The Lodgepole Pine (Pinus contorta) has a very flexible wood that was once used by Native Americans to build tepees and lodges, hence its name. It grows 30 to 35 metres high and lives for 200 years. Its needles are strongly twisted.
Its cones have scales with a curved prickle that is held closed by a resin bond. To open, the cones need to be exposed to intense heat from a wildfire or from direct sunlight. Most pure stands are therefore established on burn areas.
The lodgepole pine is found in western Canada and the northwestern United States. It is distributed inland to western Alberta.
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