Sumatran pine, Merkus Pine
Pinus merkusii

Family: Pinaceae

What it is like

Pinus merkusii is an evergreen Tree growing to 50 m (164ft) by 30 m (98ft) at a fast rate. See above for USDA hardiness. It is hardy to UK zone 10. 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 and neutral soils and can grow in very acid soils. It cannot grow in the shade. It prefers dry or moist soil and can tolerate drought.

Height (m): 50

Where it is found

A pioneer species, it inhabits a wide range of forest and savannah habitats.

E. Asia - China, Myanmar, Thailand, Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam, Indonesia, Philippines.

Conservation Status: Status: Vulnerable B2ab(ii,iii,v)

Countries/locations it is found in

Indonesia; Philippines; Lao People's Democratic Republic

How it is used

Food

Rating: 1

A vanillin flavouring is obtained as a by-product of other resins that are released from the pulpwood. The seeds of all Pinus species are more or less edible, and some are of good size and make very tasty and nutritious foods, often eaten in quantitiy. Others can be less desireable, either having a strongly resinous flavour, being bitter or, more commonly, rather too small and fiddly to make it very worthwhle even trying to eat them, We have no specific information of the desireability of this species, though they are rather small (the size given includes the shell). The dark brown seeds are 6 - 7mm long.

Medicine

Rating: 2

The turpentine obtained from the resin of all pine trees is antiseptic, diuretic, rubefacient 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. Applied externally, it is a very beneficial treatment for a variety of skin complaints, wounds, sores, burns, boils etc and is used in the form of liniment plasters, poultices, herbal steam baths and inhalers.

Other

Rating: 3

Agroforestry Uses: A pioneer species, its natural range is extended by colonization following disturbances such as fire. It grows, for instance, scattered in fire-prone grassland and woodland. The trees are increasing in number in recently disturbed areas. The tree is often used for the rehabilitation of degraded areas because of its tolerance to fire and poor soil conditions. The tree has been successfully intercropped with Irish potatoes. The tree is used to shade out alang-alang grass with fairly good results. The needles contain a substance called terpene, this is released when rain washes over the needles and it has a negative effect on the germination of some plants, including wheat. Other Uses A good quality oleoresin is collected from this species, often on a plantation scale. The species is a high resin yielder and commercial tapping is often practised. The resin is used in paints, medicines, printing and the perfumery industry. The resin-rich wood is used as torches. The heartwood is yellowish to orange brown with dark red veins and numerous resin canals, darkening on exposure to light; it is clearly demarcated from the 2 - 5cm wide band of whitish to creamy white sapwood. The texture is moderately coarse; the grain straight; the surface lustrous when freshly cut but becoming dull with age; there is a resinous odour and a faint resinous taste. The wood is moderately heavy; soft to moderately hard; fairly durable and not easily rotting in the soil according to some reports, but non-durable and liable to termite attack according to others. It seasons quickly with little risk of checking or distortion; once dry it is moderately stable in service. The wood saws easily and works to a good finish, though resins may clog cutters and tools. The timber is a general-purpose softwood, useful for light construction, joinery, window frames, door frames, flooring, furniture, matches, chop-sticks, paper pulp, long fibre pulp, pit props, transmission poles, ship- and boat construction, vehicle-building, containers, boxes. The wood is used for fuel and to make charcoal. Industrial crop: hydrocarbon

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 Crop: These crops have been domesticated and cultivated regionally but have not been adopted elsewhere and are typically not traded globally, Examples in this broad category include perennial cottons and many nuts and staple fruits.

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

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

A plant of the moist tropics, where it is found at elevations from sea level up to 2,000 metres. It grows in areas where the mean annual rainfall is in the range 1,000 - 2,800mm, occasionally to 3,500mm, and the mean annual temperature is 21 - 28°c with a mean maximum temperature of the hottest month of 24 - 32°c and a mean minimum temperature of the coldest month of 18 - 24°c. Pines grow naturally in South-East Asia only in strongly seasonal environments. A strongly light-demanding species. Tolerant of a wide range of soils, including dry sandy soils, gravely soils, red tropical loams (latosols), clay soils, alluvial soils and acid ultisols on sandstone which are often poorly drained. It is often found on poor quality, acid soils. Prefers a pH in the range 4.5 - 5.5, tolerating 4 - 6.5. Established plants are drought tolerant. The plant is very wind tolerant. Young plants are quite slow-growing for their first five years, but later grow more rapidly. Harvesting of the resin can start about 15 years after being planted out. Trees can yield 3 - 4 kilos of resin a year, with some reports claiming that older trees can yield up to 30 - 60 kilos of crude gum a year. Old trees can yield 30 - 60 kg of crude gum per year, producing 20 - 40 kg of pure resin and 7 - 14 kg of turpentine per year. In plantations, trees reach sexual maturity when about 20 years old. They bear cones every year, although seed production varies. In plantations, the first thinning is usually carried out in the 9th or 10th year, and about every 5 years thereafter. Rotation cycles of 30 years are needed for optimal timber production. For the production of pulpwood, a cutting cycle of 15 years is usually practised. Mycorrhizae are required for successful growth and to allow seedlings to survive in more adverse sites. The prolonged 'grass stage' often present in young trees means increased weeding requirements when compared to P. Caribaea, P. Oocarpa and P. Kesiya. This is the southernmost occurring pine of all pines, and the only one whose natural distribution extends into the southern hemisphere. Merkus pines of the Asian mainland and the Philippines differ slightly from those of Sumatra: the seedlings have a 'grass stage', the needles are slightly longer, the cones are less cylindrical, and the seeds nearly twice as heavy.

Propagating it: Seed - no pre-treatment is required, although germination can be sped up by soaking the seed overnight in cold water prior to sowing. Seeds germinate in 8 - 21 days. A germination rate of 40 - 60% may be expected. After about 8 months, nursery bed grown seedlings are 20 - 25 cm tall and ready for planting into the field. Successful natural regeneration is only possible where a relatively large amount of sunlight reaches the ground. Only cones that have just changed their colour from green to brown should be collected and air dried. Pine seeds can usually be stored for several years, provided they are kept dry, cold and in an airtight container. However, seeds of this species are reported to have a rather short viability; seeds from Sumatra can be stored dry for only 1 - 2 years, and those from continental Asia for an even shorter period. Propagation by tissue culture is possible. Suspensor, root tissue and hypocotyl segments of 2-week-old seedlings of P. merkusii have been used, and they all readily yield callus when cultured on a Murashige and Skoog mineral formulation supplemented with naphthalene acetic acid (0.25-0.65 ppm) and benzylamino purine (1.0-2.0 ppm).

Best place to grow:

Habit: Tree

Hardiness: 10-12

Growth: Fast

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

Shade: No shade

Moisture: Dry, moist

Things to keep in mind

Its other names

Local names

Thông nhua, Thông hai lá (Vietnamese); Tusam Sumatera (Indonesian); Sumatran pine.

Synonyms

Pinus finlaysoniana Wall. Pinus latteri Mason Pinus merkiana Gordon Pinus sumatrana Jungh.

Sumatran pine, Merkus Pine Pinus merkusii