Data provided by the participants of the Consortium of California Herbaria

View additional distribution information on the Jepson eflora

The Knobcone Pine (Pinus attenuata) is a tree that grows in mild climates on poor soils. It ranges from the mountains of southern Oregon to Baja California with the greatest concentration in northern California and the Oregon-California border. This pine reaches heights of 8-24 m; however, it can be a shrub on especially poor sites. It prefers dry rocky mountain soils. The crown is usually conical with a straight trunk. The bark is smooth, flaky and gray-brown when young, becoming dark gray-red-brown and shallowly furrowed into flat scaly ridges. The twigs are red-brown and often resinous.

Plant type

Tree

Size

26 - 118 ft Tall

Growth rate

Fast, Moderate

Dormancy

Evergreen

Special uses

Bank stabilization, Deer resistant

Sun

Full Sun, Partial Shade

Water

Low, Very Low

Ease of care

Moderate

Soil drainage

Fast

Soil description

Prefers gravelly, sandy soil.

Propagation

For propagating by seed: 2 mos. stratification (USDA Forest Service 1974).

Sunset Zones

3, 4*, 5*, 6*, 7*, 10, 14*, 15*, 16*, 17*, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24*

Site type

Dry rocky mountain soils

Plant communities

Chaparral, Closed-cone Pine Forest, Douglas-Fir Forest, Foothill Woodland

Bats
Birds
Caterpillars
Butterflies

Butterflies and moths supported

3 confirmed and 99 likely

Confirmed Likely

Ponderosa Pineconeworm Moth

Dioryctria auranticella

Nantucket Pine Tip Moth

Rhyacionia frustrana

Acleris bowmanana