White pines (Pinus strobus) grown in forest are famous for tall straight trunks and were the tree of choice for ships’ masts in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. It is the provincial tree of Ontario and state tree of Maine and Michigan. Before the arrival of Europeans, vast virgin stands contained massive trees which were all logged by the late 1800’s.

Distinctive are white pine’s aromatic, soft, blue-green needles in bundles of five and they are more more flexible than the needles of other pines. All in all, the delicate 2-to 5-inch needles of white pine seem somehow more artfully constructed and refined than the needles of other pines. Played by the breeze, they give an unmistakable wind-song that accompanies the call of the loon to provide night-time harmonies familiar to those who have visited wilderness areas such as Algonquin and Quetico.

White pine grows on all soils with the exception of very heavy clays. Even on poorly drained soils, it can be successfully grown on small mounds. Many studies looking into natural genetic variation in white pine, show that trees derived from local seed perform best.