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Revision as of 07:29, 22 December 2004
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The Aleppo Pine (Pinus halepensis) is a pine native to the Mediterranean region. The range extends from Morocco and Spain north to southern France, Italy and Croatia, and east to Greece and northern Libya, with an outlying population (from which it was first described) in Syria (including Aleppo), Jordan and Israel. It generally occurs at low altitudes, mostly from sea level to 200 m, but up to 1000 m in southern Spain, and 1700 m in the south of its range in Morocco and Algeria.
It is a small to medium-size tree, reaching 15-25 m tall and with a trunk diameter of up to 60 cm, exceptionally 1 m. The bark is orange-red, thick and deeply fissured at the base of the trunk, and thin and flaky in the upper crown. The leaves ('needles') are in pairs, very slender, mostly 6-10 cm long, and distinctly yellowish green. The cones are narrow conic, 5-10 cm long and 2-3 cm broad at the base when closed, green at first, ripening glossy red-brown when 24 months old. They open slowly over the next few years, or after being heated by a forest fire, to release the seeds, opening to 5-8 cm broad. The seeds are 5-6 mm long, with a 20 mm wing, and are wind-dispersed.
Aleppo Pine is closely related to Turkish Pine, Canary Island Pine and Maritime Pine, which all share many features with it. Some authors include Turkish Pine as a subspecies of Aleppo Pine, but it is usually regarded as a distinct species. It is a relatively non-variable species, with constant morphology over the entire range.
It is widely planted for timber in its native area, being one of the most important trees in forestry in Algeria and Morocco. It is also a popular ornamental tree, extensively planted in parks and gardens in hot dry areas such as southern California in the United States, where its considerable heat and drought tolerance is highly valued.
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