The Tree that Built the South

The Tree that Built the South. A Majestic Pine. , Longleaf pines are native to the southeastern United States. Mature longleaf pines can stand over 120 feet tall with a trunk three feet in diameter. These majestic pines can live for 250 years, some are known to be almost 500 years old! Timber from longleaf pines helped build our country's first homes, businesses, ships, and railroads. Longleaf pine was used for the rails of the 1833 Charleston to Hamburg railroad. Remnants of the railroad were found here in Hitchcock Woods, Restoring Our Forest , Longleaf pine forests used to cover over 90 million acres from Virginia to East Texas. Today those forests cover less than 5% of their original range due to overharvesting and farming. Fortunately communities across the Southeast have started to recognize the value of these trees and are restoring longleaf pine forests. They know these pines can resist the impact of our changing climate because they tolerate drought and wildfires and resist pests. Today the longleaf pine ecosystem is thriving in Hitchcock Woods., Amazing! , The National Champion longleaf pine tree, thought to be over 400 years old, grows in Hitchcock Woods., Did you know? , Thanks to their size, fox squirrels are the only animal that can eat the seeds from a longleaf pinecone before it falls to the ground., [Captions:] , Today only 5 million acres or so of the longleaf pine ecosystem are left in North America., Prescribed burning and selective thinning improves the health and diversity of our forest and protects surrounding communities from wildfires.