Pin gris
Pinus banksiana

The Pinus genus includes 95 species of trees and shrubs distributed throughout the Borealie. There are 34 indigenous species in North America, including the jack pine, which is the typical pine to be found in the Boreal forest, often wrongly called a Cyprus (due to a historical mistake). This pine has the widest distribution range in the whole of North America.(3,8)

The jack pine habitat is sandy, gravelly and dry. This is why the jack pine is so abundant in the beautiful region of Lac St-Jean. It is a tree of average height that is to say it grows to between 13 and 20 metres (43 and 65 ft.). It has a propensity for investing land that has been destroyed by fire, because the female cones, sealed by resin, will open up when confronted with intense heat.(2,3) The seeds can germinate in a mere 10 days and, consequently, invade the burned territory, eliminating any competitors.(3)  In fact, the jack pine holds the record amongst coniferous trees for speed of growth. Its growth rate is the highest during the first 20 years of its lifespan.(11)

The jack pine also has commercial uses, such as the manufacture of construction material, pulp and paper, telephone poles.(2,8) Additionally, as is the case for other species, the jack pine is useful to wildlife in general, but more especially to the Kirtland warbler, Dendroica kirtlandii, which reproductive activities take place only in immature timber stands. The warbler, which is very rare, is an endangered species. Its distribution range is very limited, and steps have been taken to safeguard the species, especially through the use of prescribed burning, in order to promote the germination of jack pine seeds.(2,6,9) The  association between the Kirtland warbler and the jack pine is an example of the close relationship that often exists between wildlife and plant life. The jack pine is also appreciated by the porcupine, who eats the cambium layer located just under the bark.

REFERENCES       

1)        Burt, William H. and Richard P. Grossenheider.  1992.  Les mammifères de l’Amérique du Nord (au nord du Mexique).  Éditions Broquet inc. Quebec. Canada.

2)        Farrar, John L. 1995.  Les arbres du Canada.  2nd edition. Fides. Canada

3)    Frère Marie-Victorin É.C. 1995.  Flore Laurentienne.  3rd edition. Les Presses de l’Université de Montréal. Quebec. Canada.

4)    Gauthier, Robert.  2001.  Les sphaignes boréales.  Le Naturaliste Canadien.  Quebec.  Canada.  125(3).

5)    Groupe Fleurbec.  1987.  Plantes sauvages des lacs, rivières et tourbières.  Fleurbec.  Quebec.  Canada.

6)    Kaufman, Kenn.  2000.  Birds of North America.  Houghton Mifflin Company.  New York.  New York.

7)    Prescott, Jacques and Pierre Richard.  1996.  Mammifères du Québec et de l’Est du Canada.   Éditions Michel Quintin.  Quebec.  Canada.

8)    Rouleau, Raymond, et al.  1990.  Petite flore forestière du Québec.  2nd edition.  Les Publications du Québec.  Quebec.  Canada.

9)    Stokes, Donald et Lillian Stokes.  1997.  Guide des oiseaux de l’est de l’Amérique du Nord.  Broquet.  Quebec.  Canada.

INTERNET SITES

10) Fédération des producteurs acéricoles du Québec.  www.maple-erable.qc.ca  Consulted on March 18, 2003.

11) http://www.fs.fed.us/database/feis/plants/tree/pinban/all.html  Consulted on March 21, 2003.

       Rudolph, T.D., Laidly, P.R. 1990. Pinus banksiana Lamb. Jack pine. IN Burns, Russell M., Honkala, Barbara H., technical coordinators. Silvics of North America. Volume 1. Conifers. Agric. Handb. 654. Washington, DC : U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service: 280-293. [13391].

12) http://www.treeguide.com/index.asp  Consulted on March 21, 2003.

13) http://www.borealforest.org/lichens/lichen3.htm Consulted on March 21, 2003.