Pinus pumila

Pinus pumila, commonly known as the Siberian dwarf pine, dwarf Siberian pine,[1][3] dwarf stone pine,[1] Japanese stone pine,[3] or creeping pine,[4] is a tree in the family Pinaceae native to northeastern Asia and the Japanese isles. It shares the common name creeping pine with several other plants.

Not to be confused with Pinus sibirica, Siberian pine.

Pinus pumila
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Gymnosperms
Division: Pinophyta
Class: Pinopsida
Order: Pinales
Family: Pinaceae
Genus: Pinus
Subgenus: P. subg. Strobus
Section: P. sect. Quinquefoliae
Subsection: P. subsect. Strobus
Species:
P. pumila
Binomial name
Pinus pumila
Synonyms[2]
  • Pinus cembra subsp. pumila (Pall.) Endl.
  • Pinus cembra var. pumila Pall.
  • Pinus cembra var. pygmaea Loudon
  • Pinus nana Lemée & H.Lév.
  • Pinus pumila var. mongolica Nakai
  • Pinus pumila f. auriamentata Y.N.Lee
Distribution

Description

The Siberian dwarf pine is a coniferous evergreen shrub ranging from 1–3 metres (3–10 feet) in height, exceptionally up to 5 m (16 ft), but may have individual branches that extend farther along the ground in length. In the mountains of northern Japan, it sometimes hybridises with the related Japanese white pine (Pinus parviflora); these hybrids (Pinus × hakkodensis) are larger than P. pumila, reaching 8–10 m (26–33 ft) tall on occasion.

Pinus pumila in natural habitat, eastern Siberia

The leaves are needle-like, formed in bundles of five and are 4–6 centimetres long. The cones are 2.5–4.5 cm long, with large nut-like seeds (pine nuts).

Distribution

The range covers the Far East, Eastern Siberia, north-east of Mongolia, north-east of China, northern Japan and Korea.[3] Siberian dwarf pine can be found along mountain chains, above the tree line, where it forms dense, uninterrupted thickets; it also grows on the headlands above the Okhotsk and Bering Seas, Tatarsk and Pacific coast (the Kurils).

P. pumila grows very slowly. It can live up to 300 and, in some instances, 1,000 years.[5] In the colder conditions of Siberia, there are specimens which are 250 years old and older.

Ecology

The seeds are harvested and dispersed by the spotted nutcracker (Nucifraga caryocatactes).

Cultivation

This plant is grown as an ornamental shrub in parks and gardens. The cultivar P. pumila 'Glauca' has gained the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit.[6]

See also

References
  1. Farjon, A. (2013). "Pinus pumila". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2013: e.T42405A2977712. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2013-1.RLTS.T42405A2977712.en. Retrieved 19 November 2021.
  2. "Pinus pumila". World Checklist of Selected Plant Families (WCSP). Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Retrieved 29 December 2017.
  3. "Pinus pumila". Germplasm Resources Information Network. Agricultural Research Service, United States Department of Agriculture. Retrieved 18 December 2017.
  4. Fukui, K.; Sone, T.; Yamagata, K.; Otsuki, Y.; Sawada, Y.; Vetrova, V.; Vyatkina, M. (2008). "Relationships between permafrost distribution and surface organic layers near Esso, central Kamchatka, Russian Far East". Permafrost and Periglacial Processes. 19 (1): 85–92. doi:10.1002/ppp.606. S2CID 130100766.
  5. Koropachinsky, Vstovskaya, 2002
  6. "RHS Plant Selector - Pinus pumila 'Glauca'". Retrieved 6 February 2021.
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