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The Tree

HomeWhat is Longleaf?The Tree

The Tree

Needles - evergreen, 8 to 17 inches in length, fascicled in groups of 3

As its name implies, longleaf pines have the longest needles of all southern pines. The needles are grouped in threes and arranged in tufts on the end of branches. Needles persist for approximately 2 growing seasons before shedding.

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High in natural volatile chemicals, longleaf pine needles are slow to decay once they fall to the forest floor. However, frequent fires throughout the woods easily ignite the dead needles and clean the forest floor of pine needles and other debris.

Native Americans and early settlers frequently used pine needles to weave baskets. Today, longleaf pine needles (called "pine straw") are gathered and used as garden mulch because of their pleasing color and length.

Cones - prickly, brown/gray in color, ~11 inches in length

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Like all pines, longleaf is monoecious with both the male and female reproductive cones found on the same tree. Longleaf pine's reproductive cycle takes over 2 years to complete, with the larger female cones eventually maturing by autumn of the second year. Longleaf pines are sporadic seed producers with infrequent good seed crops. Cones open and seeds fall in October and November.

The cones of longleaf pine are the largest of the southern pine and range in size from 5 to 12 inches in length. Because of their large size, only animals like the fox squirrel are sizable enough to manipulate and open the longleaf pine cones to eat the seeds before they fall to the ground.

Bark - red/brown in color, plated with paperlike scales

On young longleaf pine, the bark appears brownish-gray and is deeply furrowed. As the tree ages, the furrows become shallower, the bark color assumes an orange-brown shade, and the exterior scales appear more papery.

The thick bark of longleaf pine generally protects the tree from the frequent fires in the Southeast. Charred signs of past fires are often visible on the bark. Occasionally, a fire may burn through the bark creating a wound. Over time a noticeable fire scar may develop. A large fire scar may weaken (or perhaps kill) a longleaf pine tree. Nonetheless, fire scars make excellent nesting sites for animals such as bluebirds.

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Many species of birds, such as the white-breasted nuthatch, brown creeper, and red-cockaded woodpecker, scramble up and down the tree, peeling off scales of bark, searching for insects seeking refuge underneath. Some reptiles or amphibians like the barking tree frog or pinewood's tree frog take a more passive approach when hunting food and simply wait on the bark for food to come to them.

Roots

In its early life stages longleaf pines may demonstrate little growth aboveground, but belowground a tremendous amount of activity is taking place. Establishing an extensive root system provides essential access to soil moisture and anchorage once the tree initiates height growth.

As the tree continues to mature, the lateral and tap roots continue to grow. In mature trees, roots radiate out laterally an average of 35 feet from the trunk (some roots may travel up to 75 ft). Longleaf differs from other pines in that the tap root is nearly as large in diameter as the tree's trunk, tapering gradually to depths (on average) of 10 to 15 feet.

Longleaf roots are high in carbohydrates and other nutrients making them prized food for wildlife. Although relatively harmless to mature longleaf, root foraging can damage young trees. At one time, wild pigs were so abundant in the Southeast that their voracious appetite for longleaf roots resulted in countless acres of young trees rooted up.

When a longleaf pine tree dies, its root system decomposes or burns in a fire, creating a myriad of underground tunnels - ideal habitat for various creatures.

BROWSE THIS SECTION

  • The Tree
    • Life Stages
    • The Economics
    • The History
    • The Misconceptions
  • The Ecosystem
    • Built by Fire
    • Habitats
    • Species Diversity
  • Restoration & Management
    • Groundcover Restoration
    • Herbicides
    • Longleaf Regeneration
    • Prescribed Fire
  • Photo Gallery

From our feed

The Longleaf Alliance is thrilled to announce The The Longleaf Alliance is thrilled to announce The Owen Fellowship! 

Dr. William ‘Bill’ Owen is a professional musician, educator, and landowner in Virginia. Through his work on the Board of Directors of The Longleaf Alliance, he was inspired to endow a fellowship for advanced studies and research in longleaf pine ecosystems. This is an exciting program we are proud to offer one lucky graduate student in conjunction with the 14th Biennial Longleaf Conference to be held October 25-28, 2022.

More details on our website > https://longleafalliance.org/get-involved. The application deadline will be here before we know it!
One last #gophertortoise post to wrap up our celeb One last #gophertortoise post to wrap up our celebration of #GopherTortoiseDay (which really should be Gopher Tortoise Week!). 

Gopher tortoises prefer well-drained, sandy soils and can be found in a variety of habitats such as #longleafpine sandhills, xeric oak hammocks, scrub, pine flatwoods, dry prairies, and coastal dunes. 

📷 Today we head to the southern extent of the #longleaf range in south Central Florida where Elizabeth Shadle, TLA's Wildlife Technician with our reticulated flatwood salamander project, previously worked. Elizabeth says, "This is one of my favorite gopher tortoise pictures from when I worked in central Florida at Archbold Biological Station. I spent a year monitoring the GT population and fell in love with these hard shelled creatures with soft hearts. I loved that they had different personalities and sometimes even enjoyed some scratches under the chin! Only handled with permits, of course!" 

🎥 We also suggest this really fun film from Archbold Biological Station all about the "Queen of Red Hill" -- Tortoise 21 who was first measured by researchers in 1968. >> https://vimeo.com/279384555
Celebrate #NationalPetDay with us by sharing pics Celebrate #NationalPetDay with us by sharing pics of your favorite animal companions appreciating #longleafpine! Remember to always supervise your pets when exploring natural areas - this not only protects sensitive habitats, plants, and animals, but is courteous to fellow outdoor enthusiasts and keeps your animal companions safe.

📷 A young (and adorable) Pearl was checking out a burn unit with her human (Jacob Barrett) when they encountered her first #gophertortoise friend in the firelane. 

If you encounter a tortoise (or turtle) crossing a road or firelane and need to assist, move the animal across the road in the SAME direction it was headed, but only if it is safe for you to do so.

#longleaf #restorelongleaf #GopherTortoiseDay
Not only do #gophertortoise burrows provide shelte Not only do #gophertortoise burrows provide shelter, but the burrow apron, or entrance, is often where female gopher tortoises lay their eggs to keep them warm, though sometimes they use a sunny spot nearby. Breeding season is beginning now (typically from April to June) and soon females will lay egg clutches with 3-15 eggs. 

Unfortunately, nest and hatchling predation is high with only about three to five percent of the young tortoises typically survive. That is why The Longleaf Alliance, University of Georgia’s Savannah River Ecology Laboratory and the SC Department of Natural Resources are collaborating to restore gopher tortoise populations in SC through a technique called “headstarting.” Eggs collected from wild populations are reared in captivity and released back onto the sites where they were collected. This collaborative effort helps to augment existing populations and give young tortoises a greater chance of survival. Read more about TLA’s rare species projects here > https://longleafalliance.org/what-we-do/conserving-diverse-forests/rare-species/

🎥 Randy Tate captured this video of a gopher tortoise laying an egg several years ago. With low rates of reproduction, capturing this moment on camera from this angle is pretty remarkable!  #longleafpine #longleaf #restorelongleaf #GopherTortoiseDay
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