View source for Pinus jeffreyi

{{Short description|Pine tree found in North America}}
{{Speciesbox
| status = LC
| status_system = IUCN3.1
| status_ref = <ref name="iucn status 19 November 2021">{{cite iucn |author=Farjon, A. |date=2013 |title=''Pinus jeffreyi'' |volume=2013 |page=e.T42371A2975870 |doi=10.2305/IUCN.UK.2013-1.RLTS.T42371A2975870.en |access-date=19 November 2021}}</ref>
| image = Mature Jeffrey Pine.JPG
| image_caption = A stand of ''Pinus jeffreyi'' growing on volcanic table lands south of Mono Lake, California
| parent = Pinus subsect. Ponderosae
| display_parents = 3
| taxon = Pinus jeffreyi
| authority = [[John Hutton Balfour|Balf.]]
| range_map = Pinus jeffreyi range map 1.png
}}

'''''Pinus jeffreyi''''', also known as '''Jeffrey pine''', '''Jeffrey's pine''', '''yellow pine'''<ref>{{cite journal |last1= Elliot |first1= Daniel Giraud |title= A List of Mammals obtained by Edmund Heller from the Coast Region of Northern California and Oregon |url=https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/item/20354#page/9/mode/1up |journal=Field Columbian Museum Publication, Zoological Series |volume=3 |issue=11 |pages=175–197 |year=1904 }}</ref> and '''black pine''',<ref name=itis>{{ITIS|id=183345|taxon=Pinus jeffreyi|access-date=2018-11-03}}</ref> is a [[North America]]n [[Pinus|pine]] tree. It is mainly found in [[California]], but also in the westernmost part of [[Nevada]], southwestern [[Oregon]], and northern [[Baja California]].<ref name="NRVYP">Safford, H.D. 2013. Natural Range of Variation (NRV) for yellow pine and mixed conifer forests in the bioregional assessment area, including the Sierra Nevada, southern Cascades, and Modoc and Inyo National Forests. Unpublished report. USDA Forest Service, Pacific Southwest Region, Vallejo, CA, [https://web.archive.org/web/20150529154515/http://www.fs.usda.gov/Internet/FSE_DOCUMENTS/stelprdb5434331.pdf]</ref>{{rp|4}} It is named in honor of its botanist documenter [[John Jeffrey (botanist)|John Jeffrey]].

==Description==
''Pinus jeffreyi'' is a large [[conifer]]ous evergreen tree, reaching {{convert|25|to|40|m|sp=us}} tall, rarely up to {{convert|53|m|abbr=on}} tall, though smaller when growing at or near [[tree line]].<ref name="silvics"/> The [[leaves]] are needle-like, in bundles of three, stout, [[glaucous]] gray-green, {{convert|12 to 28|cm|frac=4|sp=us}} long.<ref name="tktimb">{{Cite book |last1=Turner |first1=Mark |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=VLbAAwAAQBAJ |title=Trees & Shrubs of the Pacific Northwest |last2=Kuhlmann |first2=Ellen |date=2014 |publisher=[[Timber Press]] |isbn=978-1-60469-263-1 |edition=1st |location=Portland, OR |pages=78}}</ref> The [[conifer cone|cones]] are {{convert|12 to 30|cm|abbr=on|frac=4}} long,<ref name=":0">{{Cite book|last1=Arno|first1=Stephen F.|url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/1141235469|title=Northwest Trees: Identifying & Understanding the Region's Native Trees|last2=Hammerly|first2=Ramona P.|publisher=[[Mountaineers Books]]|year=2020|isbn=978-1-68051-329-5|edition=field guide|location=Seattle|pages=57–58|language=en|oclc=1141235469|orig-date=1977}}</ref><ref name="tktimb" /> dark purple when immature, ripening pale brown, with thinly woody scales bearing a short, sharp inward-pointing barb. The brownish seeds are {{convert|10|to|12|mm|frac=8|sp=us}} long, with a large wing,<ref name="tktimb" /> measuring {{convert|15|to|25|mm|abbr=on|frac=8}}.

