440 A HANDBOOK OF CONIFER.E 



Var. macrophylla, Shaw. 



Large-leaved Western Yellow Pine. 



Leaves 12-16 in. long, in bundles of 3, 4, or 5. Cones about 

 A\ in. long, the upper portion of the scales prolonged into a 

 reflexed protuberance ending in a prickle. Native of Mexico. 

 Not known in cultivation. 



Var. Mayriana, Sargent. 

 Mayr's Pine. 



P. Mayriana, Sudworth. 



Leaves very long and stout, 14-15 in. by yV in. Cones very 

 oblique ; scales with projecting bosses, armed with sharp prickles. 

 Discovered in Arizona by Mayr in 1887. It is not in cultivation 

 in Britain. 



Var. pendula, Sargent. 



Branches drooping at a very sharp angle. 



Var. scopulorum, Engelmann. 



Branches usually drooping. Leaves shorter, 3-6 in. long, 

 and cones smaller, 3 in. long, than in the type. Not very distinct. 

 Forms of this variety are said to be common in the Dakotas, 

 Nebraska, E. Wyoming, near parts of Colorado, and in Texas. 



P. ponderosa is distinguished amongst three-leaved pines by 

 its long, stout, densely tufted leaves and cylindrical buds. 

 P. Coulter i, which resembles it in the stout foliage, differs mainly 

 in the more ovoid buds, and much larger and more woody cones 

 with strongly hooked scales. There are two distinct types, one 

 with young shoots, orange-brown or greenish, the other with 

 glaucous young shoots. 



The western yellow pine is the most widely distributed species 

 in W.N. America, the largest in size except P. Lambertiana, and 

 the most variable. It occupies immense areas in the mountains 

 of W.N. America, ranging from the interior of B. Columbia, 

 southwards to Mexico, and eastwards to N. Nebraska, the foot- 

 hills of the Rocky Mountains of Colorado and W. Texas. 



Wood hard, strong, and resinous, with conspicuous resin ducts, 

 comparable in quality to Scots pine. Heartwood light reddish 

 brown, sapwood yellowish white. It is close-grained, works 

 well, and is obtainable in large dimensions. Amongst other work, 

 it is used for heavy construction, the indoor finish of houses, 

 joists, cupboards, doors, floors, etc., general carpentry, boxes, 

 fencing, railway sleepers, pit-props, and fuel. It is not durable 

 in contact with the soil unless creosoted or treated with some 

 other preservative. The species secretes resin in commercial quan- 

 tities, although it does not appear to be worked much. Fibre is 



