AusBonsai

Hey Guys

Could I please have some help in ID'ing what this pine is. I have attached a few pics to help. The needle are approx 80mm in length and where they form of the stem they seem to split into 2 needles.

We have a lot of these trees at work and I was wondering if I could take cuttings, try a few air layers etc.

Any help would be appreciated.

radiata

agree Radiata. dont bother taking cuttings, you can collect them growing wild on the roadside, but don't get caught.

Thanks guys. I guess I will have to wait a little longer to dig a pine. I think I will do the right thing and go to one of our forrests and gt permission to dig a few pines.

I disagree,
pinus radiata will form needles in bundles of 3. You may occasionally find a bundle of 2 but this is because a neele has dropped.
Most common 2 needle are black and red pines, I suspect this is a red pine.
I also suggest you do not bother with cuttings as they rarely succeed.

I'd think it's a red pine but it's hard to tell from the pics. Are the needles soft to touch or sharp and strong?

If they're soft it could be a red pine.

Regardless, I agree with Brian and Gerard's comments about not wasting your time with cuttings.

First we need a scale on the cones. How big are those open cones?

P. radiata var binata has needles in pairs and many radiatas i have seen have more needles in pairs than in 3s so needle counts may not be the most accurate determinant of species.

Also I have struck both Japanese Black and Red pines from cuttings as well as mugho pine - not huge numbers but it can be done. Almost all radiata pines planted in Aust now are cutting grown. Pines CAN be grown from cuttings, you just need the right techniques and the prper conditions.

I will try and get an unopened cone plus a few open ones to get an average. I counted all needles on the tip I took and there were only 2 needles. As in off the stem it was like a bud with 1 solid needle which split into 2 on all needles. But as I said this was only counted on one cutting I took.

Is it worth mentioning the smell and stickiness from the cut area.

Would an air layer be a viable option?

All pines have sticky resinous sap most with similar smell as far as i can tell.

re cones. Just need to know whether they are fist size or half that.

pines can be air layered. sometimes takes quite a while but it can produce roots.

Pines must work from cuttings, I got some JRP from shibui early this season and they are powering along, with the difficulty in finding useful seed I reckon it's a pretty viable technique.
My .

H

Well I can say they are defiantly fist size. The one I took from the tree was like a grenade in my hand. It was big enough to cover my palm.

I agree that cuttings are an option, I have had some success with rooting hormone on candle cuttings this year. I took them in January and out of 8 I have one that is still growing roots. I know this is a very low success rate, but I feel that my care for them was the killer. I may have over watered. This was on a jbp, so I will be trying again next year at around the same time to see if I can increase my success rate and perhaps learn where I went wrong this time round.

Jasonb

OK Bouquet,
Cones as big as your hand rules out both Japanese black and red pines. Both have smaller cones - about 60mm diameter when fully open.

It might be worth checking out Pinus halepensis, P. brutia and P. pinaster - all closely related 2 needle pines with larger cones. P. halepensis is widely planted in drier inland areas of NSW, Vic and SA. but because they all have similarities many of the reputed halepensis could actually be these other species.