Pinus elliottii (Slash pine)

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Pinus elliottii Engelm.

Slash pine, yellow slash pine, swamp pine

Kingdom	Plantae	Plants, but not fungi, lichens, or algae
Subkingdom	Tracheobionta	Vascular plants—plants with a “circulatory system” for delivering water and nutrients
Division	Coniferophyta	Conifers—cone-bearing trees (and a few shrubs)
Class	Pinopsida	Gymnosperms such as cedars, Douglas-firs, cypresses, firs, junipers, kauri, larches, pines, hemlocks, redwoods, spruces, and yews
Order	Pinales	Cone-bearing plants: cedar, cypress, fir, juniper, larch, pine, redwood, spruce, yew, and others
Family	Pinaceae	Pine family: cedars, firs, hemlocks, larches, pines and spruces
Genus	Pinus	Latin for “pine”
Species	elliottii

About plant names...

Slash pine is so called because it is a common inhabitant of “slashes”—that is, swampy ground overgrown with trees and bushes. (This rather strange meaning of “slash” probably derives from the Norwegian word slask, meaning “mud” or “slush.”) It is native to the southeastern United States, and is found at elevations below 492′ (150 m). Some botanists distinguish Pinus elliottii var. densus, or Florida slash pine, from P. elliottii var. elliottii, a variety whose range includes Florida and some surrounding states. Florida slash pine has denser wood, a grass-like seedling stage, longer needles usually in fascicles of two, and opened cones average 4″ (10 cm) long with rounded bottoms. Other botanists cannot discern a clear distinction. Here, we lump them together. Trees live up to 200 years.

Plants: Trees are up to 98′ (30 m) in height, with trunks up to 2½′ (80 cm) in diameter. Most trees are straight, branching only near the top. Bark is orange to purple-brown, irregularly furrowed into loosely rectangular scaly plates.

Leaves: Needles are in groups of 2 or 3, each 6-8″ (15-20 cm) × ⅜-½″ (1.2-1.5 cm). They are dark green and straight or somewhat twisted, and yellow- to blue-green.

Flowers: Buds are cylindric, silver-brown, ½-¾″ (1.5-2 cm) long.

Fruits: Pollen cones are cylindric, 1-1½″ (3-4 cm) long, and purplish, emerging from a branch tip in small clusters. Seed cones occur singly or in pairs, opening to a light chocolate brown color. Good cone crops occur every 3 or 4 years.

Online References:

The Gymnosperm Database

The USDA Forest Service's Fire Effects Information Database

Conifersociety.org

The Virginia Tech Department of Forest Resources and Environmental Conservation

Cabi.org’s Invasive Species Compendium

Florida.plantatlas.usf.edu

4/14/2015 · Pinelands, Everglades National Park, Florida ID is uncertain

4/13/2015 · Ernest F. Coe Visitor Center, Everglades National Park, Florida · By Susan M. Kent · ≈ 11 × 17″ (28 × 42 cm)

4/14/2015 · Long Pine Key, Everglades National Park, Florida · ≈ 10 × 15″ (25 × 37 cm)

Pinus elliottii description by Thomas H. Kent, last updated 25 May 2020.

4/14/2015 · Pinelands, Everglades National Park, Florida ID is uncertain

4/13/2015 · Mahogany Hammock Trail, Everglades National Park, Florida

4/14/2015 · Pinelands, Everglades National Park, Florida · ≈ 1½ × 2½′ (53 × 79 cm) ID is uncertain

4/13/2015 · Ernest F. Coe Visitor Center, Everglades National Park, Florida · By Susan M. Kent · ≈ 3 × 4½′ (91 × 136 cm)

4/14/2015 · Pinelands, Everglades National Park, Florida · ≈ 1 × 2′ (39 × 59 cm) ID is uncertain

4/14/2015 · Pinelands, Everglades National Park, Florida ID is uncertain

4/14/2015 · Pinelands, Everglades National Park, Florida · ≈ 8 × 12″ (21 × 31 cm) ID is uncertain

Range:

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