Pine tree

B

Bob89013

Location
Goldfield
This pine tree was already growing at my house when I bought the place. I think the tree is around 10 years old. Zone 7A, high desert. Anyone know what species?
Thanks!
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Thank you for your reply. In one bunch the number of needles can vary from 20 to 40. The length of the needles can vary from 1.5 inches up to 5 inches. The needles are soft and pliable. The bunches point upwards.

The next time I am there I will take better pictures, including close-ups of the needles, bark and hopefully some cones if there are any. But it might be 2-3 months before I am up there again.
 
What he means is to find where the needles attach to the stem. At the base will be a differently colored tissue that encompasses a group of needles. Said group will contain a specific # of needles, 2, 3, 5 etc. We'll have a better idea when we know what # this pine is.
 
Could be ponderosa Pine.


For tree nerds, there is a single needle pine.
Pinon pine (with the squiggly mark on the first 'n'. Pin-yon)
Pinus monophyllum.
 
Pictures suggest P. ponderosa ssp brachyptera, but you'd need clearer pictures of the individual fascicles and stem. Also better measurements of mature needles would help. Zone helps, but a more specific geographic region would be even more helpful.

That is going to be a big beautiful tree someday.
 
Thank you all for your replies. There are definitely 2 needles per fasicle. See the first photo below for a close-up of the needles. In this bunch the needles are 4 inches long, but the needles that are new this year are only about an inch long right now. I took all of these these photos today, showing the new growth that has taken place this spring. This is in USDA Zone 7a, in Goldfield, Nevada. The tree is approximately 10 years old. I also have a ponderosa pine tree on the property, a tree wich I planted 2 years ago, and its needles are stiffer and have sharper points than these. The needles on this tree in these photos are soft and pliable. Thank you for any further information you can provide.

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I am still going with a Bishop Pine Pinus muricata. They are planted as ornamentals, are drought resistant, 2-needle bundles and the length you've described. If the photo was a little better of the trunk and there were pine cones in the foliage, it might help for ID purposes.
 
Thank you for your reply. Here are some close-up photos of the trunk and a couple of cones. The cones are so high up in the tree that I wasn't able to get close-ups of them so they are not very sharp or clear, sorry.

cone1.webpcone2.webptrunk1.webptrunk2.webp
 
I can try getting a ladder and picking that brown cone off and photographing it better if that will help.

Now that you have said Bishop pine I have been looking at photos of other Bishop pines and the needles and cones do look very similar to my tree. The thing with this tree is that I think it has had a tough life; this is a very dry, windy, harsh climate and it gets very cold in the winter. So its growth habit might not be typical. When I bought the house 3 years ago the tree was almost totally brown and I thought it was dying. But I have watered and fed it regularly and it has really revived. But it might never look like the average Bishop pine.
 
T
Bob89013 said:
I can try getting a ladder and picking that brown cone off and photographing it better if that will help.

Now that you have said Bishop pine I have been looking at photos of other Bishop pines and the needles and cones do look very similar to my tree. The thing with this tree is that I think it has had a tough life; this is a very dry, windy, harsh climate and it gets very cold in the winter. So its growth habit might not be typical. When I bought the house 3 years ago the tree was almost totally brown and I thought it was dying. But I have watered and fed it regularly and it has really revived. But it might never look like the average Bishop pine.
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The 2 needle Pinyon Pine appears to have fairly short needles? Might remove it from thought here. The Bishop Pine has a very restricted range and is associated primarily with costal environments? But it seems the most likely candidate.
 
Piñon pine does grow wild in this county, up in higher elevations in the mountains about 30 miles west of here, but not in the town of Goldfield. The elevation at my house is 5,600 feet. My tree does not look to me like a piñon pine. I'm sure my tree was planted here by the previous owner because the Google street view from 2008 shows it as a newly planted tree. Based on what you have said, and from looking at other photos, I'm going to just assume it's a Bishop pine, but one that has not adapted here very well and has needed extra care. Thank you for your insight.
 
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