of not ordinary garden soil, but forest soil mixed with fertilizers and pine bedding. The size of the pit should be one and a half times larger than the pine root system along with the earthen ball. The free space is filled with forest soil with fertilizers, after which the pine tree is watered abundantly. In the first 2-3 weeks, it will need frequent and abundant watering: at least 2 times a week.

Pine pests and diseases

Like other coniferous plants, pines often get sick not from infections, but from improper or insufficient care. Sometimes we receive complaints from readers that, for example, for no reason at all, a well-developed pine tree turns yellow or that a seedling planted last year died with the onset of spring. And the reason lies in untimely or incorrect planting or errors in caring for the plant. The health of your garden is entirely in your hands, and our task is only to arm you with the necessary information.

Pine trees suffer from fungal diseases, which occur primarily due to too dense planting, lack of light and excess moisture.

Rust is the most common pine disease, the signs of which are orange vesicles filled with spores that form on the lower part of the crown. To avoid infection of pine with rust, do not grow it close to currants or gooseberries and carry out preventive treatments of the tree with copper-containing preparations.

Pine spinner manifested by the formation of golden-yellow oblong swellings on young pine shoots. As the disease develops, the shoots become bent in the shape of the letter S and wounds appear on them, in which pine resin collects. They destroy infectious agents with fungicidal preparations, while simultaneously using immunostimulants and microfertilizers. Needles that have fallen from diseased trees must be burned.

Rust cancer (tar cancer) - a dangerous disease that usually leads to the death of pine trees. You can recognize it by the orange-yellow bubbles that appear from suddenly formed cracks in the bark. At the initial stage of the disease, you can save the plant by clearing the wound on the trunk to healthy tissue, treating the wood with a three to five percent solution of copper sulfate and applying a protective composition to the damaged area - Rannet paste or garden varnish with the addition of a fungicide. It is better to cut down diseased branches, and disinfect the cuts in the same way as wounds on the trunk. Plant residues must be burned.

At scleroderiosis, or umbrella disease , the apical bud on the pine shoots dies, the needles die, and the disease covers the entire branch. The disease progresses during wet seasons and warm autumn, most often affecting cedar and mountain pines. To prevent the spread of infection, it is necessary to carry out sanitary pruning of dead shoots to a healthy bud throughout the season.

Snow shutte appears on young pines (younger than eight years old) immediately after the snow melts: their needles acquire a red-brown color, black dots of fungal spores appear on the needles, and then a white coating, which is why the shutte was called snowy. In case of massive damage, the death of seedlings and cuttings is possible. The source of infection is the fallen needles of diseased plants, which were not collected and burned in a timely manner. Seedlings are treated with copper-containing preparations twice per season - in May and in the second half of summer.

At necrosis of the cortex The pine bark and branches turn yellow, dry out and die. This disease most often develops on a plant weakened by drought, frost and mechanical damage. Sick pines are treated with fungicides at least three times per season - in spring, early summer and autumn, but before spraying, pathogenic formations must be removed from the bark with a swab soaked in fungicide, and dead branches and shoots must be cut to a living bud.

Pine pests can be divided into four groups:

  • sucking pests: aphids, hermes, pine bugs, pine scale insects, pine underbark bugs and spider mites;
  • pine chewers: red pine sawflies, pine silkworms, shoot moths, pine moth caterpillars and pine leaf miners;
  • cone pests: cone moths, cone resin moths;
  • subcortical and stem pests: large and small pine beetles, longhorned beetles, gold beetles, elephant beetles and spot tar beetles.

Correct agricultural technology, conscientious care of pine trees, especially in the first years of life, and regular preventive treatments with insecticidal and acaricidal preparations can save you from this army of pests.

Pine propagation

How to propagate pine

Plants of the genus Pine reproduce by seed and vegetatively - by cuttings and grafting. Typically, vegetative propagation methods are more reliable, and results from them can be expected earlier, however, the main method of pine propagation is not vegetative, but generative, that is, seed.

Growing pine from seeds

Seeds for propagation need mature, fresh ones. Pine cones are harvested at the end of October or at the beginning of November: at this time, the seeds in them are already ripe and ready for sowing. The cones should not be picked up from the ground, but removed from the tree. At home, they are laid out on cloth or paper closer to the heating device and wait until they dry and the seeds can be easily removed from them. The seeds are stored in a cool place in tightly closed glass jars, and two to three months before sowing, they are sorted out and temporarily placed in a container of water. It is better not to count on those seeds that will remain floating on the surface, and the seeds that have sunk to the bottom are subjected to stratification: dipped for disinfection for half an hour in a weak (pink) solution of potassium permanganate, then washed and soaked for a day in water to swell, after which mixed with wet sand, placed in a nylon stocking and kept in the refrigerator for at least a month.

