Ponderosa Pine

Pinus ponderosa

A tree as tough as the land it comes from.

USDA NRCS Plant Materials Program

http://plants.usda.gov/factsheet//fs_pipo.

In good dirt, ponderosa pines grow a deep tap root to suck up scarce water. But they can adapt to rocky conditions, too. You can see them sprouting from what looks like the sheer face of a rock wall. In those cases, they send roots slinking down cracks in the rock until they find dirt and water.

Red-winged blackbirds, mourning doves, finches and jays and other birds eat the seeds. So do squirrels. Some grouses eat the needles. Beavers eat the bark. Deer and elk prefer not to eat the needles, but will if there's nothing else around.

Ponderosas can grow tall -- up to 90 feet -- and their large crowns cast big shadows, which control what can grow around them. The more space between trees, the broader the crowns.

Ponderosas are a key part of the

They have long, pointy, needles which grow in bundles of two or three.

Their distinctive bark is brownish-orange and scaly, with big, black cracks running through it. They only get that haggard look when they're old though -- around 90 or so. Until then their bark is dark and brown. If you sniff ponderosa bark it smells a little like vanilla.

Ponderosa buds can be an inch or two long with white fringe. The male cones grow in clusters at the ends of branches. Female cones grow singly and each scale has a prickle at the top.

Grow throughout the west

http://plants.usda.gov//profile?symbol=PIPO

Sometimes called black jack, bull pine or yellow pine.

Native Americans ate the seeds cones and buds, and used ponderosa pitch as a skin ointment.

Cheyenne indians spread ponderosa pine pitch inside their flutes to get better tone.