''Pinus jeffreyi'' is closely related to ''[[Pinus ponderosa]]'' (ponderosa pine) and is similar in appearance. One way to distinguish between them is by their cones. Each has barbs at the end of the scales. The sharp ''P.&nbsp;jeffreyi'' cone scale barbs point inward, so the cone feels smooth to the palm of one's hand when rubbed down the cone. ''Pinus ponderosa'' cone scale barbs point outward, so feel sharp and prickly to the palm of one's hands. The memory device of 'gentle Jeffrey' and 'prickly ponderosa' can be used to differentiate between the species. Another distinguishing characteristic is that the needles of ''P.&nbsp;jeffreyi'' are glaucous, less bright green than those of ''P.&nbsp;ponderosa'', and by the stouter, heavier cones with larger seeds and inward-pointing barbs.<ref name="Moore2008">{{cite book |last1=Moore|first1=Gerry |last2=Kershner|first2=Bruce |first3=Craig|last3=Tufts |first4=Daniel|last4=Mathews |first5=Gil|last5=Nelson |last6=Spellenberg|first6=Richard |last7=Thieret|first7=John W. |first8=Terry|last8=Purinton |last9=Block|first9=Andrew|display-authors=4 |title=National Wildlife Federation Field Guide to Trees of North America |publisher=Sterling |location=New York |year=2008 |page=86 |isbn=978-1-4027-3875-3}}</ref> ''Pinus jeffreyi'' can be somewhat distinguished from ''P.&nbsp;ponderosa'' by the relatively smaller scales of reddish-brown bark as compared to the larger plates of orangish ponderosa bark.<ref name=":0" />

The scent of ''P. jeffreyi'' is variously described as reminiscent of vanilla, lemon, pineapple, violets, apple,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.enature.com/flashcard/show_flash_card.asp?recordNumber=TS0040|title=Jeffrey Pine|work=enature.com|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110614142314/http://www.enature.com/flashcard/show_flash_card.asp?recordNumber=TS0040|archive-date=2011-06-14}}</ref> and, quite commonly, butterscotch.<ref>{{cite book|title=Wild Plants of the Sierra Nevada|first1=Ray S.|last1=Vizgirdas|first2=Edna M.|last2=Rey-Vizgirdas|year=2006|publisher=University of Nevada Press|location=Reno, Nevada}}</ref> This scent may be sampled by breaking off a shoot or some needles, or by simply smelling the resin's scent in between the plates of the bark. This scent is related to the very unusual composition of the resin, with the [[volatile organic compound|volatile]] component made up almost entirely of pure [[heptane|n-heptane]]. It is because of this peculiarity that the trees are sometimes known as '''gasoline trees'''. Easy availability of this hydrocarbon in pure form made it the basis of the modern [[octane rating]] in the late 1920s.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Hill |first=Cary Le Roy |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=hAsRvdX33p8C&pg=PA13 |title=Experiments in the Production of Heptane by the Tapping of Jeffrey Pine in California |date=1932 |publisher=California Forest Experiment Station |pages=13 |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Arno |first=Stephen F. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=DDTm1_9Pdy8C&pg=PA11 |title=Discovering Sierra Trees |date=1973 |publisher=Yosemite Natural History Association |isbn=978-0-939666-04-1 |pages=11 |language=en}}</ref>

The largest specimen, by trunk volume, is the Eureka Valley Giant, in the [[Stanislaus National Forest]]. Its trunk contains {{convert|129|m3|abbr=on}} of wood, is {{convert|59|m|abbr=on}} tall, with a diameter of {{convert|2.5|m|ftin|abbr=on}}.<ref>{{cite book|title=Forest Giants of the Pacific Coast|url=https://archive.org/details/forestgiantsofpa0000vanp|url-access=registration|first=Robert|last=Van Pelt|year=2001|page=[https://archive.org/details/forestgiantsofpa0000vanp/page/108 108]|publisher=Global Forest Society}}</ref>

== Taxonomy ==
''Pinus jeffreyi'' is named for its discoverer, Scottish botanist [[John Jeffrey (botanist)|John Jeffrey]], who encountered it in 1852 near Mount Shasta.<ref name=":1">{{Cite book |last=Ritter |first=Matt |url=http://worldcat.org/oclc/1036213303 |title=California plants : a guide to our iconic flora |publisher=Pacific Street |year=2018 |isbn=978-0-9998960-0-6 |oclc=1036213303}}</ref> ''Pinus'' is Latin for pine.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Pinus jeffreyi, Jeffrey pine {{!}} Trees of Stanford & Environs |url=https://trees.stanford.edu/ENCYC/PINjeff.htm#:~:text=Name%20derivation:%20Pinus%20%E2%80%93%20Latin%20for,Botanic%20Garden,%20who%20discovered%20it. |access-date=2022-10-04 |website=trees.stanford.edu}}</ref>

