Knobcone pine
Pine tree found in North America
title: "Knobcone pine" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["pinus", "trees-of-northern-america", "least-concern-flora-of-the-united-states"] description: "Pine tree found in North America" topic_path: "geography/united-states" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Knobcone_pine" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0
::summary Pine tree found in North America ::
| image = Pinus attenuata1 Shultzc.jpg | image_caption = | status = LC | status_system = IUCN3.1 | status_ref = | genus = Pinus | parent = Pinus subsect. Australes | display_parents = 3 | species = attenuata | authority = Lemmon | range_map = Pinus attenuata range map 1.png
The knobcone pine, Pinus attenuata (also called Pinus tuberculata), is a tree that grows in mild climates on poor soils. It ranges from the mountains of southern Oregon to Baja California with the greatest concentration in northern California and the Oregon-California border.
Description
Individual specimens can live up to a century. The crown is usually conical with a straight trunk. It reaches heights of 8 -, but can be a shrub on especially poor sites. The bark is thin and smooth, flaky and gray-brown when young, becoming dark gray-red-brown and shallowly furrowed into flat scaly ridges in age. The twigs are red-brown and often resinous. Its wood is knotty and of little interest for lumber.
The leaves are in fascicles of three, needle-like, yellow-green, twisted, and 9–15 cm long. The cones are resin-sealed and irregularly shaped, 8–16 cm long and clustered in whorls of three to six on the branches. The scales end in a short stout prickle. Cones can sometimes be found attached to the trunk and larger branches. File:Pinaceae Knobcone Pine Pinus attenuata.jpg|Leaves File:H20130601-8518—Pinus attenuata—Walker Ridge (9233604022).jpg|male cones File:Pinus attenuata BLM7.jpg|Cones File:Knobcone_Pine_Cone.jpg|Knobcone pine cone File:Pinus attenuata Big Basin 5.jpg|Plant File:Pinus attenuata Big Basin 4.jpg|Habitat
Distribution
The knobcone pine can be found growing in the dry, rocky soils of southern Oregon and northern California, between 300 and 750 m above sea level. It forms nearly pure stands, preferring to grow where there is no competition.
Ecology
On the coast, the knobcone pine may hybridize with bishop pine (Pinus muricata), and Monterey pine (Pinus radiata).
In the western foothills of the Sierra Nevada, knobcone pine is often a co-dominant with blue oak (Quercus douglasii).
The species is susceptible to fire, but this melts the cone resin, releasing seeds for regrowth. The species seems to be shade intolerant.
References
References
- Farjon, A.. (2013). "''Pinus attenuata''".
- (1911). "Cone-bearing Trees of the California Mountains". [[A.C. McClurg & Co.]].
- (2008). "National Wildlife Federation Field Guide to Trees of North America". Sterling.
- (2020). "Northwest Trees: Identifying & Understanding the Region's Native Trees". [[Mountaineers Books]].
- {{Gymnosperm Database
- [https://web.archive.org/web/20070315152636/http://www.enature.com/fieldguides/detail.asp?source=&parkid=&searchText=&allSpecies=&shapeID=0&lshapeID=22&curAbbr=&lastView=default&lastGroup=10&lastRegion=&lastFilter=4&lastShapeName=&trackType=&curRegionID=&size=&habitat=&fruit=&color=&sortBy=family&curFamilyID=696®ionSelect=All+regions®ionZIP=&curGroupID=10&lgfromWhere=&curPageNum=27 eNature Field Guides (2007) ''Knobcone Pine'']
- Hogan, C. Michael (2008). [https://web.archive.org/web/20120228073950/http://globaltwitcher.auderis.se/artspec_information.asp?thingid=85046 ''Blue Oak: Quercus douglasii'', GlobalTwitcher.com, ed. Nicklas Stromberg]
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