Pinus wallichiana A.B. Jackson

Description :

A large tree 30 to 45 m tall with a diameter of 1 to 1.5 m. The crown is conical. The needles are in fives, 10 to 20 cm long and bluish to grey green in color. The bole is straight, erect. It is monoecious. The male flowers or cones are many, crowded in headlike clusters, 1 cm long. The female flowers are solitary or 2 to 3 clustered at the ends of branches and bloom between April and June. The fruit, female cone, is 15 to 30 cm long when mature. Seed in the cone takes a year to mature after pollination or 2 years to complete that reproductive cycle. There are two, winged seeds beneath each cone scale. Seed is shed September through October. It occurs in pure stands or as part of the mixed coniferous forest. Fire, porcupines and bears cause considerable damage to it. It is susceptible to red ring rot (Phellinus pini), dwarf mistletoe, (Arceuthobium minutissimum), and snow damage. This is one of the most valuable trees of Pakistan. Native stands have been heavily overcut and need to be replanted. Care must be taken to match the seed and seedlings to the appropriate ecological zone. It is reproduced from seed. Seed crops are frequent, and seed can be stored in sealed containers in a refrigerated environment for at least 2 years. It is considered a fast-growing tree. Yields of 5 to 8m³/ha/yr are recorded on different quality sites. Grains straight, medium fine and uneven textured, easily worked. Sapwood is white and heartwood is pink having specific gravity of 0.48 and a calorific value of 4995 kcal, with moderate strength.

Distribution :

The tree is native to Pakistan, Bhutan, Nepal, India, and Afghanistan. In Pakistan it has been divided into two varieties: Var. wallichiana isolated in the moist temperate zone of Murree-Galiat and Azad Kashmir. Artificial plantations are being raised in Kaghan and swat. Var. karakorama isolated in the dry temperate zone of the Gilgit Baltistan, Takhte-Sulaiman, Swat, Dir, Chitral, Tirah, and Kurram Plantations are being raised in Kaghan and Swat. A moderately intolerant tree that grows on a variety of soils but does best on fertile well drained sandy clay to sandy clay loams. It is adapted to a precipitation zone of 300 to 1500 mm/yr in a temperature range of -20 to 35°C. It prefers a humid cool temperate/arid cold temperate climate at elevations between 1200 and 3700 m.

Uses :

Used in construction, fuel, sleepers, and various wood products (furniture match sticks, window frames, etc.).