This pine’s needles are marked with bands of yellow and green. The buttery yellow variegation on the 3- to 5-inch needles is present year-round, but intensifies as summer turns to fall and persists into winter. The scaly, fissured bark is lovely, ranging in color from gray to rich rusty orange. This is a graceful tree when mature, with an irregular branching habit and tilted trunk.
Noteworthy CharacteristicsCombines well with deep-green conifers or any other dark background. Use as a specimen tree, or for shelter or windbreaks. May look floppy and ungainly in its youth. Grows only about 6 inches a year.
CareGrow in any well-drained soil in full sun to part shade.
PropagationGraft in late winter.
ProblemsCommon pests include sawfly, caterpillars, scale insects, mealybugs, miners, and borers. Blister rust, butt rot, blights, pitch canker, cone rusts, tar spot, and brown cubical rot.
Fine Gardening Recommended Products
DeWalt Variable-Speed Cordless Reciprocating Saw
Fine Gardening receives a commission for items purchased through links on this site, including Amazon Associates and other affiliate advertising programs.
Pruning Simplified: A Step-by-Step Guide to 50 Popular Trees and Shrubs
Fine Gardening receives a commission for items purchased through links on this site, including Amazon Associates and other affiliate advertising programs.
DeWalt Variable-Speed Cordless Reciprocating Saw with 6-Piece Saw Blade Set
Fine Gardening receives a commission for items purchased through links on this site, including Amazon Associates and other affiliate advertising programs.
- Genus : Pinus
- Plant Width : 15 to 30 feet
- Plant Height : 30 feet or more
- Zones : 4, 5, 6, 7
- Moisture : Adaptable
- Light : Full Sun to Partial Shade
- Characteristics : Interesting Bark, Showy Foliage
- Growth Rate : Slow
- Plant Seasonal Interest : Spring Interest
- Plant Type : Trees
Plant Characteristics are only available to Fine Gardening members
Sign up for a free trial and get instant access to our complete plant guide as well as our entire collection of articles and videos.