''Pinus mugo'', known as bog pine, creeping pine, dwarf mountain pine, mugo pine, mountain pine, scrub mountain pine, or Swiss mountain pine, is a

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...

of conifer,

native Native may refer to: People * Jus soli, citizenship by right of birth * Indigenous peoples, peoples with a set of specific rights based on their historical ties to a particular territory ** Native Americans (disambiguation) In arts and entert ...

to high elevation

habitat In ecology, the term habitat summarises the array of resources, physical and biotic factors that are present in an area, such as to support the survival and reproduction of a particular species. A species habitat can be seen as the physical ...

s from southwestern to

Central Europe Central Europe is an area of Europe between Western Europe and Eastern Europe, based on a common historical, social and cultural identity. The Thirty Years' War (1618–1648) between Catholicism and Protestantism significantly shaped the a ...

and

Southeast Europe Southeast Europe or Southeastern Europe (SEE) is a geographical subregion of Europe, consisting primarily of the Balkans. Sovereign states and territories that are included in the region are Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia (a ...

Description

The tree has dark green leaves ("needles") in pairs, long. The cones are nut-brown, long. Custura Bucurei.jpg, ''Pinus mugo'' subsp. ''mugo'', Romania Pinus mugo uncinata trees.jpg, ''Pinus mugo'' subsp. ''uncinata'' Swiss National Park 007.JPG, ''Pinus mugo'' subsp. ''rotundata'',

Swiss National Park The Swiss National Park ( rm, Parc Naziunal Svizzer; german: Schweizerischer Nationalpark; it, Parco Nazionale Svizzero; french: Parc National Suisse) is located in the Western Rhaetian Alps, in eastern Switzerland. It is within the canton of ...

Бор кривул 01.JPG, On Jakupica mountain, Republic of North Macedonia

Taxonomy

There are three subspecies: *''Pinus mugo'' subsp. ''mugo'' — in the east and south of the range (southern & eastern

Alps The Alps () ; german: Alpen ; it, Alpi ; rm, Alps ; sl, Alpe . are the highest and most extensive mountain range system that lies entirely in Europe, stretching approximately across seven Alpine countries (from west to east): France, Swi ...

, Balkan Peninsula), a low, shrubby, often multi-stemmed plant to tall with matte-textured symmetrical

cones A cone is a three-dimensional geometric shape that tapers smoothly from a flat base (frequently, though not necessarily, circular) to a point called the apex or vertex. A cone is formed by a set of line segments, half-lines, or lines conn ...

, which are thin-scaled. *''Pinus mugo'' subsp. ''uncinata'' — in the west and north of the range (from the Pyrenees northeast to Poland), a larger, usually single-stemmed tree to tall with glossy-textured asymmetrical cones, the scales of which are much thicker on the upper side.
Some botanists treat the western subspecies as a separate species, ''Pinus uncinata'', others as only a variety, ''P. mugo'' var. ''rostrata''. This subspecies in the Pyrenees marks the alpine

tree line The tree line is the edge of the habitat at which trees are capable of growing. It is found at high elevations and high latitudes. Beyond the tree line, trees cannot tolerate the environmental conditions (usually cold temperatures, extreme snow ...

or timberline, the edge of the habitat at which trees are capable of growing. *''Pinus mugo'' subsp. ''rotundata'' — hybrid subspecies, of the two subspecies above that intergrade extensively in the western Alps and northern Carpathians. An old name for the species, ', is still occasionally seen, and a typographical error "''mugho''" (first made in a prominent 18th-century encyclopedia) is still often repeated.

Distribution

''Pinus mugo'' is native to the subalpine zones of the

Pyrenees The Pyrenees (; es, Pirineos ; french: Pyrénées ; ca, Pirineu ; eu, Pirinioak ; oc, Pirenèus ; an, Pirineus) is a mountain range straddling the border of France and Spain. It extends nearly from its union with the Cantabrian Mountains to ...

, Alps, Erzgebirge,

Carpathians The Carpathian Mountains or Carpathians () are a range of mountains forming an arc across Central Europe. Roughly long, it is the third-longest European mountain range after the Urals at and the Scandinavian Mountains at . The range stretches ...

, northern and central Apennines, and higher Balkan Peninsula mountains Rila,

Pirin , photo=Pirin-mountains-Bansko.jpg , photo_caption=Pirin scenery in winter , country= Bulgaria, , parent= , geology= granite, gneiss, marble, limestone , area_km2=2585 , range_coordinates = , length_km=80 , length_orientation= north-s ...

Korab Korab (, ) is a mountain range in the eastern corner of Albania and the western part of North Macedonia, running along the border between both countries. It forms also the European Green Belt. In Albania, it is also called ''Vargu lindor'' (), ...

Accursed Mountains The Accursed Mountains ( sq, Bjeshkët e Nemuna; sh-Cyrl-Latn, Проклетије, Prokletije, ; both translated as "Cursed Mountains"), also known as the Albanian Alps ( sq, Alpet Shqiptare), are a mountain group in the western part of the ...

