Notes on Morphology of Shortleaf Pine

Much of the literature on morphology of conifers has been concerned with wood anatomy. There are now available several excellent books on wood structure (6, 1 & 8). Most of the literature on morphology of forest trees presents more or less generalized descriptions (3 & 2) of various tissues for Angiosperms and Gymnosperms. In connection with a pathology problem, a histological study was made of root and stem tissues of shortleaf pine (Pinus echinata Mill.), outside the woody cylinder which are commonly called bark. A description and photomicrographs of root bark were given in a previous paper (5) on food reserves in pine roots. It was found that there is very little difference in the general structure of root and shoot bark. Furthermore, there is a close similarity in the bark morphology of loblolly (P. taeda L.), slash (P. elliottii Engelm.) and longleaf pine (P. palustris Mill.).