Name

Pinus canariensis C.Sm., Phys. Beschr. Canar. Ins. [Buch]: 159 (1825).
[Canary Island pine]

Description

Habit: A large tree to 60 m tall when mature.

Bark: The bark is purplish to red-brown, thick, scaly and breaks into large irregular plates divided by deep fissures.

Foliage: Needles yellow-green, in 3’s, 15-30 cm long, slender (0.9-1.2 mm wide), drooping, with finely serrated margins and lines of stomata on all surfaces. Two marginal or septal resin canals. Needle sheath persistent 14-21 mm long.

Branchlets: Young branchlets are stout,, usually brownish, glabrous, 6-15 mm wide.

Winter buds: Buds, non-resinous, 6-14 mm wide, with orange to red-brown recurved scales.

Cones: Cones brown or red-brown, backward pointing on the branch and opening readily when mature in 2 years and opening the same summer or up to a year later, 6.5-25 cm long, 7-13 cm wide when open, on a short stout stalk 5-16 mm long. Cone scales with no prickle.

Seeds: Seeds shiny brown to black, 11-15 mm long, with wings 15-25 mm long.

Notes

A distinctive species with long fine needles, often slightly drooping, brown symmetrical cones, and winter buds with orange-brown recurved scales.

Natural Distribution

Canary Islands.