THE PALMETTO,Winter 1992, Page9 by Maria Minno homes. Survivors of the timber indus- The fragrance of evergreens during try may have been spared because of the holiday season is just as important the naval stores industry. Tar, pitch, to some of us as the smell of candied rosin and turpentine were obtained yamsand pecan pie. As you gather pine from these resiniferous trees. The scar, called a "catface;' resulted when the boughs for your holiday table center- 0 c piece or you r front door wreath, think c bark was stripped down to the cam- not only of the everlasting life of the ~ bium layer. This caused the flow of the ~ -.: sap, which was funneled into ceramic spirit they represent, but also of the ~ ever-continuing natural heritage of ~ pots via tin channels nailed to the tree. u c Cat-facing made the trees unsuitable Florida's corner of the world. ~ In Florida, winter is a particularly ~ for saw timber, because of the metal, ~ good time to look at our many native ~ which would damage saw blades used evergreens. In particular, our pines :ti in lumbering. cn can give us a sense of the history of A longleaf pine accompanied by .c-§ turkey oak (Quercus laevis) indicates the land they persist on; we can guess [l. what kind of habitat ou r own home was sandhill habitat. Turkeyoak is an acorn- This longleaf pine is just coming out of its built upon if there are a few old pines bearing tree with deeply and wildly grass phase. Katharine Ordway Preserve, around. scalloped leaves. Sandhill habitat was There are seven species of pines Putnam County. a favorite of our early settlers, the called the "grass stage"for several years. native to Florida, each with its own Florida crackers, and of the native storY to tell. Although most species of pines are peoples before them. Natural sandhill resistant to fi res at matu rity, very you ng habitat is one of the most diverse com- Longleaf Pine trees are quite vulnerable. But during munities in the southeastern United the grass stage, the terminal bud, Our most noble and elegant conifer, States,with a plethora of herb species. whose su rvival is crucial to the su rvival the longleaf pine (Pinus palustris), was Longleaf pines grow in dry and moist once Florida's most abundant pine, of the entire tree, remains enveloped areas alike, the decisive factor being although now there are not a whole lot within a tuft of needles at the surface fire. In the northern two-thirds of our of them left. The need les (wh ich are the of the soil. Because fires used to be fre- state, flatwoods were dominated by leaves),8 to 18 inches long [the editor's quent in sandhills and flatwoods, fuel longleaf pines (which are absent from father once measured one 24" long], rarely built up enough to produce Florida south and east of Lake Okee- grow in little bunches of three, wrapped much heat. So, historically, most fires chobee). Flatwoods were once the in what looks like brown tissue paper just burned the edges of the leaf tuft, most widespread biological community around their bases. This is called the and the terminal bud was protected in Florida, formerly extending across fascicle sheath, and on longleaf pines within. Once a large taproot has de- perhaps half of the state'suplands. Also it is over a half inch long. veloped, after 5 to 15 years, the terminal called pine savannah, this community The buds, too, can be used to distin- bud shoots straight up on a substantial occupies soils that are covered by guish most longleaf pines from other trunk within a matter of just a few stand i ng water part of the year, and are species. Pinus palustris is unique in months! This keeps the pine's growing subject to frequent fires (perhaps once having siIvery term i nal bud s at the end points up high, again out of the reach everyone to eight years). Longleaf of eachbranch. Slashpine and other of the flames. pines accompanied by shrubs such as Floridapines havebrownish or rusty- Longleaf pines may grow to a height gallberry (flex glabra), saw palmetto of 120 feet. colored buds. The cones of the long- (Serenoa repens), and wax myrtle leaf, which may be ten inches tall, are If you find an old longleaf pine around (Myrica cerifera), or wi regrass(Aristida the largest of any native species east your home, you're lucky, since most stricta), tell you you're in genuine pine of the Mississippi River. were logged 50 to 100 years ago and are flatwoods. Young longleafs remain in what is now in the end u ri ng wood of ou r older Unfortunately, throughout Florida's Page10, THE PAL'.1~TTO,Win/c, 1992 extensive flatwoods, most of the mag- Sand Pine nificent longleaf pines have been The sand pine (Pinus clausa) is