The common name "Khasi pine" is from the Khasi hills in India, and "Benguet pine" is from the landlocked province of Benguet in Luzon, Philippines, where it is the dominant species of the Luzon tropical pine forests (known as saleng in Ilocano[5]). The Benguet pine is sometimes treated as a separate species, Pinus insularis; however, the current opinion is to treat this as conspecific with P.kesiya var. langbianensis.[2] The city of Baguio is nicknamed "The City of Pines", as it is noted for large stands of this tree.
Description
Pinus kesiya bark
Pinus kesiya is a tree reaching up to 30–35 metres (98–115 feet) tall with a straight, cylindrical trunk. The bark is thick, dark brown, and scaly with deep longitudinal fissures. The branches are robust, red brown from the second year, the branchlets horizontal to upcurved. The leaves are needle-like, dark green, usually three per fascicle, 12–20 centimetres (4+1⁄2–8 inches) long, the fascicle sheath 1–2cm (1⁄2–3⁄4in) long and persistent. The cones are ovoid, 5–9cm (2–3+1⁄2in) long, often curved downwards, sometimes slightly oblique; the scales of second-year cones are dense, the umbo a little convex, with a small prickle. The scales have transverse and longitudinal ridges across the middle of the scale surface. The seeds are winged, 6–7 millimetres (1⁄4–9⁄32in) long with a 1.5–2.5cm wing. Pollination occurs in mid-spring, with the cones maturing 18–24 months after.[6]
Khasi pine usually grows in pure stands or mixed with broad-leaved trees.[6]
Taxonomy
Pinus kesiya is a member of the largely Eurasian nominate group Pinus subgenus Pinus, section Pinus, distinguished by the cone umbo having an offset prickle on the umbo.[7]
Pinus kesiya var. langbianensis(A.Chev.) Gaussen ex Bui
They are only minimally distinct, with var. langbianensis cited as having on average shorter needles 12–16cm long as opposed to 12–20cm in var. kesiya;[6] not all authors consider them distinct, treating the species as monotypic.[8]
Uses
The soft and light timber of Pinus kesiya can be used for a wide range of applications, including boxes, paper pulp, and temporary electric poles. It is intensely used for timber, both sourced in natural forests and plantations.[3][4]
The good-quality resin is not abundant and has not been much used except during the Spanish colonial period in the Philippines for the production of turpentine.[9]
1 2 "Pinus kesiya". AgroForestryTree Database. International Centre for Research in Agroforestry. Archived from the original on 6 April 2012. Retrieved 17 April 2012.
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