Common Name: Limber
Pine
Scientific Name: Pinus flexilus
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Limber Pine
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Common Name: Limber
Pine
Scientific Name: Pinus
flexilus
Family: Pinaceae
This Tree in Colorado: The first recorded observation of this tree
was by Dr. Edwin James of the Long’s Mountain Expedition in 1820 near Pike’s
Peak. Limber pine grows well in Colorado, preferring rocky, well-drained soils
but also tolerates alkaline conditions.
Growth Rate, Form and Size: Slow growing, often a picturesque, informal small tree: pyramidal in youth, becoming more flat-topped at maturity. Generally limited to 25’ to 35’ tall in landscapes but can reach over 50’ given the right conditions.
Landscape Value: A beautiful tree with needles clustered toward the ends of the very flexible, pendulous branches. An adaptable species tolerant of alkaline soils, it prefers sun or partial shade and grows slowly so works well in rock gardens and smaller yards.
Zones: U.S.D.A. Zones 4 – 7
Fruit: Cones are columnar, 3” – 8” long: upright when young becoming pendulous at maturity. Seeds are large and generally wingless.
Foliage: Needles
in bundles of five, 2 ½” to 3 1/2 “ inches long clustered near the branch
ends. Needles a very attractive dark green to bluish-green with 3 – 4 lines of
stomata on each surface.
Bark: Smooth on young stems, silvery white to
greenish gray on old trunks turning grayish brown and separated by deep fissures
into nearly square scaly plates.
Insect and Disease Problems: This tree can have many problems if
poorly cared for. It is susceptible
to: Cankers, Lilac/ash borer, carpenter worms, and ash flower gall.
Recently, the ash sawfly has become a big problem on Autumn purple ash up
and down the Front Range of Colorado, chewing leaves in May and June.
Ash borer is a big problem in Colorado where ash trees grow.
Information Sources:
Dirr, Michael “Manual of Woody Landscape Plants: Their Identification, Ornamental, Characteristics, Culture, Propagation and Uses”. 1990
Harlow, Harrar and White, “Textbook of Dendrology” , 6th edition, 1979
George Kelly, “Trees for the Rocky Mountains”, 1976
Brookman, Zim and Merrilees, “Trees of North America”, 1968
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