The botanical name of our 3 needle per fascicle (bundle) Chihuahuan pine is Pinus leiophylla var. chihuahuana. Further south into Mexico where the 5 needle version occurs it becomes Pinus leiophylla var. leiophylla. Some botanists, by the way, list the variety as a subspecies. Well, either way it’s really a neat native pine here in the borderlands.
The photos are mine and taken in the Chiricahua Mountains where we were wandering around looking for a Christmas tree. Below is a photo of large sprout coming off a pine trunk. It was an area that burned during the 2011 Horseshoe Two Fire and some of the surviving fire damaged trees put out large crown-like sprouts. That’s fascinating and unusual for a pine species. And now you know.
The Apache fox squirrel – one of a few common names, but always Sciurus nayaritensis…is found in the Sierra Madre Occidental from Nayarit and...
Though I jabber about several plants and animals here, the plant Mimosa dysocarpa is featured. ..well, I talk about it the most I think....
Anxious for some early morning light and something green in the grassland, Petey remembers an early blooming wildflower to look for in the nearby...