The Wonderful Pine Tree

Pine trees are amazing. If you have ever wandered through a pine forest you will know the lovely fresh aroma of these evergreen trees. They are very useful to mankind for wood, pulp, and in some cases, pine nuts.

There are more than 100 types of pine tree and they are all classified under the genus Pinus in the family Pinaceae. They range in size from 3-80 metres in height. The tallest species is the Ponderosa Pine which is found in America. Pines have needles (long, pointed, adult leaves) and cones (seed carrier) and are pretty easy to indentify because of this and their aroma.

The oldest ever known pine was a Bristlecone Pine found near Wheeler Peak in America. It was dated to 4,900 years old using the dendrochronology method; counting tree rings - one for every year of life. It is no longer alive because it was cut down but it has been called Prometheus after the Greek immortal who brought knowledge (symbolised by fire) to humans.

The trees are native to most of the northern hemisphere and are a common sight. They have also been introduced to subtropical regions such as South Africa and Australia because they are a good source of timber but in some areas they are threatening the native ecosystems.

Pine is classified as softwood. This is because pines are gymnosperms (they let their seeds fall to the ground with no covering). The hardwoods are the angiosperm trees (their seeds have a covering - think acorn).

Whilst you may think that softwood is soft and therefore not good for furniture, the term doesn’t reflect on the actual hardness of the wood. Red pine (or Norway pine as it is also known) is harder than sweet birch, white oak and North American walnut. Pine furniture is in fact really popular because it is so versatile and comparatively cheap compared to other woods. Obviously only buy solid pine furniture because a veneer is just a pine finish on chip board.

Pine timber is also used as pulp. The timber is chipped and used in the manufacture of paper. Only the heartwood and sapwood are used but the bark is often used as fuel to create the steam for the pulp mill.

The pine nuts from Pinus Koraiensis and Pinus Sibirica are large and edible. Pine nuts are full of vitamins, minerals, antioxidants and calories. They are gluten free so obviously useful for gluten free diets. The oil from these nuts has a light flavour and is used in cooking and is also useful as a moisturiser for the skin. It can also be used as a base oil.

Pine is a fantastic tree and it provides us with many useful things. Long live pine.