Botanical name              Pinus pinaster

Alternative names                       Pinus maritima

Common name(s)                     Maritime Pine, Cluster Pine

Description

An evergreen conifer tree.

Hardiness

Fully hardy in the UK

Height/spread

Ultimate height up to 100 ft

Soil type

Suitable for all soil types, but growth rate may be slower on poorer soils and in exposed situations.

General

A native of Mediterranean coasts from Portugal to Greece and Morocco, but also extensively planted on the French Atlantic coast to stabilise sand dunes and as shelter belts, and also long grown in southern England as a specimen tree and for timber.  Has long bright grey-green needles up to 250mm long, and will produce, relatively early in its life, red female flowers and large decorative cones up to 25cm long, which are widely sold on the continent as Christmas decorations. Very resistant to drought, pollution, and salt spray. A valuable source of resin for the manufacture of turpentine.