WSU Clark County Extension
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Japanese Blue Pine

Scientific name: Pinus parvifora ‘Glauca’
Taxonomy
Family:Pinaceae
Type:Coniferous trees
Native:NO
Plant Requirements
Zone:5 to 8
Sun:Full sun
Moisture:Dry
Plant Characteristics
Height:45 ft
Width:35 ft
Additional Characteristics
Trees


Fruit

Leaves


Bark
Wildlife value

Poisonous
Description A stately pyramidal evergreen with beautiful stunted blue foliage and an upright habit. A white band under each twisting needle will glow at night when used in a landscape with upward lighting. Also sold as Short-Needled Japanese Blue Pine

  Morphology:
This cultivar of Japanese White Pine creates a striking landscape tree as it ascends to 45’ in height and nearly as wide. Young trees are sparsely branched and appear conical in shape. Later the branching habit is defined as irregular.

Needles are 1” to 2.5” long and are stiff and twisted. They are arranged in bundles of 5 per cluster. They tend to form glaucous blue/green tufts (blue on the inside, green on the outside) of foliage at the ends of the branch tips.

The brownish-red cones are one to four inches long and persist on the tree for six to seven years.

  Adaptation:
This tree should only be grown in full sunlight. It prefers dry to average moisture levels with very well-drained soil and will die in standing water. It is considered to be drought-tolerant and thus makes an ideal choice for xeriscaping or the moisture-conserving landscape.

  Pests:
None reported.
For assistance, contact Dr. Charles Brun (brunc@wsu.edu), (360) 397-6060 5701
Computing and Web Resources, PO Box 6234, Washington State University, Pullman WA 99164-6234