Pinus sylvestris

Scots pine is a European native pine species, and is native in our country, too. Its makes the most beautiful and at the same time the most bizarre specimens in the wild. It bears 5-7 cm long, mid green needles with a slight bluish overlay. They are borne in pairs and remain on the tree for 3 years only. Then they fall off, not replaced by new ones on the same spot. This way Scots pine can soon reveal its beautiful colour of bark: in upper parts of the tree it becomes amber-yellow to copper-orange, peeling off in large flakes. These flakes are thin and, while still on the tree, look fantastic when the sun shines through them.

Scots pine often forms a picturesque tree with irregular crown habit and often curved stem. This feature makes it a popular plant among bonsai growers as they can easily create a giant garden bonsai out of it. Even if you do not desire to have a bonsai of your own you can afford having this large tree in your garden, too, because it can easily be clipped to maintain a smaller size by cutting off half of the new growths in early spring, or by removing them entirely.

When I was a kid I loved these pines and we used to climb them. If only our mums had known what we were doing we would have been locked in until this very day, I suppose. When other kids were at home and I was alone I would sleep underneath their sweet smelling canopies on warm moss - they mostly grew on sunny places with almost no weed around and the ground was very warm since the canopies were thin enough to let sunbeams through to warm it up. It would be sweet to rest underneath those trees, thinking about what no good I could be up to next.

Scots pines love insolated locations. Before fully established they like equal moisture but later than take long periods of drought probably best of all pines. The soil has to be well-drained, preferably acidic and moderately fertile. It hates over salting so avoid planting next to busy roads where salt is frequently used in winter. Absolutely hardy to approx. -40°C (USDA zone 3).

Last update 22-12-2010; 03-06-2014