Recently I had a talk with a local independent tree cutter, who told me that most of the trees in Paradise, CA are not Ponderosa, but rather some intentionally planted hybrid with some kind of white pine. He cited several massive waves of logging and replanting in the area over the last hundred years. I told him I had never heard that opinion before, and he responded by saying it was not an opinion (must be a "fact", I suppose). He would not elaborate on exactly how he knew this. He did offer "evidence", to the effect that trees with narrow, rather than wide, flattened bark plates, were the ones not true Ponderosas. So, I did some searching, but only found what I already knew: that Ponderosa may naturally hybridize with Coulter and Jeffrey pines, but seldom does. There was no mention of any other intentional cross-species hybrids that I could find.

Does anyone reading this know about any such thing, or can I safely assume that I was being exposed to a lot of hot air. By the way, this same fellow claimed that, in his many years of climbing trees with spurs, he has seen no ill effect to the trees he has revisited (probably Black oaks). He says it stimulates the trees, as evidenced by the sprouting that takes place near the spur holes. I tried to "discuss" with him about the tree's response to wounding, the use of tree energy resources, and the creation of entry points for disease. But he had no time for book facts compared with his experienced "knowledge". I don't want to waste anyone's time repeating his opinion of ISA certified arborists in our area.
Anyway, trying to keep an open mind, I would like to hear of any leads or information on the subject of Ponderosa pine hybrids, other than those already mentioned.

Reply to post by Mark Goodwin, on August 26, 2001 at 23:05:35:

I knew that there were recognized regional var's in the species.

Here is a .gov page on this.

http://www.fs.fed.us/database/feis/plants/tree/pinponp/introductory.html

Here is a search on a fascinating conifers database caled Gymnosperm Database.

http://www.conifers.org/index.htm

If the search i did does not come up, seach the word ponderosa.

Reply to post by jps, on October 01, 2001 at 15:07:52:

I, too, knew of regional variants, but not of any intentional hybrids for reforestation.
Even so, the fellow I mentioned before clearly stated that the trees were hybridized with a type of white pine, not yellow pine.

Reply to post by Mark Goodwin, on August 26, 2001 at 23:05:35:

As a CA Registered Professional Forester who has worked in the central Sierra Nevada Mountains including the Paradise area, I can tell you that there is no such hybrid. You can check with the USDA Forest Service Forest Genetics Laboratory in Placerville CA to get it from "the horses mouth". The scientists (geneticists) there will know for sure. Phil