Pinyon pine

Encyclopedia : P : PI : PIN : Pinyon pine

The pinyon pines (or piñon pines), are a group of pines, which grow in the southwestern United States and Mexico; they yield edible pinyon nuts, which were a staple of the Native Americans, and are still widely eaten. The fragrance of the wood, especially when burned, is unmistakable.

There are eight species of true pinyons (Pinus subsection Cembroides):

Pinus cembroides – Mexican Pinyon
Pinus orizabensis – Orizaba Pinyon
Pinus johannis – Johann's Pinyon or Border Pinyon (includes P. discolor)
Pinus culminicola – Potosi Pinyon
Pinus remota – Texas Pinyon or Papershell Pinyon
Pinus edulis – Colorado Pinyon or Two-needle Pinyon
Pinus monophylla – Single-leaf Pinyon
Pinus quadrifolia – Parry Pinyon (includes P. juarezensis)

These additional Mexican species are also related and mostly called pinyons:

Pinus rzedowskii – Rzedowski's Pine
Pinus pinceana – Weeping Pinyon
Pinus maximartinezii – Big-cone Pinyon
Pinus nelsonii – Nelson's Pinyon

as are also the three bristlecone pines of the high mountains of the SW USA, and the Lacebark Pines of Asia.

Some of the species are known to hybridise, most notably P. quadrifolia with P. monophylla, and P. edulis with P. monophylla.

The Pinyon Jay (Gymnorhinus cyanocephalus) takes its name from the tree, and pinyon nuts form an important part of its diet. It is very important for regeneration of pinyon woods, as it stores large numbers of the seeds in the ground for later use, and excess seeds not used are in an ideal position to grow to form new trees. The Mexican Jay is also important for the dispersal of some species, and less often also the Clark's Nutcracker. Many other species of animal also eat pinyon nuts, though they do not disperse the seeds usefully.

External links

[Pine classification]
[Arboretum de Villardebelle] Images of the cones of all the pinyons and allied pines
[Pinus monophylla] U.S. Forest Service
[Pinus cembroides] U.S. Forest Service
[Pinus quadrifolia] U.S. Forest Service
[Pinus edulis] U.S. Forest Service

From Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. Original article here. Support Wikipedia by contributing or donating.
All text is available under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License See Wikipedia Copyrights for details.