OLD-FIELD PINE 161 



OLD-FIELD PINE : LOBLOLLY PINE : Pinus tceda 



AMONG all the twenty-two local n& les given to this tree 

 none is more absurd than " Loblolly," a term of doubtful 

 meaning at best. " Old-Field " is much more appropriate 

 and a name which indicates a prominent characteristic of 

 the tree, its persistency in encroaching upon and occupy- 

 ing abandoned fields and open places. It is botanically 

 known as Pinus tceda torch pine from the use of the 

 resinous heartwood for torches. Commercially it is classed 

 with the other Southern Pines and sold as " Yellow Pine," 

 " Southern Pine," " North Carolina Pine," or " Georgia 

 Pine." For some purposes there is no great difference in 

 the value of the lumber, but if the consumer desires strong, 

 stiff, durable timber, or first-class flooring, he will not find 

 it in Old-Field as he would in Longleaf, Cuban, or even 

 Shortleaf Pine. 



Its natural range lies in a belt some two hundred miles 

 wide along the Atlantic Coast from Delaware to Florida, 

 nearly covering the latter state, and from there along the 

 Gulf of Mexico to central Mississippi. It ranges over the 

 entire State of Alabama, all of eastern Mississippi, and 

 part of central and western Tennessee. There is a large 

 area of it in Texas, with considerable in Louisiana, Arkan- 

 sas, and Indian Territory. It may be found forming almost 

 the entire stand in many places west of the Mississippi 

 River. Along the coast it thrives in a moist and frequently 

 wet soil, mixed with Shortleaf and Coastbelt Pines and 

 broadleaf trees ; but in northern Alabama, Mississippi, Ten- 

 nessee, and west of the Mississippi River, it grows well 

 on rolling and quite dry uplands, notwithstanding the fact 

 that it thrives in a moist soil if the ground is not subject to 

 overflow. 



It is claimed that several varieties exist, distinguished 

 mainly by thickness of sapwood, coarseness of grain, and 

 rapidity of growth. All this may come, and doubtless 

 does, from conditions of soil and location. It is less light- 



