Pinus halepensis Miller

Spice Female flower In the field

Family: PINACEAE

Genus: Pinus

Catalan common name: Pi blanc.

Spanish common name: Pino carrasco. Pino de Alepo.

Province distribution: Alacant. Balearic Islands. Barcelona. Castelló. Girona. Lleida. Tarragona. València.

Distribution in the islands: Mallorca. Menorca. Ibiza. Formentera. Cabrera. Dragonera.

General distribution (Phytogeography): Mediterranean

Uses and properties: Aphrodisiac. Dye industry. Furniture, construction and tools. Medicinal.

IUCN Category: LCLeast concern

Flowering time: JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec

Life-forms: Macrophanerophyte.

Habitats: Beaches and dunes, sandy soils. Rocky coastlines. Garden plants. Wild olive trees and other sclerophyllous shrublands. Juniperus phoenicea subsp. turbinata forest. Tree heather maquis and silicolous garigues. Pine wood and shrubland with rosemary and thyme garigue. Forests.

Characteristics: This pine is the principal species all of the pineries of the islands. The bark is whitish, distinct from Pinus pinea, which is reddish; also its needles are short and narrow (up to a millimetre) in comparison to other pine species that can be found in plantations. There are some examples that have all braches and leaves directed skywards, (like a cemetery cypress) and are considered to be a Balearic endemic (var. ceciliae).