Limber Pine
Pinus flexilis
Family:
Pine (Pinaceae)
AKA:
Rocky Mountain White Pine, Limbertwig
Photo taken on:
August 4, 2021
Location:
Spring Creek Rd, GV, CO
Life Zones:
Montane to subalpine
Habitat:
Rocky slopes, aspen/conifer forests
Grows to 65 feet, often with branches near the base of
the trunk.
Trunks can be 6 feet across and contorted. It becomes shrubby at
timberline. It is a slow-growing and
long-lived species that may take hundreds of years to reach maturity,
attaining a lifespan of more than 1,000 years. Bark is gray and nearly smooth, with age it
develops longitudinal reddish-brown plates with intervening cracks. Twigs are smooth and flexible.
Dark bluish-green needles are up to 2¾" long growing
in bunches of five and curving upwards. 
Flora of North America reference.
A tree produces both male and female cones. Male cones are pale red or yellow about ½" long. Female cones are cylindrical, 3 to 6 inches long without spines.
