Carolina southward into Florida and westward into eastern
Texas; (b) shortleaf pine (P. echinata), southeastern New
York southward to northern Florida and westward into
eastern Texas and Oklahoma; (c) loblolly pine (P. taeda),
Maryland southward through the Atlantic Coastal Plain and
Piedmont Plateau into Florida and westward into eastern
Texas; (d) slash pine (P. elliottii), Florida and southern
South Carolina, Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi, and Loui-
siana east of the Mississippi River. Lumber from these
four species is classified as Southern Pine by the grading
standards of the industry. Southern Pine lumber is produced
principally in the Southern and South Atlantic States. Geor-
gia, Alabama, North Carolina, Arkansas, and Louisiana lead
in Southern Pine lumber production.
The wood of these southern pines is quite similar in appear-
ance. Sapwood is yellowish white and heartwood is reddish
brown. The sapwood is usually wide in second-growth
stands. The heartwood begins to form when the tree is about
20 years old. In old, slow-growth trees, sapwood may be
only 2 to 5 cm (1 to 2 in.) wide.
Longleaf and slash pine are classified as heavy, strong, stiff,
hard, and moderately high in shock resistance. Shortleaf
and loblolly pine are usually somewhat lighter in weight
than is longleaf. All the southern pines have moderately
high shrinkage but are dimensionally stable when properly
dried.
The denser and higher strength southern pines have been
extensively used in the form of stringers in the construction
of factories, warehouses, bridges, trestles, and docks, and
also for roof trusses, beams, posts, joists, and piles. South-
ern Pine is also used for tight and slack cooperage. When
used for railroad crossties, piles, poles, mine timbers, and
exterior decking, it is usually treated with preservatives.
The manufacture of engineered wood composites from
Southern Pine is a major wood-using industry, as is the
production of preservative-treated lumber.
Pine, Spruce
Spruce pine (Pinus gla‑
bra), is also known as
cedar pine and Walter
pine. Spruce pine grows
most commonly on low
moist lands of the coastal
regions of southeastern
South Carolina, Georgia,
Alabama, Mississippi,
and Louisiana, and northern and northwestern Florida.
The heartwood of spruce pine is light brown, and the wide
sapwood is nearly white. Spruce pine wood is lower in moststrength values than the wood of the major Southern Pine
species group. Spruce pine compares favorably with the
western true firs in important bending properties, crushing
strength (perpendicular and parallel to grain), and hard-
ness. It is similar to denser species such as coast Douglas-fir
(Pseudotsuga menziesii) and loblolly pine (Pinus taeda) in
shear parallel to grain.
In the past, spruce pine was principally used locally for
lumber, pulpwood, and fuelwood. The lumber reportedly
was used for sashes, doors, and interior woodwork because
of its low specific gravity and similarity of earlywood and
latewood.
Pine, Sugar
Sugar pine (Pinus lam‑
bertiana), the world’s
largest species of pine, is
sometimes called Cali-
fornia sugar pine. Most
sugar pine lumber grows
in California and south-
western Oregon.
The heartwood of sugar pine is buff or light brown, some-
times tinged with red. The sapwood is creamy white. The
wood is straight grained, fairly uniform in texture, and
easy to work with tools. It has very low shrinkage, is read-
ily dried without warping or checking, and is dimension-
ally stable. Sugar pine is lightweight, moderately low in
strength, moderately soft, low in shock resistance, and low
in stiffness.
Sugar pine is used almost exclusively for lumber products.
The largest volume is used for boxes and crates, sashes,
doors, frames, blinds, general millwork, building construc-
tion, and foundry patterns.
Pine, Virginia
Virginia pine (Pinus vir‑
giniana), also known as
Jersey and scrub pine,
grows from New Jersey
and Virginia throughout
the Appalachian region
to Georgia and the Ohio
Valley. It is classified as a
minor species in the grad-
ing rules for the Southern Pine species group.
The heartwood is orange, and the sapwood is nearly white
and relatively wide. The wood is moderately heavy,
moderately strong, moderately hard, and moderately
stiff and has moderately high shrinkage and high shock
resistance.Chapter 2 Characteristics and Availability of Commercially Important Woods