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Manual of the Vascular Flora of the Carolinas - Radford, Ahles, Bell
Copyright - UNC Press 1998, 1999. All Rights Reserved.



1. PINUS L. PINE



Monopodial trees. Primary leaves mere scales, subtending minute branchlets, each branchlet (except on juveniles) bearing a fascicle of 2 or more needle-shaped, evergreen foliage leaves, the base of the fascicle surrounded by one or more scarious sheathing leaves, the whole fascicle of foliage leaves with sheathing leaves and the stubby branchlet falling together after 2 or more years; male cones in clusters at the base of the current year's growth of some of the branches, more abundant on the lower ones, each male sporophyll with 2 sporangia attached the length of the sporophyll, and opening longitudinally; pollen winged; female cones more abundant on upper branches; end of the sporophyll in most species thickened and with an umbo or spine, maturing in the fall of the second year.