Scots pine

Scots pine - Pinus sylvestris

In the UK the Scots Pine is one of only three native conifers, along with yew and juniper, and the only one of any commercial significance in Britain. Its Latin name is Pinus sylvestris.

Where can you see it ?

The Scots Pine is one of the commonest evergreen trees in Britain. It is native to Scotland and large areas of northern and mountainous Europe and Asia stretching almost to the Pacific. Commuters from Surrey into London will see it as a vigorous tree colonising the Surrey heaths on the light soils in places such as Bramshill, Bagshot and Caterham as well as many other similar places to the south of London.

How do you identify it ?

From a distance you can recognise it as an evergreen tree with a reasonably straight trunk and, if it is an older tree, with a somewhat spreading top. Most conifers maintain a conical shape throughout their life but after middle age the

Lower stem bark showing typical fissures

Scots Pine develops a spreading crown especially when growing in the open rather than in a dense woodland.

The upper stem, perhaps from halfway up in older trees, is an orange brown colour. No other pine has this colour of stem, in other species it is a brown or grey brown colour.

Look closely at the foliage to first ensure that the tree is in the Pine family. Most coniferous trees have the leaf pattern shown on the left.
The needles tend to be short, around 2cm or less in length and more or less set opposite each other on the twig, the Christmas tree being a typical example.

This is not the pattern for the Pine family!

The Pine family is different. The leaves or needles are long, from 3-4 cms to 7 cms or more in a vigorous young tree. The general form is shown on the right.

If you look closely at the needles of a tree belonging to the Pine family you will find that they are bound together at their bottom by a sheath. The sheath binds leaves together in pairs, in groups of three or in groups of five. Scots Pine needles are bound together in pairs, much like the drawing on the left.

The winter bud of the Scots Pine also helps to separate it from other species of pine. It is located at the tip of the twigs and is surrounded by the groups of needles. It is pointed, often with white resin on it and a few scales loose at the tip.

So there you have it, if you find a tree which is evergreen, with a red orange colour to the upper stem, with its leaves generally arranged around the twig as shown above and its needles bound in pairs then you are likely to be looking at a Scots Pine".

When does it flower?

The trees flower in May and June and are wind pollinated. But the seeds do not ripen in the cones until September and October of the following year, and are dispersed between December and March. Most trees do not produce many cones until they are 60 years' old, and then may only produce a good seed crop sporadically.

What sort of soils and climate suit it?

In the UK, it is an adaptable species but does best in the drier, eastern districts. It does not flourish in very exposed situations or peaty soils.

It is very frost-hardy and grows quickly when young. It is often planted in mixtures with broadleaves and is a useful nurse for this purpose, providing a "fur coat" for tender oaks, beech or cherry on frost prone sites.

Natural regeneration

By 'natural regeneration' is meant the establishing of young seedlings as a successor crop from the seed produced naturally from older trees. Where the Scots Pine is truly at home, natural regeneration from seed can be prolific. Young trees may need protection from grazing livestock and deer, as in the remnants of the Caledonian Forest in Scotland , to successfully perpetuate native pine woods.

The wood of Scots Pine

Scots pine wood is known in the trade as Deal or Redwood and has been the standard utility timber of northern Europe for generations. Combining adequate strength with light weight, it is easy to nail and work.

When treated, Scots pine timber is durable outside and is suitable for telegraph poles, fencing and, in the past, was used for water wheels and for domestic water pipes in London in the late 1770s.

Other uses of the Scots Pine

In parts of Europe, producing resin from Scots pine trees is still practised. Rather like tapping rubber trees, a thin strip is cut diagonally from the bark so that the resin bleeds, runs down the cut groove and is collected in a pot. This can be done repeatedly over several years. The resin used to be collected in large quantities for producing Turpentine and for rosin for waxing violin bows. Cheaper, man-made substitutes are now available so resin collecting is waning.

Medicinally, the vapour from boiling fresh pine shoots is said to relieve bronchial congestion.

In Scotland, this pine has a history of spiritual and inspirational significance that can be traced back to pre-Christian, Celtic and Pictish cultures.

Other pines

The other common pine in lowland Britain is the introduced Corsican pine. To tell the two apart at a distance, look at the trunks. Scots pines have the reddish orange colour on the upper stem whereas the bark of the Corsican Pine is a dark grey colour. Scots pine also tends to have shorter bluey green needles than the Corsican which has longer darker green needles.