Pinus mugo

For other uses, see Mountain pine (disambiguation).
Mountain pine
Botanical illustration of Pinus mugo
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Division: Pinophyta
Class: Pinopsida
Order: Pinales
Family: Pinaceae
Genus: Pinus
Subgenus: Pinus
Species: P. mugo
Binomial name
Pinus mugo
Turra
Subspecies, cultivars, and forms[1]
Distribution map
Synonyms[2]

Pinus mugo, known as creeping pine,[3] dwarf mountainpine,[4] mugo pine,[5] mountain pine, scrub mountain pine or Swiss mountain pine,[6] is a species of conifer, native to high elevation habitats from southwestern to Central Europe.

Distribution

Pinus mugo is native to the Pyrenees, Alps, Erzgebirge, Carpathians, northern Apennines, and higher Balkan Peninsula mountains. It is usually found from 1,000–2,200 m (3,281–7,218 ft), occasionally as low as 200 m (656 ft) in the north of the range in Germany and Poland, and as high as 2,700 m (8,858 ft) in the south of the range in Bulgaria and the Pyrenees.

Pinus mugo was planted in coastal Denmark for sand dune stabilization. It has naturalized and become invasive.

Subspecies

There are three subspecies:

Both subspecies have similar foliage, with dark green leaves ("needles") in pairs, 3–7 cm (1.2–2.8 in) long.

The cones are nut-brown, 2.5–5.5 cm (0.98–2.17 in) long: and in subsp. mugo are symmetrical, thin-scaled and matt textured; and in subsp. uncinata are asymmetrical with thick scales on the upper side of the cone, thin on the lower side, and glossy textured.

An old name for the species Pinus montana is still occasionally seen, and a typographical error "mugho" (first made in a prominent 18th century encyclopedia) is still repeated surprisingly often.

Uses

Cultivation

Pinus mugo is widely cultivated as an ornamental plant, for use as a small tree or shrub, planted in gardens and in larger pots and planters. It is also used in Japanese garden style landscapes, and for larger bonsai specimens.

Cultivars

Numerous cultivars have been selected. The cultivar Pinus mugo 'Mops' was given the Royal Horticultural Society Award of Garden Merit.[7]

Cultivars with seasonal changes in foliage color include Pinus mugo 'Wintergold' and Pinus mugo 'Ophir'.

Culinary use

A recent trend is the increase in use of the mugo pine in cooking. Buds and young cones are harvested from the wild in the spring and left to dry in the sun over the summer and into the fall. The cones and buds gradually drip syrup, which is then boiled down to a concentrate and combined with sugar to make pine syrup.[8][9] Menus also use the terms "pinecone syrup"[10] or "pine cone syrup"[11] to refer to this ingredient.

Invasive species

Pinus mugo is classed as a wilding conifer, an invasive species that spreads in the high country of New Zealand, in coastal Denmark and other Scandinavian areas.

References

  1. ↑ "Pinus mugo (Mountain Pine)". BioLib. BioLib. 1999–2010. Retrieved 15 July 2010.
  2. ↑ "The Plant List: A Working List of All Plant Species".
  3. ↑ Andersson, F. (2005). Coniferous Forests. Elsevier. ISBN 9780444816276.
  4. ↑ "BSBI List 2007". Botanical Society of Britain and Ireland. Archived from the original (xls) on 2015-02-25. Retrieved 2014-10-17.
  5. ↑ "Pinus mugo". Natural Resources Conservation Service PLANTS Database. USDA. Retrieved 31 January 2016.
  6. ↑ "USDA GRIN Taxonomy".
  7. ↑ "RHS Plant Selector - Pinus mugo 'Mops'". Retrieved 27 May 2013.
  8. ↑ "Wild Mugolio Pine Syrup". Zingerman's Mail Order. Zingerman's Mail Order LLC. 2010. Retrieved 15 July 2010.
  9. ↑ "Wild Mugolio Pine Syrup". Cube Marketplace. Divine Pasta Company. 2008. Retrieved 15 July 2010.
  10. ↑ "Piccolo Restaurant - Minneapolis: Menu". Retrieved 15 July 2010.
  11. ↑ Colicchio, Tom (3 March 2009). "Tom Tuesday Dinner March 3, 2009" (PNG). Tom Tuesday Dinner. Retrieved 15 July 2010.

Sources

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