The Pinophyta, also known as Coniferophyta or Coniferae, or commonly as conifers, are a division of vascular land plants containing a single extant class, Pinopsida. They are gymnosperms, cone-bearing seed plants. All extant conifers are perennial woody plants with secondary growth. The great majority are trees, though a few are shrubs. Examples include cedars, Douglas firs, cypresses, firs, junipers, kauri, larches, pines, hemlocks, redwoods, spruces, and yews. As of 1998, the division Pinophyta was estimated to contain eight families, 68 genera, and 629 living species.
The Pinaceae are trees or shrubs, including many of the well-known conifers of commercial importance such as cedars, firs, hemlocks, larches, pines and spruces. The family is included in the order Pinales, formerly known as Coniferales. Pinaceae are supported as monophyletic by their protein-type sieve cell plastids, pattern of proembryogeny, and lack of bioflavonoids. They are the largest extant conifer family in species diversity, with between 220 and 250 species in 11 genera, and the second-largest in geographical range, found in most of the Northern Hemisphere, with the majority of the species in temperate climates, but ranging from subarctic to tropical. The family often forms the dominant component of boreal, coastal, and montane forests. One species, Pinus merkusii, grows just south of the equator in Southeast Asia. Major centres of diversity are found in the mountains of southwest China, Mexico, central Japan, and California.
Pinus canariensis, the Canary Island pine, is a species of gymnosperm in the coniferous family Pinaceae. It is a large, evergreen tree native and endemic to the outer Canary Islands in the Atlantic Ocean. It is a subtropical pine and does not tolerate low temperatures or hard frost, surviving temperatures down to about −6 to −10 °C. Within its natural area, it grows under extremely variable rainfall regimes, from less than 300 mm (12 in) to several thousands, mostly due to differences in mist-capturing by the foliage. Under warm conditions, this is one of the most drought-tolerant pines, living even with less than 200 mm (7.9 in) per year. It is the vegetable symbol of the island of La Palma.
Pinus virginiana, the Virginia pine, scrub pine, Jersey pine, is a medium-sized tree, often found on poorer soils from Long Island in southern New York south through the Appalachian Mountains to western Tennessee and Alabama. The usual size range for this pine is 9–18 m, but can grow taller under optimum conditions. The trunk can be as large as 0.5 m diameter. This tree prefers well-drained loam or clay, but will also grow on very poor, sandy soil, where it remains small and stunted. The typical life span is 65 to 90 years.
Pinus ponderosa, commonly known as the ponderosa pine, bull pine, blackjack pine, or western yellow-pine, is a very large pine tree species of variable habitat native to the western United States and Canada. It is the most widely distributed pine species in North America.
Pinus sibirica, or Siberian pine, in the family Pinaceae is a species of pine tree that occurs in Siberia from 58°E in the Ural Mountains east to 126°E in the Stanovoy Range in southern Sakha Republic, and from Igarka at 68°N in the lower Yenisei valley, south to 45°N in central Mongolia.
Pinus cubensis, or Cuban pine, is a pine endemic to the eastern highlands of the island of Cuba, inhabiting both Sierra Nipe-Cristal and Sierra Maestra.
Pinus densata, commonly known as the Sikang pine, is a species of conifer in the Pinaceae family.
Pinus devoniana is a species of conifer in the Pinaceae family. It is found in more than 15 states of Mexico - from S. Sinaloa to Chiapas - and Guatemala in montane, relatively open pine or pine-oak forests at altitudes from 900 to 2500 m.
Pinus henryi, Henry's pine, is a species of conifer in the Pinaceae family.
Pinus lawsonii, Lawson's pine, is a species of conifer in the Pinaceae family.
It is found only in Mexico.
Pinus luchuensis, commonly called Luchu pine or Okinawa pine, is a species of conifer in the Pinaceae family endemic to, and locally abundant in the Ryukyu Islands of Japan. It was once threatened by habitat loss in the wild, where it can be found growing in small stands near windy ocean shores. Having been harvested widely since the Second World War, the remaining stands are no longer commercially viable, except when cultivated for ornamental use.
Pinus lumholtzii, the Lumholtz's pine or pino triste, is a species of conifer in the Pinaceae family. It is endemic to northwestern Mexico.
Pinus morrisonicola, is a species of conifer in the Pinaceae family. It is a large tree, up to 15–25 m (49–82 ft) high and 1.2 m (4 ft) in diameter. The trunk is often crooked. Needles are in bundles of five. Mature cones are large, to 10 cm (4 in) long and 4–5 cm (1.6–2.0 in) in diameter.
Pinus rzedowskii, commonly known as Rzedowski's pine, is a species of conifer in the pine family, Pinaceae.
Pinus taiwanensis, the Taiwan red pine, is a species of conifer in the Pinaceae family.
It is found only in Taiwan. It is a close relative of Pinus luchuensis of Japan and Pinus hwangshanensis of China, sometimes considered as a subspecies of the former. Sometimes Pinus hwangshanensis from China are also referred to as P. taiwanensis.
Pinus yunnanensis, the Yunnan pine, is a species of conifer in the Pinaceae family. It is found in the Chinese provinces of Yunnan, Sichuan, Guizhou, and Guangxi.
Pinus chiapensis is a pine tree species in the Pinaceae family, and is commonly known as Chiapas pine, in Spanish as pino blanco, pinabete, or ocote. Chiapas pine was formerly considered to be a variant of pinus strobus, but is now understood to be a separate species.
