Lacebark Pine
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''Pinus bungeana'' (; Japanese: シロマツ; ), also known by the common names Bunge's pine, lacebark pine and white-barked pine, is a
pine A pine is any conifer tree or shrub in the genus ''Pinus'' () of the family Pinaceae. ''Pinus'' is the sole genus in the subfamily Pinoideae. ''World Flora Online'' accepts 134 species-rank taxa (119 species and 15 nothospecies) of pines as cu ...
tree native to northeastern and central
China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...
. It is a slow-growing
tree In botany, a tree is a perennial plant with an elongated stem, or trunk, usually supporting branches and leaves. In some usages, the definition of a tree may be narrower, e.g., including only woody plants with secondary growth, only ...
that can grow to heights of is frost hardy down to below . Its smooth, grey-green
bark Bark may refer to: Common meanings * Bark (botany), an outer layer of a woody plant such as a tree or stick * Bark (sound), a vocalization of some animals (which is commonly the dog) Arts and entertainment * ''Bark'' (Jefferson Airplane album), ...
gradually sheds in round scales to reveal patches of pale yellow, which turn olive-brown, red and purple on exposure to light.


Description

The lacebark pine's trunk can grow either
monopodial Vascular plants with monopodial growth habits grow upward from a single point. They add leaves to the apex each year and the stem grows longer accordingly. The word ''Monopodial'' is derived from Greek language, Greek '', ''one'' and '', "foot", in ...
, as a single growth upwards, or
sympodial In botany, sympodial growth is a bifurcating branching pattern where one branch develops more strongly than the other, resulting in the stronger branches forming the primary shoot and the weaker branches appearing laterally. A sympodium, als ...
, forked. Its crown is loosely shaped like a pyramid or umbrella. It has long needles in groups of three. Each needles' cross-sections are shaped like a triangular semicircle. The lacebark pine produces cones that turn yellowish brown as they mature and are roughly egg-shaped and long. They contain seeds that are grey-brown, slightly egg-shaped, and long.


Taxonomy

''P. bungeana'' is synonymous with the name ''Pinus excorticata'', attributed to Lindley and Gordon in William Dallimore's ''Handbook of Coniferae and Ginkgoaceae''. Its name is derived from the surname "Bunge", as one of its early identifications was by botanist
Alexander von Bunge Alexander Georg von Bunge (; – ) was a Russian botanist. He is best remembered for scientific expeditions into Asia and especially Siberia. Early life and education Bunge was born under the name Alexander Andreevič von Bunge on in Kyiv as ...
in 1831 near
Beijing Beijing, Chinese postal romanization, previously romanized as Peking, is the capital city of China. With more than 22 million residents, it is the world's List of national capitals by population, most populous national capital city as well as ...
. ''P. bungeana'' is closely related to '' Pinus gerardiana'', another pine species with flaking bark, but ''P. bungeana'' has stiffer needles and smaller cones.


Distribution and habitat

''Pinus bungeana'' is native to temperate forests in the mountains of China, but it is also widely cultivated as an
ornamental tree Ornamental plants or ''garden plants'' are plants that are primarily grown for their beauty but also for qualities such as scent or how they shape physical space. Many flowering plants and garden varieties tend to be specially bred cultivars th ...
, especially for its metallic bark. It grows in the provinces of
Shanxi Shanxi; Chinese postal romanization, formerly romanised as Shansi is a Provinces of China, province in North China. Its capital and largest city of the province is Taiyuan, while its next most populated prefecture-level cities are Changzhi a ...
, west
Henan Henan; alternatively Honan is a province in Central China. Henan is home to many heritage sites, including Yinxu, the ruins of the final capital of the Shang dynasty () and the Shaolin Temple. Four of the historical capitals of China, Lu ...
, south
Gansu Gansu is a provinces of China, province in Northwestern China. Its capital and largest city is Lanzhou, in the southeastern part of the province. The seventh-largest administrative district by area at , Gansu lies between the Tibetan Plateau, Ti ...
, south
Hebei Hebei is a Provinces of China, province in North China. It is China's List of Chinese administrative divisions by population, sixth-most populous province, with a population of over 75 million people. Shijiazhuang is the capital city. It bor ...
, north
Sichuan Sichuan is a province in Southwestern China, occupying the Sichuan Basin and Tibetan Plateau—between the Jinsha River to the west, the Daba Mountains to the north, and the Yunnan–Guizhou Plateau to the south. Its capital city is Cheng ...
,
Shaanxi Shaanxi is a Provinces of China, province in north Northwestern China. It borders the province-level divisions of Inner Mongolia to the north; Shanxi and Henan to the east; Hubei, Chongqing, and Sichuan to the south; and Gansu and Ningxia to t ...
, west
Shandong Shandong is a coastal Provinces of China, province in East China. Shandong has played a major role in Chinese history since the beginning of Chinese civilization along the lower reaches of the Yellow River. It has served as a pivotal cultural ...
, and
Hubei Hubei is a province of China, province in Central China. It has the List of Chinese provincial-level divisions by GDP, seventh-largest economy among Chinese provinces, the second-largest within Central China, and the third-largest among inland ...
. It occurs in the wild on limestone rocks and south-facing slopes at relatively high elevations of , but has also been planted at lower elevations. In the northern portion of its range, it also occurs in
acidic soil Soil pH is a measure of the acidity or basicity (alkalinity) of a soil. Soil pH is a key characteristic that can be used to make informative analysis both qualitative and quantitatively regarding soil characteristics. pH is defined as the nega ...
. As a light-demanding species, it usually grows in sites less suitable for other tree species. It was introduced to
England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...
in 1843.


Ecology

Pollination of the lacebark pine occurs in the months of April and May, while seeds mature in October and November of the second year.


Uses

In China and Korea, the lacebark pine is traditionally planted near temples and cemeteries. It is also grown as an ornamental tree in classical gardens seeking to imitate Chinese gardens, in which it symbolizes longevity. It can also be seen in botanic gardens and often grows with multiple stems. The wood of the lacebark pine is not commercially used as timber, but it is used locally by populations in northeast China for construction, furniture, and transport structures like pallets. The lacebark pine has edible seeds used in
traditional Chinese medicine Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) is an alternative medicine, alternative medical practice drawn from traditional medicine in China. A large share of its claims are pseudoscientific, with the majority of treatments having no robust evidence ...
to provide relief for
respiratory The respiratory system (also respiratory apparatus, ventilatory system) is a biological system consisting of specific organs and structures used for gas exchange in animals and plants. The anatomy and physiology that make this happen varies gr ...
ailments.


Cultural significance

In 2009, ''P. bungeana'' was named the city tree of
Baoji Baoji ( zh, s= , t= , p=Bǎojī; ) is a prefecture-level city in western Shaanxi province, People's Republic of China. Since the early 1990s, Baoji has been the second largest city in Shaanxi. Geography The prefecture-level city of Baoji had a ...
, China.


References


Further reading

* *


External links


Photo of cone

Photo of foliage and male (pollen) cones

Photo of bark
{{Authority control bungeana bungeana Edible nuts and seeds Least concern plants