{"slug":"pinus-ponderosa","scientific_name":"Pinus ponderosa","common_names":["Ponderosa pine","Western yellow pine","Bull pine"],"family":"Pinaceae","type":"conifer","mature_height_m":28,"mature_spread_m":8,"growth_rate":"medium","lifespan_years":500,"hardiness_zones":[3,7],"sun":"full","water":"low","soil":"Deep, well-drained soil of almost any texture; tolerates alkaline and dry soil but not poor drainage or flooding","native_range":"Mountains and plateaus of western North America from southern British Columbia south to Mexico and east to the Dakotas, Nebraska and Texas.","description":"A tall, straight pine with long needles in bundles of three, prickly cones and, on mature trees, orange-brown bark in big jigsaw plates that many people say smells of vanilla or butterscotch. Young trees are dark-barked and pyramidal, older ones have open, irregular crowns. It is drought tolerant and deep-rooted once established, a good choice for large yards, parks and windbreaks in the dry West; Portland lists it as an approved street tree for wide planting strips.","care":"Plant in full sun with good drainage and water deeply but infrequently for the first few years; avoid lawn irrigation against the trunk. Prune only dead wood. Mountain and western pine beetles attack stressed trees, and dwarf mistletoe, western gall rust and needle blights occur; keep trees vigorous and thin crowded stands.","benefits":["shade","drought_tolerant","wildlife","birds","windbreak","long_lived","carbon"],"uses":["parks","yard_shade","windbreak","timber","reforestation","street_tree"],"cautions":["heavy_litter","pest_prone"],"image_url":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/fe/Pinus_ponderosa_15932.JPG","image_credit":"Walter Siegmund (talk), CC BY 2.5, via Wikimedia Commons","sources":["https://plants.ces.ncsu.edu/plants/pinus-ponderosa/","https://plants.usda.gov/plant-profile/PIPO","https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pinus_ponderosa"],"data_note":null,"updated_at":"2026-11-08T01:00:46.205Z","page_url":"https://treerm.org/trees/pinus-ponderosa","markdown_url":"https://treerm.org/trees/pinus-ponderosa.md","regions":[{"country":"CA","region":"BC","locality":null,"status":"native","note":null,"source_url":"https://plants.usda.gov/plant-profile/PIPO"},{"country":"US","region":"AZ","locality":null,"status":"native","note":null,"source_url":"https://plants.usda.gov/plant-profile/PIPO"},{"country":"US","region":"CA","locality":null,"status":"native","note":null,"source_url":"https://plants.usda.gov/plant-profile/PIPO"},{"country":"US","region":"CO","locality":null,"status":"native","note":null,"source_url":"https://plants.usda.gov/plant-profile/PIPO"},{"country":"US","region":"ID","locality":null,"status":"native","note":null,"source_url":"https://plants.usda.gov/plant-profile/PIPO"},{"country":"US","region":"MT","locality":null,"status":"native","note":null,"source_url":"https://plants.usda.gov/plant-profile/PIPO"},{"country":"US","region":"ND","locality":null,"status":"native","note":null,"source_url":"https://plants.usda.gov/plant-profile/PIPO"},{"country":"US","region":"NE","locality":null,"status":"native","note":null,"source_url":"https://plants.usda.gov/plant-profile/PIPO"},{"country":"US","region":"NM","locality":null,"status":"native","note":null,"source_url":"https://plants.usda.gov/plant-profile/PIPO"},{"country":"US","region":"NV","locality":null,"status":"native","note":null,"source_url":"https://plants.usda.gov/plant-profile/PIPO"},{"country":"US","region":"OK","locality":null,"status":"native","note":null,"source_url":"https://plants.usda.gov/plant-profile/PIPO"},{"country":"US","region":"OR","locality":null,"status":"native","note":null,"source_url":"https://plants.usda.gov/plant-profile/PIPO"},{"country":"US","region":"SD","locality":null,"status":"native","note":null,"source_url":"https://plants.usda.gov/plant-profile/PIPO"},{"country":"US","region":"TX","locality":null,"status":"native","note":null,"source_url":"https://plants.usda.gov/plant-profile/PIPO"},{"country":"US","region":"UT","locality":null,"status":"native","note":null,"source_url":"https://plants.usda.gov/plant-profile/PIPO"},{"country":"US","region":"WA","locality":null,"status":"native","note":null,"source_url":"https://plants.usda.gov/plant-profile/PIPO"},{"country":"US","region":"WY","locality":null,"status":"native","note":null,"source_url":"https://plants.usda.gov/plant-profile/PIPO"},{"country":"US","region":"CA","locality":"Sacramento","status":"recommended","note":"On the Sacramento Tree Foundation Shady 80 recommended trees list","source_url":"https://sactree.org/best-trees-for-sacramento/"},{"country":"US","region":"OR","locality":"Portland","status":"recommended","note":"On Portland's approved street tree list for planting strips 8.5 ft and wider, marked native.","source_url":"https://www.portland.gov/trees/85-foot-wide-and-greater-planting-spaces-without-high-voltage-power-lines"}],"license":"CC-BY-4.0"}