Chapter 7 No.7

Long-Leaf Pine. Georgia Pine.

Pinus palustris Miller.

Pinus, the classical Latin name; palustris means swampy, inappropriate here.

Habitat.

Habitat: (See map); best in Louisiana and East Texas.

Characteristics of the Tree: Height, 80'-100'; diameter, 2'-3'; trunk, straight, clean, branches high; bark, light brown, large, thin, irregular papery scales; leaves 8"-12" long, 3 in a sheath; cones 6"-10" long.

Appearance of Wood: Heart-wood, spring wood light yellow, summer wood, red brown; sap wood, lighter; non-porous; rings, very plain and strongly marked; grain, straight; rays, numerous, conspicuous; very resinous, but resin ducts few and not large.

Leaf.

Physical Qualities: Heavy (18th in this list); 38 lbs. per cu. ft.; sp. gr. 0.6999; very strong (7th in this list); very elastic (4th in this list); hardness, medium (33d in this list); shrinkage, 4 per cent.; warps very little; quite durable; works hard, tough; splits badly in nailing.

Common Uses: Joists, beams, bridge and building trusses, interior finish, ship building, and general construction work.

Remarks: Almost exclusively the source of turpentine, tar, pitch and resin in the United States. Known in the English market as pitch pine.

Cross-section, magnified 37? diameters.

Radial Section, life size.

Tangential Section, life size.