Sow the seeds in the second ten days of April in light and not necessarily fertile soil, for example, in river sand calcined in the oven for 20 minutes at a temperature of 200 ºC. A layer of sawdust 2 cm thick is placed on the sand placed in a container, the seeds are laid out on them with the pointed end down, lightly pressing each seed, and the crops are sprinkled on top with a layer of fallen pine needles 1-1.5 cm thick, sprayed generously from a spray bottle and the crops are placed in a greenhouse under film. Seeds can take a long time to germinate, but usually by April the first shoots already appear. Do not forget to ventilate the crops, moisten the substrate and remove condensation from the film.

As soon as the seedlings appear, they are placed in a bright, warm place, protected from drafts, and at the stage of formation of the second pair of needles in the seedlings, they are transplanted into real pine soil. After 2-3 years, in the spring, the seedlings are planted in open ground at a distance of 30-50 cm from each other, trying not to injure or expose their roots, and also not to shake off the mycorrhiza necessary for coniferous crops to grow and develop. You need to carefully trim the root of the seedling, dip it in a mash of garden soil (2 parts) and humus (1 part), diluted with water to the consistency of thick sour cream, and then plant it in a pre-prepared hole. In the school bed, the pine trees are watered once a week, after watering the soil around the seedlings is loosened, weeds are removed, and in the second year, before the spring sap flow, rotted manure (500 g per m²), superphosphate (25 g per m²) and potassium are added to the soil in the garden bed. saltpeter (10 g per m²) followed by embedding to a depth of 10 cm. Pines are planted in a permanent place in spring or early autumn 4 years after planting.

Pine propagation by cuttings

It is better to cut pine trees in the fall. Cuttings should be taken lignified, 8-12 cm long, with a heel (with a piece of wood from the branch on which the cutting grew). Cuttings are harvested in cloudy weather from the apical lateral shoots of the middle part of the crown facing north. To get the correct cutting, you do not need to cut, but with a sharp downward and sideways movement, tear off the shoot with a piece of wood and bark on it. When preparing cuttings for planting, the heels are lightly cleaned of needles and burrs, after which the segments are placed for 4-6 hours in a two percent solution of Fundazol, Captan or in a dark pink solution of potassium permanganate, and immediately before planting, the lower edge with the heel is treated with Kornevin, Epin or Heteroauxin .

The cuttings are planted in a substrate consisting of equal parts of leaf soil, humus and sand, at an angle and covered with a transparent cap to create greenhouse conditions. Every day, the covering is removed from the cuttings to ventilate and remove condensation from the film. In winter, a box with cuttings can be kept in the basement, and in spring - in the open air. Rooting lasts from one and a half to four and a half months, and the cuttings simultaneously grow both roots and new shoots. Next spring, in May, the soil in which the cuttings grow is watered with Epin or Kornevin solution, and they are planted in open ground another year later.

Pine propagation by grafting

This method of propagating pine trees is for experienced gardeners, but they say that beginners are lucky in such matters. After all, that's how experience is earned: people doing things they've never done before.

The advantage of butt grafting is that this method guarantees that the scion cutting inherits all the properties and characteristics of the mother plant. Plants 4-5 years old can be used as a rootstock, and the scion is cut from growth from one to three years old. The needles are removed from the cuttings, leaving the needles only near the bud located in the upper part. All long shoots and lateral buds are removed from the rootstock. Grafting is carried out at the very beginning of spring sap flow or in mid-summer. Spring grafting is carried out on last year's shoots, and summer grafting is carried out on current year's shoots.

Pine tree on the site in winter

Pine in autumn

All types of pine, except Thunberg pine, are winter-hardy. Even with the onset of cold weather, processes in trees do not stop, but only slow down. Based on this, you need to prepare coniferous plants for winter. Around the end of November, before the onset of frost, it is necessary to carry out water-recharging irrigation: 2 buckets of water are poured under each pine tree below one meter, and if the tree is taller, then the water consumption rate increases to 3-5 liters. To ensure that water goes into the soil and does not spread over the surface, an earthen dump is made along the perimeter of the border of the tree trunk circle. Pre-winter watering is especially important for one-year and two-year-old seedlings whose root system is not yet sufficiently developed. Breeds with poor winter hardiness, as well as plants that have undergone formative pruning this year, also need it.

From August, the application of nitrogen fertilizers to the soil must be stopped: nitrogen stimulates the formation of green mass, and you need the already formed shoots to grow and ripen during the autumn months, otherwise they will die in the winter. To speed up the process of their lignification and at the same time strengthen the pine root system, the tree is fed with a potassium-phosphorus complex in September.

