Italian Stone Pine
Pinus pineaItalian Stone Pine has decorative pine cones and can give an abundant crop of pignolia nuts. The plants are sold as miniature Christmas trees and are ornamental outside. One of the few pines that grow well in alkaline soil. Space 20' circle. Zones 7-8.
| Plant Characteristics | |
|---|---|
| Pest Resistance | Excellent |
| Disease Resistance | Excellent |
| Drought Tolerance | Very Good |
| Heat Tolerance | Excellent |
| Humidity Tolerance | Excellent |
| Sun Tolerance | Excellent |
| Wet Soil Tolerance | Poor |
| Shade Tolerance | Fair |
| Salt Tolerance | Good |
| Fun for Kids | Very Good |
| Deer Resistance | Good |
| Thorns | No |
| Plant Type | Tree |
| Soil Type | Well Drained |
| Edible Type | Nut |
| Self Fertile | Yes |
| this information is accurate to the best of our knowledge, comments/opinions are always welcome | |
Due to import restrictions we are unable to ship Italian Stone Pine to CA...
Pine Care Guide
Pine nuts trees like Pinus pinea, commonly known as Italian Stone Pine are like other pines in their care, easy to maintain. The three main things to remember for best performance are full sun, good drainage and normal to poor soil.
Italian Stone pine has juvenile blue spruce like needles at first. Needles after the first season are much longer and greener. Native to areas like Italy they enjoy hot dry summers and mild winters. Northern climate boundaries on the East coast would end somewhere between Washington DC and Baltimore MD. They are best grown in zones
7 - 9.
Keep weeds and grass away from the developing tree. As soon as it reaches a height of approximately 8', it will start to umbrella out. A very interesting form for a pine, hence its nickname, Umbrella Pine.
This is the tree that Pignola nuts come from. Be patient or plant the tree for the children, because the nuts are part of the pine cones and they may take up to 15 years to start producing the cones. They may be erratic and not automatic after they do start producing.
The nuts are the reward. I've noticed they taste far fresher than store bought nuts. It's a noticeable difference. Nuts do need to be hulled. The shell needs to be cracked off. Commercially this is done with a hammer mill. If growing your own catches on maybe we can design a kitchen model hammer mill.