a removed for timber and replaced by short-needled pine common in the slash pines, which must be carefully Ocala National Forest. As its name tended by fire-fighters. implies, this tree is found where the SlashPine soil is conspicuously sandy.Sand pines Slash pines (Pinus e//iottii) have don't grow outside of Florida except for needles five to ten inches long in an area in the very southwestern tip of bundles of twos and threes, with glossy Alabama.A sandpine indicatesScrub habitat, where rain-washed white-sand brown cones two to six inches long. Trees of this species normally lack the barrens appear between patches of grass stage that renders longleaf pine scrub oaks. so resistantto fire. Thus the specieswas Scrub habitat is particularly rich in not particularly fire resistant in a land endemic species, and may be Florida's Cones and foliage of sand pine. Fort Lau- oldest surviving natural community. where most of the vegetation went up derdale Executive Airport scrub in Broward More information on the ever-fasci- in smoke each year from lightning County. nating Scrub can be found in the strikes. Historically, slash pine was restricted to areas protected from fre- Spring 1992 Palmetto. quent fires, such as pond margins, Loblolly Pine small islands, peninsulas, etc. So, Like longleaf pine, but unlike con- Loblolly pines (Pinus taeda) ijre although it's now the forester's favorite, specifics farther north, the South nicknamed "old field pines" because of it wasn't especially common in days of Florida slash pine has a grass stage their habit of popping up after an area old. Slash pines do grow fast, however, which renders it resistant to fires while has been clearedof trees.An old lob- and may indicate either an area long- it is young. lolly pine may indicate a farm or protected from fire (such as on very In northern Florida it is easy to dis- pasture once occupied the land. poorly-drained soil), or a former pine tinguish between slash pines and long- They have puzzle-patchy bark that plantation. leafs. In central Florida, however, the exudes the fragrance of vanilla (or is it I n South Florida, Dade Cou nty pi nes two are hard to tell apart. Only slash root beer?). They tend to branch and (Pinus e//iottii var. densa) once occu- pines can be found at the southern- grow in a characteristically un-pine-like pied flatwoods and limestone rock- most end of the Florida peninsula. manner. Also, unlike most other pines, lands, and can still be found growing in There, however, they are similar to loblolly pines can tolerate a lot of less-disturbed places such as Ever- the Caribbean pine, common in the shade, so are often found in open glades National Park and on the Keys. Bahamas. hammocks. The cones, two to six inches long, are relatively small, and the needles, six to nine inches, grow in bundles of three (occasionally two). Spruce Pine Spruce pi ne (Pinus glabra) and sand pine are both short-leaved small-coned pines. And although these two pines are superficially very similar, and they both require habitats well-protected from fire, their sunlight and moisture requirements seem to be quite differ- .. that future generations may appreciate Florida's heritage. .. ent. Spruce pines grow in moist, shady places such as deep wet woods, while We are specialisffi in commercial wetland restoration [1-100 acres). sand pines grow in scrub, the hottest, We also have the state's largest supply of seed-grown silver saw driest habitat in Florida. palmetto for upland restoration and xeric landscapes. They can also be distinguished by Many other speciesare also available. their cones. Unlike spruce pine, sand pine retains its cones so long that the If you need a quality native plantingor plant supplyplease call. surrounding branches grow around them, and they seem to be imbedded Retail hours: Wed., 10-5; Sat., 9-2. in the wood. In Florida, spruce pines grow only at DAVID DRYLIE, ASLA the northern end of the peninsula and (407) 568-1333 in the Panhandle. FLORIDANATIVE LANDSCAPE PLANTS . WETLAND& AQUATICPLANT SUPPLY Pond Pine . WHOLESALE TREES. SHRUBS & VINES . LINERS. BARERDDT & CONTAINER STOCK Trueto its name,the crooked,gnarly . WILDFLOWER PLANT & SEED SUPPLY . CONTRACT GROWING & DESIGN/BUILD branches of the pond pine (Pinus serotina) may be found spreading over 1333 taylor creek rd. p. o. box 1330. christmas. florida 32709 poorly-drained areas in the northern 20 mi. east of orlando. % mi. south of s.~ 50 half of the state. just south of the Oklawaha River in the Ocala National THE PALMETTO,Winter 1992, Page11 Forest, for example, there is a nice community, slash pines, which pro- References Clewell, Andre F.