BLUE PINE IN THE HIMALAYAS 



165 



Figure 1 



Map showing distribution of blue pine in Himalayas; 

 from Critchfield and Little, 1966. 



MOIST LOWER- LEVEL MONSOON ZONE BLUE PINE 



The blue pine grows in limited open forests above the Pinus roxburghii 

 belt. P. wallichiana may at places mix with the upper limit of the P. 

 roxburghii belt or grow below it because of soil preference. 



Habitat and Soil 



These forests prefer cool, protected, well -drained, rocky mountain 

 sites. They occur on grassy slopes, abandoned cultivated land, poor 

 soils near low-lying villages, landslips, and forest land destroyed by 

 fire. Mostly occurring in pure stands, they are also found mixed with 

 broad- leaved trees and higher up with Cedrus deodar a (Roxb.) G. Don and 

 Quercus spp. In Kulu, blue pine grows mixed with or below p. roxburghii 

 because of preference for soils like moist mica-schists or alluvia over 

 quartzite (Troup, 1921; Puri , 1960). In Jalkurgad in the Ganga valley, 

 the moist lower-level blue pine grows and spreads into P. roxburghii 

 forests. In Nepal, this pine grows at a higher but narrower altitudinal 

 range from 5,900 feet to an unknown upper limit. 



Tree Growth and Description 



The blue pine trees here are not tall, but show good vegetative 

 growth and are well branched, often with light bluish glaucous -green, 

 dense foliage of relatively longer and more flexible needles than in the 

 moist upper-level blue pine. 



Flowering, Pollination and Seed-Set 



Flowering and seed-set are fairly good. In Simla hills (4,500 feet) 

 and in Giri valley (4,000 feet) the stands flower and shed pollen during 

 the second half of April, about 7 to 10 days earlier than the moist 

 higher-level blue pines of Huttoo peak (10,500 feet). Female receptivity, 