, etc. It is usually found from , occasionally as low as in the north of the range in Germany and Poland, and as high as in the south of the range in Bulgaria and the Pyrenees. Also in Kosovo it is found in the Bjeshkët e Nemuna National Park. In Scandinavia, Finland and the Baltic region, ''P. mugo'' was introduced in the late 1700s and the 1800s, when it was planted in coastal regions for

sand dune stabilization Sand dune stabilization is a coastal management practice designed to prevent erosion of sand dunes. Sand dunes are common features of shoreline and desert environments. Dunes provide habitat for highly specialized plants and animals, including rar ...

, and later as ornamental plants around residences. In Denmark, Norway and Sweden, the species has naturalised and become invasive, displacing fragile dune and dune heath habitats. In Estonia and Lithuania ''P. mugo'' only occasionally naturalises outside plantations, sometimes establishing in raised bogs.

Ecology

''Pinus mugo'' is classed as a

wilding conifer Wilding conifers, also known as wilding pines, are invasive trees in the high country of New Zealand. Millions of dollars are spent on controlling their spread. In the South Island they threaten 210,000 hectares of public land administered by ...

, and spreads as an invasive species in the high country of New Zealand, coastal Denmark, and other areas of

Scandinavia Scandinavia; Sámi languages: /. ( ) is a subregion in Northern Europe, with strong historical, cultural, and linguistic ties between its constituent peoples. In English usage, ''Scandinavia'' most commonly refers to Denmark, Norway, and Swe ...

Cultivation

''Pinus mugo'' is widely cultivated as an

ornamental plant Ornamental plants or garden plants are plants that are primarily grown for their beauty but also for qualities such as scent or how they shape physical space. Many flowering plants and garden varieties tend to be specially bred cultivars that ...

, for use as a small tree or shrub, planted in gardens and in larger pots and planters. It is also used in

Japanese garden are traditional gardens whose designs are accompanied by Japanese aesthetics and philosophical ideas, avoid artificial ornamentation, and highlight the natural landscape. Plants and worn, aged materials are generally used by Japanese garden desi ...

style landscapes, and for larger bonsai specimens. In Kosovo, its trunk is used as construction material for the vernacular architecture in the mountains called "Bosonica".

Cultivars

Numerous cultivars have been selected. The following have been given the

Royal Horticultural Society The Royal Horticultural Society (RHS), founded in 1804 as the Horticultural Society of London, is the UK's leading gardening charity. The RHS promotes horticulture through its five gardens at Wisley (Surrey), Hyde Hall (Essex), Harlow Carr (Nor ...

’s Award of Garden Merit: *’Humpy’ *'Kissen' *’Mops’ *’Ophir’ Cultivars with seasonal changes in foliage color include ''Pinus mugo'' 'Wintergold' and ''Pinus mugo'' 'Ophir'.

Uses

A recent trend is the increase in use of the mugo pine in cooking.

Bud In botany, a bud is an undeveloped or embryonic shoot and normally occurs in the axil of a leaf or at the tip of a stem. Once formed, a bud may remain for some time in a dormant condition, or it may form a shoot immediately. Buds may be spec ...

s and young cones are harvested from the wild in the spring and left to dry in the sun over the summer and into autumn. The cones and buds gradually drip syrup, which is then boiled down to a concentrate and combined with sugar to make pine syrup. The syrup is usually sold as "pinecone syrup" or "pine cone syrup".

Gallery

Pinus mugo Rila 1.jpg, ''Pinus mugo'' (subsp. ''mugo'') habitat.

Rila National Park Rila National Park ( bg, Национален парк „Рила“) is the largest national park in Bulgaria spanning an area of in the Rila mountain range in the south-west of the country. History It was established on 24 February 1992 to ...

in Bulgaria. Pinus mugo Blüten.jpg, Female cones and young shoots Zwiesel 2014 - 5 044.JPG, Male pollen producing

strobili A strobilus (plural: strobili) is a structure present on many land plant species consisting of sporangia-bearing structures densely aggregated along a stem. Strobili are often called cones, but some botanists restrict the use of the term cone to th ...

File:Junge Zapfen.jpg, Young cones

References

Sources

*Christensen, K.I. (1987)
Taxonomic revision of the ''Pinus mugo'' complex and ''P.'' × ''rhaetica'' (''P. mugo'' × ''sylvestris'') (Pinaceae)
''Nordic J. Bot''. 7: 383-408.

External links

* ttp://www.euforgen.org/species/pinus-mugo/ ''Pinus mugo''an
''Pinus uncinata''
- information, genetic conservation units and related resources.

European Forest Genetic Resources Programme European Forest Genetic Resources Programme (EUFORGEN) is an international network that supports the conservation and sustainable use of forest genetic resources in Europe. The programme’s tasks include to coordinate and promote '' in situ'' an ...

(EUFORGEN) {{Authority control mugo Flora of Europe Flora of the Alps Flora of the Carpathians Flora of the Pyrenees Flora of Austria Flora of Bulgaria Flora of the Czech Republic Flora of Germany Flora of Italy Flora of Poland Flora of Slovakia Flora of Spain Flora of Switzerland Trees of Europe Plants described in 1764 Least concern plants Edible plants Garden plants of Europe Plants used in bonsai Ornamental trees