Ecology of shortleaf pine
This article is part of a larger document. View the larger document here.Abstract
Shortleaf pine (Pinus echinata Mill.) occupies the broadest natural range of all the southern pines, and is found across a diverse range of geography, soils, topography, and habitats. Individual shortleaf trees achieve their best developmnet on deep, well-drained soils of the Upper Coastal Plain, but shortleaf pine communities are most prominent in the Ouachita Highlands of the West Gulf Region. Two major ecological issues confront shortleaf pine--the susceptibility of shortleaf pine stands to depredations of acid deposition, and the ecological tradeoffs underlying the planting of loblolly pine (P. taeda L.) on shortleaf pine sites which are north of loblolly's natural range.