Calabrian pine, Turkish pine
Pinus brutia

Family: Pinaceae

What it is like

Calabrian pine - the "Lone Pine", is a prominent landmark tree at an ANZAC First World War battle at Gallipoli. Cones from the battlefield were taken home to Australia. It is widely planted for timber. It is drought-tolerant, with fire resistant cones allowing it to successfully colonize dry, abandoned and burnt areas. As a carbon farming solutions plant it is a good hydrocarbon Industrial Crop.

Pinus brutia is an evergreen Tree growing to 30 m (98ft) by 25 m (82ft) at a fast rate. See above for USDA hardiness. It is hardy to UK zone 8. The flowers are pollinated by Wind. Suitable for: light (sandy), medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils, prefers well-drained soil and can grow in nutritionally poor soil. Suitable pH: mildly acid, neutral and basic (mildly alkaline) soils and can grow in very acid and saline soils. It cannot grow in the shade. It prefers dry or moist soil and can tolerate drought. The plant can tolerate maritime exposure.

Height (m): 30

Where it is found

Relatively open conifer forests, sometimes in pure stands, open mixed woodland with other drought tolerant trees; at elevations from near sea level to 1,500 metres.

Origin: Mediterranean. Eastern Mediterranean and Black Sea regions, from the Balkans and Bulgaria to Greece, Turkey and Syria, and through the Caucasus

Conservation Status: Status: Least Concern

Countries/locations it is found in

Native to the eastern Mediterranean region. The bulk of its range is in Turkey, but it also extends to southeastern-most Bulgaria, the East Aegean Islands of Aegean Sea, Crete, the Crimea, Iran, Georgia, Azerbaijan, northern Iraq, western Syria, Israel, north-west Jordan, Lebanon, and Cyprus. Some reports in Australia and US: Fredonia, Arizona, Phoenix, Arizona, Acton, California.

How it is used

Food

Rating: 2

The resin has been used from ancient times to flavour white wines known as retsina. A sap-sucking insect, Marchalina hellenica, produces large amounts of honey-dew, which is harvested by honeybees and sold as 'pine honey'. Pinus brutia was planted outside its native range in Greece from early times for this harvest.

Medicine

Rating: 3

Oil of turpentine, obtained from the oleo-resin of all pine trees, is antiseptic, antispasmodic, astringent, diuretic, rubefacient, stimulant and vermifuge. It is a valuable remedy used internally in the treatment of kidney and bladder complaints and is used both internally and as a rub and steam bath in the treatment of rheumatic affections. It is also very beneficial to the respiratory system and so is useful in treating diseases of the mucous membranes and respiratory complaints such as coughs, colds, influenza and TB.

Other

Rating: 3

The resin obtained from the stem is used to flavour white wines known as retsina and for the production of turpentine. Its timber is used for fencing posts, telephone posts, building timbers, railway sleepers, carpentry, boxes and crates, hardboard and pulp. The "Lone Pine", a prominent landmark tree at an ANZAC First World War battle at Gallipoli, was this species. Cones from the battlefield were taken home to Australia, and plants sourced from the seeds were planted as living memorials. "Lone Pine" memorials, based on cones brought back from Gallipoli may use this species or Aleppo pine. it is widely planted in coastal areas of the Mediterranean for soil protection and as windbreaks. Carbon Farming Solutions - Industrial Crop: hydrocarbon (Crops grown for non-food uses. Industrial crops provide resources in three main categories: materials, chemicals, and energy. Traditional materials include lumber and thatch, paper and cardboard, and textiles). A popular ornamental tree.

Industrial Crop: Hydrocarbon: Materials, chemicals and energy include bioplastics, rubber, biomass products gasoline, jet fuel, diesel, butane, propane, biogas. Plants are usually resprouting plants and saps.

Management: Standard: Plants grow to their standard height. Harvest fruit, seeds, or other products. Non-Destructive management systems.

Regional Timber: These crops have been domesticated and cultivated regionally but have not been adopted elsewhere and are typically not traded globally.

Management: Standard: Plants grow to their standard height. Harvest fruit, seeds, or other products. Non-Destructive management systems.

Regional Timber: These crops have been domesticated and cultivated regionally but have not been adopted elsewhere and are typically not traded globally.

Carbon Farming: Plants that can be a critical part of the solution to climate problems. The Carbon Farming Solution - Eric Toensmeier.

How it is grown

Climate: Mediterranean. Humidity: semi-arid. Pinus brutia has a near-coastal natural distribution which coincides with the Mediterranean climate characterized by cool, wet winters and hot, dry summers. It is a moderately cold-hardy plant, able to tolerate temperatures down to around -15°c when fully dormant. Established plants are drought tolerant. The plant regenerates after fire by seed dispersal and can successfully invade maquis vegetation when this does not burn for several years. In contrast with planted forests, natural forests of Pinus brutia have a diverse undergrowth of shrubs and herbs and form important habitat for wildlife. Pinus brutia has been planted extensively in countries around the eastern Mediterranean and Black Sea as it is the easiest pine to grow (with Pinus halepensis) in the Mediterranean climate. Pinus brutia forms natural hybrids with its close congener Pinus halepensis where the two species are sympatric in Turkey, with matings successful only when Pinus halepensis is the pollen donor and Pinus brutia is the female parent. The seed cones are - 8cm wide, ripening a shiny red-brown in spring two years after pollination. They open to release their seed the same summer or 1 - 2 years later, though the seeds are often not shed till winter rain softens the scales. The seeds are grey-brown, 7-8 × 5mm with a broad, auricled 15-20 × 10 mm wing. Carbon Farming Solutions - Cultivation: regional timber. Management: standard (Describes the non-destructive management systems that are used in cultivation).

Propagating it: Seed. Direct sow outdoors in fall/autumn

Best place to grow:

Habit: Tree

Hardiness: 7-11

Growth: Fast

Soil: Light (sandy), medium, heavy (clay)

Shade: No shade

Moisture: Dry, moist

Things to keep in mind

Its other names

Local names

Turkish pine, Calabrian pine, East Mediterranean pine, Brutia pine, Lone Pine.

Synonyms

Pinus brutia var. densifolia Yalt. & Boydak. Pinus brutia f. kruepericola Frankis. Pinus halepensis subsp. brutia (Ten.) Holmboe. Pinus halepensis var. brutia (Ten.) A.Henry. Pinus persica Fox-Strangw. This species contains the following infraspecific taxa: Pinus brutia var. eldarica (Medw.) Silba. Pinus brutia var. pendulifolia Frankis. Pinus brutia var. pityusa (Steven) Silba

Calabrian pine, Turkish pine Pinus brutia