Pinus resinosa aka American Red Pine

Pinus resinosa, also known as red pine or Norway pine, is a coniferous evergreen tree native to North America. It can be found from Newfoundland to Manitoba and south to Pennsylvania, with smaller populations in the Appalachian Mountains, northern New Jersey, and northern Illinois. The red pine is characterized by its tall, straight growth, typically reaching 20-35 meters in height and 1 meter in trunk diameter, with a conical crown that becomes a narrow rounded dome with age. The bark is thick and gray-brown at the base but thin, flaky, and bright orange-red in the upper crown, giving the tree its distinctive name. The leaves are needle-like, dark yellow-green, and snap cleanly when bent, growing in fascicles of two and measuring 12-18 cm in length. The cones are symmetrical ovoid and ripen to nut-blue, opening to 4-5 cm broad, with scales that lack a prickle and are almost stalkless. Red pine is the state tree of Minnesota and is also a rare houseplant that requires regular watering and well-draining soil, thriving in direct light less than 1 foot from a window. The name "Norway" may originate from early Scandinavian immigrants who likened the American red pines to the closely related European red pines back home.