Editing Longleaf pine (section)

== Uses ==
[[File:P. palustris catface.jpg|left|thumb|alt= Side-by-side photo and print each show men working on cutting a so-called "cat-face" into a longleaf pine tree to extract resin. The two men in the photo on the left are of African descent and the man in the pringing on the right shows lighter skin.|Men shown harvesting resin from longleaf pine trees]]
[[Image:Pinus palustris Pengo.jpg|right|thumb|''Pinus palustris'' close-up]]
[[File:Pinus palustris seed tree.jpg|thumb|right|upright|Mature longleaf pine tree with a prolific number of female cones. Lake City, Florida, 1929]]
Vast forests of longleaf pine once were present along the southeastern [[Atlantic Ocean|Atlantic]] coast and [[Gulf of Mexico|Gulf Coast]] of [[North America]], as part of the [[Eastern savannas of the United States|eastern savannas]]. These forests were the source of naval stores{{Snd}}[[resin]], [[turpentine]], and [[timber]]{{Snd}}needed by [[merchant]]s and the [[navy]] for their [[ship]]s. They have been cutover since for timber and usually replaced with faster-growing [[loblolly pine]] and [[Pinus elliottii|slash pine]], for [[agriculture]], and for urban and suburban development. Due to this deforestation and overharvesting, only about 3% of the original longleaf pine forest remains, and little new is planted. Longleaf pine is available, however, at many nurseries within its range; the southernmost known point of sale is in [[Lake Worth Beach, Florida]].

The yellow, resinous [[wood]] is used for [[lumber]] and [[Wood pulp|pulp]]. Boards cut years ago from virgin [[timber]] were very wide, up to {{convert|1|m|ft|abbr=on}}, and a thriving salvage business obtains these boards from demolition projects to be reused as flooring in upscale homes.

The extremely long needles are popular for use in the ancient craft of coiled basket making.

Annual sales of pine straw for use as [[mulch]] were estimated at $200M in 2021.<ref>{{Cite news|last=Frankel|first=Todd C.|date=2021-03-31|title=The 'brown gold' that falls from pine trees in North Carolina|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2021/03/31/pine-needle-mulch-north-carolina/|access-date=2021-04-01|newspaper=[[Washington Post]]|language=en}}</ref>

The stumps and taproots of old trees become saturated with resin and will not rot. Farmers sometimes find old buried stumps in fields, even in some that were cleared a century ago, and these usually are dug up and sold as [[fatwood]], "fat lighter", or "lighter wood", which is in demand as kindling for fireplaces, wood stoves, and barbecue pits. In old-growth pine, the [[heartwood]] of the [[Trunk (botany)|bole]] is often saturated in the same way. When boards are cut from the fat lighter wood, they are very heavy and will not rot, but buildings constructed of them are quite flammable and make extremely hot fires.

The seeds of the longleaf pine are edible raw or roasted.<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Deuerling|first1=Dick|last2=Lantz|first2=Peggy|date=Winter 1990|title=Nuts to You!|url=https://www.fnps.org/assets/pdf/palmetto/deuerling_dick__peggy_lantz_nuts_to_you__native_wild_foods_series_vol_10_no_4_winter_1990.pdf|journal=The Palmetto|volume=10|issue=4|pages=13|via=Florida Native Plant Society}}</ref>