==Distribution and habitat==
''Pinus jeffreyi'' occurs from southwest [[Oregon]] south through much of [[California]] (mainly on the [[Eastern Sierra|eastern side]] of the [[Sierra Nevada (U.S.)|Sierra Nevada]]), to northern [[Baja California]] in Mexico. It is a high-altitude species; in the north of its range, it grows widely at {{convert|1500|to|2100|m|abbr=on}} altitude, and at {{convert|1800|to|2900|m|abbr=on}} in the south of its range.<ref name="silvics">{{Silvics |first=James L. |last=Jenkinson |volume=1 |genus=Pinus |species=jeffreyi}}</ref>

''Pinus jeffreyi'' is more stress tolerant than ''P.&nbsp;ponderosa''. At higher elevations, on poorer soils, in colder climates, and in drier climates, ''P.&nbsp;jeffreyi'' replaces ''P.&nbsp;ponderosa'' as the dominant tree.<ref name=NRVYP/> ''Pinus jeffreyi'' is also tolerant of [[serpentine soil]]s and is often dominant in these conditions, even on dry sites at fairly low altitudes.<ref name="silvics"/>

[[File:Jeffrey pine Siskiyou Wilderness.jpg|thumb|upright=1.8|''Pinus jeffreyi'' in the [[Siskiyou Mountains]] of northwest California, growing on [[Serpentine subgroup|serpentine]]]]
==Ecology==
''Pinus jeffreyi'' can hybridize with ''P.&nbsp;ponderosa'' and the ''[[Coulter pine]],'' however this occurrence is rare due to the fact that the pines release pollen at different times of the year.<ref name=":0" /><ref>{{Cite web |title=PinusieffreyiGrev |url=https://www.srs.fs.usda.gov/pubs/misc/ag_654/volume_1/pinus/jeffreyi.htm |access-date=2022-10-17 |website=www.srs.fs.usda.gov}}</ref>

Mammals and birds collect the seeds.<ref name="tktimb" />

==Uses==
''Pinus jeffreyi'' wood is similar to ponderosa pine wood, and is used for the same purposes. Crystallized sap of ''P.&nbsp;jeffreyi'' has been eaten as candy.<ref name=":1"/> The exceptional purity of {{Nowrap|[[n-heptane]]}} distilled from ''P.&nbsp;jeffreyi'' resin led to {{Nowrap|n-heptane}} being selected as the zero point on the [[Petrol#Octane rating|octane rating]] scale of [[petrol]].

As it mainly consists of n-heptane, ''P.&nbsp;jeffreyi'' resin is a poor source of [[turpentine]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://plants.usda.gov/plantguide/pdf/pg_pije.pdf|title=Jeffrey Pine|work=NRCS Plant Guide|publisher=USDA}}</ref> Before ''Pinus jeffreyi'' was distinguished from ponderosa pine as a distinct species in 1853, resin distillers operating in its range suffered a number of "inexplicable" explosions during distillation,<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Smith|first1=C. Stowell|date=1914-12-04 |title=Turpentine possibilities on the pacific coast|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=P6hec39aNmYC&pg=PA327 |journal=Proceedings of the Society of American Foresters|volume=IX |issue=1 |pages=327–338 |access-date=2019-12-22 }}</ref> now known to have been caused by the unwitting use of Jeffrey pine resin.

== See also ==
* [[List of California native plants]]
* [[Sentinel Dome]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==Further reading==
* {{cite book | last1 = Chase| first1 = J. Smeaton| author-link1 = J. Smeaton Chase|others=[[Carl Eytel|Eytel, Carl]] (illustrations)|title = Cone-bearing Trees of the California Mountains |chapter=''Pinus Ponderosa'' var. ''Jeffreyi'' (Jeffrey-pine)|chapter-url = https://archive.org/details/conebearingtrees00chas/page/20/mode/2up| location = Chicago | publisher = [[A.C. McClurg & Co.]] | pages = 20–22 |year=1911 | oclc = 3477527|lccn=11004975}}

==External links==
{{Commons and category|Pinus jeffreyi}}
* {{Jepson Manual |id=195,210,223 |link=1}}
* {{CalPhotos|Pinus|jeffreyi}}

{{Taxonbar|from=Q251370}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Pinus|jeffreyi]]
[[Category:Trees of Northern America]]
[[Category:Flora of California]]
[[Category:Flora of Oregon]]
[[Category:Flora of the Sierra Nevada (United States)]]
[[Category:Natural history of the California Coast Ranges]]
[[Category:Least concern flora of the United States]]
[[Category:Plants described in 1853]]
[[Category:Taxa named by John Hutton Balfour]]