Pinus nigra J.F.Arnold
Medium-sized to large tree with habit varying from narrowly columnar to spreading. Bark fissured, exfoliating in large plates, grey on surface, cream to pale brown beneath. Shoots shining brown or yellowish brown, glabrous. Buds ovoid and tapering to a slender point, sometimes cylindric, not or only thinly resinous, occasionally more strongly resinous; scales ± appressed (at least in living material), brown in centre with a narrow to broad, white, ± erose margin (bud sometimes appearing almost completely white). Lvs 2 per fascicle, sometimes in dense terminal masses, (4)-6-16 cm × 1-1.5 mm, deep green, straight or curved, rigid to rather flexible, scarcely twisted; resin canals median; sheath to c. 1.5 cm long at first, gradually wearing away except for a basal fringe. ♂ strobili 1-1.5 cm long, broad-cylindric. Conelets sessile or subsessile; scales with or without small curved mucro. Mature cones sessile, often pendent, solitary or clustered, deciduous at or soon after maturity, 4-9 × 2.5-3.5 cm when closed, ovoid-conic, symmetric, yellowish brown or brown; apophyses keeled; umbo with very small, often deciduous, prickly mucro. Seed wing ± asymmetric, 1-2 cm long.
Key
Two subspp. are found wild in N.Z. There is considerable variation within both in N.Z. The sp. ranges from the Pyrenees to the Balkan Peninsula and Crimea, and introductions from various parts of this region have been made.
