Selected Plants of Navajo Rangelands

Diné bikéyah Chi’l nooséłígíí Bąąhą́ą́nosin
Take care of our Navajo Rangelands

Ponderosa pine
Ńdíshchíí’
(a.k.a. Big heavy, black jack, bull pine, ponderosa white )

Ponderosa habitat showing traces of fire in a burned trunk
Patrick Alexander
Ponderosa pines are fire-adapted and may grow in an open, park-like structure.

Ponderosa pine is a large, long-lived, native forest tree common throughout the western United States. The height of mature trees ranges from 55 to 90 feet. Ponderosa pine seeds are consumed by a great many birds and small mammals such as mice, chipmunks, and tree squirrels. Snags in the mature pine forest provide a large number of species with nesting and roosting sites. Big game, such as deer and elk, also use the pine forests for food and shelter. Ponderosa pines are fire-adapted and may grow in an open, park-like structure.

When the needles are eaten during gestation, they can cause abortion in cattle.

A stand of Ponderosas showing the spaciously arranged branches and the variation in bark due to age. The nearly black trees are young. Their bark will turn to a more golden grown at around 90 years.
Patrick Alexander
Broad plates and black lines in the characteristic bark of an older Ponderosa
Patrick Alexander
A stand of Ponderosas, whose foliage and spacing let light through to the ground
Patrick Alexander
Growth habit of young Ponderosas, which have dark trunks and a characteristic conical shape
Patrick Alexander
Broad plates and black lines in the characteristic bark of an older Ponderosa
Patrick Alexander
Ponderosa cones lying among needles on the forest floor
Patrick Alexander
Ponderosa pine cones
Scientific Name
Pinus ponderosa
Plant Type
Tree
Growing Season
Warm Season
Habitat
Ponderosa Pine / Mixed Conifer
Flower Colors
  • Red/Pink
  • Yellow
✓
Good wildlife forage
⚠
Potential danger to cattle
For definitions, see the glossary.

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