sugar pine

Pinus lambertiana

Family: Pinaceae.

Type: Large evergreen conifer.

Leaves: Needles are in bundles of five, and the bundle sheath is not persistent; it falls off once the needles are mature.

Twig: The bark has puzzle-shaped pieces, but they are much smaller and the ridges are much narrower than in the ponderosa. The color of the bark is a grayish pink, more towards the gray than that of the ponderosa.

Cone: The cone is elongated and soft to the touch (not as woody as that of the yellow pines such as ponderosa or Jeffrey pine). The cone of the sugar pine is the longest cone in the world.

Miscellaneous: This is a member of the white pine group, as defined by bundles of five with a bundle sheath that is not persistent. The sugar pine is the largest pine in the world. The sap is sweet, as was used by John Muir on his pancakes, but don't use too much — it is a laxative. Its shade tolerance is intermediate. Large individuals are fire-resistant. It is fairly drought-tolerant, like ponderosa pine, but not as much as Western white pine.