This tree also goes by the common name spruce pine because of the stiff, short look of the needles, which often stay on the twigs for three to four years. With time, Virginia Pine’s youthful, thin, and generally smooth bark turns highly scaly or plate-like and turns a reddish-brown tint. The needles have a twisted form, just like scotch pine. Virginia pine has short, two-bundled needles that range in length from one and a half to three inches, and its colors range from dark green to gray-green to yellow-green. Some Virginia pine trees look scrub-like and scraggly the source of this appearance is the sterile soils from which they grow. It is fond of areas with rocky and barren soils.Īnother name for Virginia pine is scrub pine because of its growth habit. Virginia pine is a tree that grows naturally in this relatively drier forest. The Allegheny Mountains cast a rain shadow over the state’s eastern panhandle, which means it gets much less rainfall than western WV. Other Common Names: White Elm, Water Elm, Soft Elm, Common ElmĪverage Size at Maturity: 60 – 80 feet tall and 40 – 70 feet wide Examples include Eastern Comma ( Polygonia comma), Question Mark ( Polygonia interrogationis), and red-spotted purple ( Limenitis arthemis), among others. On an exciting note, American elm leaves are valuable food for the larvae of a few butterfly and moth species. In addition, these glossy dark green leaves have teeth along the edges. They have an oval shape and are unequal at the base. The leaves alternate positions on the branch, meaning no two leaves are across from each other. It grows along rivers on higher-altitude terrains, like in the Appalachian Mountains.Īt first glance, this elm tree has a vase-like shape with arching branches. It grows naturally in various settings, notably fertile bottomlands, floodplains, stream banks, and marshy areas. American elm grows in the central hardwood forests of WV, the state’s western half.

Types of maple trees in virginia