An important point in preparing young pines for winter is mulching the tree trunk circle. It is best to use crushed tree bark as mulch: it allows oxygen to penetrate to the roots of plants, and when a thaw begins, such mulch does not prevent the release of evaporation, so neither the roots nor the neck will perish under the bark, as sometimes happens under sawdust mulch.

Wintering in the garden

In winter, after heavy snowfall, wet heavy snow can cause thin branches to break off and fractures in the skeletal branches of a pine tree. There is no need to shake the tree or pull its branches: plants are so fragile in winter that the branches crack from any effort. Snow from branches that you can reach should be shaken off with a broom or a long-handled brush from the tips to the trunk, and to reach higher branches, wrap the end of a board or stick with a cloth, use it to pry the branch and swing it up and down.

During a period of sudden thaw or fluctuations between above-zero daytime temperatures and below-freezing night temperatures, the pine tree may become covered with a crust of ice, the severity of which can also lead to fractures. To prevent damage to the branches, prop them up, as you did with fruit trees when they were producing too many fruits.

Types and varieties of pine trees

The huge number of species and varieties of pine can confuse not only the amateur, but also the professional gardener, especially since new varieties and hybrids of this plant continue to appear. We will introduce you to some of the species that are most often found in gardens, squares and parks.

or bristlecone pine - An American species native to Colorado, New Mexico, Arizona, dry areas of Utah, California and Nevada. It is a bushy tree up to 15 m high, which grows much lower in Europe. Sometimes it is a low-growing shrub with green and smooth bark when young, which becomes scaly over time. The branches of the bristlecone pine are raised, short and hard, the needles are dark green, five-needle type, densely lying, from 2 to 4 cm long. The cylindrical-ovoid cones that appear in the twentieth year of life reach a length of 4-9 cm. Plants of this species are light-loving, undemanding to soil, drought-resistant, but does not tolerate smoky city air. The following garden forms of Bristol pine are known:

  • Bashful– with a rounded crown;
  • Jos Best– with a conical crown;
  • Rasek Doll– with a conical loose crown;
  • Sherwood Compact- a small tree with a dense conical crown.

also native to North America. This plant reaches a height of 26 cm. In its youth, its crown is narrowly cone-shaped, later it takes on the shape of a ball. The bark of the flexible pine is dark brown, at first smooth and thin, and later rough and finely scaly. The branches are slightly curved, in mature pines hanging at an acute angle to the trunk. Young shoots are of a dull reddish-brown hue, furrowed, bare or covered with light curly hairs. Triangular, hard, curved dark green needles 3-7 cm long are collected in bunches of 5 pieces. They remain on the tree for up to 5-6 years. Ovate-cylindrical, hanging, shiny, light brown or yellowish cones reach a length of 15 cm. The plant has been grown in Europe since 1861 and has several decorative forms:

  • Glenmore– a tree with longer gray-blue needles than the main species;
  • Nana– dwarf shrub form with needles up to 3 cm long;
  • Pendula– pine tree only 2 m high with hanging branches;
  • Tiny Temple– a very low-growing form with dark green on the outside and gray-blue on the inside needles 6-7 cm long.

or European cedar found wild in central Europe. The cedar pine reaches a height of 10-15 m. It has brown or rusty-red shoots, the needles are green on one side, gray or bluish on the other, covered with stomatal stripes. The cones are spherical-ovoid, 5-8 cm long and 4-6 cm wide. The species is distinguished by its winter hardiness, shade tolerance and durability. It has a number of decorative forms:

  • columnar;
  • unifoliate - a dwarf shrub with needles collected in bunches of 5 pieces;
  • green - with bright green needles;
  • golden - with shiny yellow needles;
  • variegated - with golden-variegated needles;
  • Aureovariegata– with more or less yellow needles;
  • Glauka– pine with a pyramidal crown and silver-blue needles;
  • Globe– dwarf form up to 2 m high;
  • Pygmea or Nana– compact forms 40-60 cm high with thin and short branches and needles, similar to elfin needles;
  • Strict- a pine with a columnar crown, almost vertical branches directed upward, and tightly pressed branches.

or Korean cedar grows on the coasts of the Amur River, in Northeast Korea and Japan. The tree reaches a height of 40 m, and a diameter from 1 to 1.5 m. The branches of the pine are prostrate or ascending, the bark is smooth, thick, gray-brown or dark gray. Young shoots are light brown, slightly pubescent, triangular. Green on one side and gray or bluish with oyster stripes on the other, the needles are collected in bunches of 5 pieces. The cones are cylindrical, 10-15 cm long and 5-9 cm wide. The species has been in cultivation since 1846. Korean pine is shade-tolerant, resistant to urban conditions, and decorative. Korean pine should be planted in fresh, fertile, but waterlogged soil. Decorative forms of Korean pine:

