Willamette Valley ponderosa pine

Pinus ponderosa subsp benthamiana foliage and cones at Jennings Lodge in the Willamette Valley, Oregon

The Willamette Valley ponderosa pine is a population of the ponderosa pine (Pinus ponderosa) native to the Willamette Valley in western Oregon. It is adapted to Western Oregon's wet winter and dry summer.^{[citation needed]}

History

The Willamette Valley ponderosa variant only grows on the valley floor, unlike Douglas-fir, which grows on hillsides, and the wood is softer and easier to mill than the native hardwoods.^[1] Because of this, when early settlers used wood from the trees to build homes and cleared land for agriculture, the population was "decimated".^[1] Prior to restoration efforts, the pine survived only in scattered stands between Hillsboro and Cottage Grove.^[1] Both Lewis's woodpecker and slender-billed nuthatch (a subspecies of white-breasted nuthatch) nest in the tree and rely on it for food; their populations were reduced along with that of the pine.^[1]

Taxonomy

Populations of Willamette Valley ponderosa pines are sometimes referred to as the separate variety "willamettensis";^[2][3] however, this name has not been formally published in scientific literature.^[4] The population is included within the ponderosa pine subspecies or variety Pinus ponderosa subsp. benthamiana, which occurs from western Washington south through western Oregon to the Coast Ranges and Sierra Nevada of California.^[5][6]

References

1. Ryan, Catherine (March 28, 2012). "Loggers Give Unique Oregon Ponderosa Pine a Lifeline". High Country News. Retrieved March 12, 2015.
2. Meyers, Stephen. "Pinus ponderosa var: willamettensis". Western Forestry and Conservation Association. Archived from the original on 25 January 2021.
3. Ryan, Catherine (28 March 2012). "Loggers give unique Oregon ponderosa pine a lifeline". High Country News. Retrieved 16 May 2024.
4. "Pinus ponderosa Douglas ex C.Lawson". Plants of the World Online. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Retrieved 24 October 2025.
5. "Pinus ponderosa subsp. benthamiana (Pacific ponderosa pine) description - The Gymnosperm Database". The Gymnosperm Database. Retrieved 16 May 2024.
6. "Willamette Valley Ponderosa Pine |". East Multnomah Soil and Water Conservation District. 5 November 2013. Retrieved 16 May 2024.

External links

• The Nature of Cedar Mill: Willamette Valley Ponderosa Pine
• "Ponderosa Returns to the Willamette Valley". OSU Extension Service. Archived from the original on 2 Apr 2015.
• Bark Beetles and Willamette Valley Ponderosa Pine: Populations, Geographical Distribution and Management Recommendations
• Willamette Valley Ponderosa Pine Conservation Association