Pinus contorta var. murrayana
in S. Watson, Bot. California 2: 126. 1880.
Common names: Sierra lodgepole pine
Basionym: Pinus murrayana in A. Murray bis, Bot. Exped. Oregon 8: no. 740, plate 1853
Synonyms: Pinus contorta subsp. murrayana (Greville & Balfour) Critchfield
Treatment appears in FNA Volume 2.
Trees to 50m; trunk to 0.9m diam., straight, little tapering; crown mostly conic at maturity. Bark scaly, not evidently furrowed, orange- to purple-brown. Branches spreading, ascending at tips. Leaves 5–8cm × 1–2mm, yellow-green, apex acute. Seed cones maturing in 2 years, shedding seeds and falling soon thereafter, nearly symmetric, mostly spreading, rarely in whorls, more often paired or solitary, mid and lower apophyses mostly shallowly domed.
Habitat: Montane forests
Elevation: 400–3500m
Distribution
Calif., Nev., Oreg., Wash., Mexico in Baja California.
Discussion
Pinus contorta var. murrayana is the tallest and best-formed variety of this species.
Selected References
None.
Lower Taxa
None.