  • variegated - part of the needles is light golden in color, part is golden-spotted or golden-edged;
  • curved - the needles are spirally curved, especially at the ends of the branches;
  • Glauka– a pine tree up to 10 m high with a beautiful conical crown with a diameter of 3 to 5 m. The needles are dense, gray-blue, in bunches of 5 needles. Male spikelets are yellow, cones 10-15 cm long are first reddish, then purple, and brown at maturity;
  • Silveray– a variety with long silver-blue needles;
  • Anna– pine with a wide oval crown;
  • Winton– dwarf form up to 2 m high with a crown diameter of about 4 m;
  • Variegata– pine with light yellow or yellow-spotted needles with a yellow edge.

distributed throughout Eastern Siberia, the Far East, Korea, Northeast China and Japan. Because of its original appearance, dwarf cedar pine is called lying forest, northern cedar, northern jungle. The species is a tree no more than 5 m high, with intertwined crowns, clinging to the ground and forming dense thickets. The branches of the elfin tree are palmate, the shoots are short, greenish, and with age they turn gray-brown with red pubescence. Thin blue-green needles up to 10 cm long are collected in a bunch of 5 pieces. The buds are red-violet, but as they ripen they turn brown. The species was introduced into culture in 1807. The dwarf pine is winter-hardy, light-loving, undemanding to soil, resistant to diseases and pests and has the following decorative forms:

  • Glauka– a shrub up to 1.5 m high with a crown up to 3 m in diameter, powerful ascending shoots and gray-blue needles;
  • Chlorocapra– a plant the size of the main species, with gray-green needles and yellow-green cones when young;
  • Drayers Dwarf– a compact plant with a wide funnel-shaped crown and blue needles;
  • Dwarf Blue– a wide, low pine with white-bluish needles 3-4 cm long;
  • Globe– a relatively fast-growing form with a crown height and diameter of up to 2 m, with thin beautiful needles of a bluish-green hue;
  • Yedello– pine with a wide-spreading flat crown with a nest-like depression in the middle and needles pressed to the shoots, green on the upper side and bluish-white on the lower side;
  • Nana– a shrub with a dense crown, red spikelets and twisted, bright gray-green needles;
  • Sapphire- an unevenly growing form with short blue needles.

distributed in Europe and Siberia. The height of plants of this species reaches from 20 to 40 m. The trunk is straight, with a high, naturally formed trunk. The crown at a young age is cone-shaped, in old age it is wide, round, and sometimes umbrella-shaped. Collected in bunches of two, flat, hard, slightly curved needles up to 6 cm long are painted bluish-green. Symmetrical ovoid-conical cones up to 3.5 cm thick reach a length of 7 cm. The species is light-loving, winter-hardy, but sensitive to air pollution. It grows quickly, which is a rather rare advantage for pine trees. It has the following garden forms:

  • Alba– pine up to 20 cm high with a crown in the shape of a wide umbrella and gray-blue needles;
  • Albins– a dwarf plant with gray-green needles;
  • Aurea– a shrub up to 1 m high with a rounded crown, yellow-green needles when young and golden-yellow when mature;
  • Compress– a dwarf plant up to 2 m high with a columnar crown and pressed needles;
  • Fastiggiata– pine up to 15 m high with a strictly columnar crown, tightly pressed twigs and branches and bluish-green needles;
  • Glauka– a powerful plant with a wide pin-shaped crown and blue needles;
  • Globoza Viridiz– a dwarf form up to half a meter high with a rounded or ovoid crown and long, hard, dark green needles;
  • Repanda– pine is wide, flat and splayed with powerful shoots and gray-green needles up to 8 cm long;
  • Japan- a straight, very slowly growing tree with a crown, like a spruce, with obliquely rising branches and short green needles;
  • Kamon Blue– a medium-sized tree with a pin-shaped crown, dense branches and rounded needles of an intense blue color.

In addition to the described species, Koch, hooked, few-flowered, densely flowered, Murray, Pallas (Crimean), funerary, twisted, resinous, Sosnovsky, flattened (Chinese), Frieza (Lapland), black, Balkan (Rumelian), Banksa, Wallich (Himalayan), Virginia, Geldreich, mountain, hill (western white), yellow (Oregon), Pinia (Italian), Siberian cedar (Siberian cedar) and others.

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