Pinus banksiana
Family: Pinaceae
Jack Pine

The genus Pinus is composed of about 100 species native to temperate and tropical regions of the world. Wood of pine can be separated microscopically into the white, red and yellow pine groups. The word pinus is the classical Latin name. The word banksiana is used in dedication to Joseph Banks (1743-1820), director of Kew Gardens, England, botanical collector, and patron of sciences, to whom its author was obliged for first knowledge of it.

Other Common Names: Banks-den, Banksian pine, banksiana-tall, Banks-pijn, banks-tall, black jack pine, black pine, blackjack pine, British Honduras pitch pine, bull pine, Canada horn pine, Canada horn-cone pine, Canadian horn pine, check pine, chek pine, cypres, cypress, eastern jack-pine, grey pine, Hudson Bay pine, jack pine, jack-pine, juniper, labrador pine, northern scrub pine, pin chetif, pin de Banks, pin des rochers, pin gris, pin gris d'Amerique, pino banksiano, princess pine, scrub pine, Sir Joseph banks pine, Sir Joseph Banks pine, spruce pine, zwerg-kiefer.

Distribution: Jack pine is native to Cape Breton Islands, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, New Brunswick, Maine and central Quebec, west to northern Ontario, northern Manitoba, southwestern Keewatin, and western Mackinaw, south to extreme northwestern Indiana, Michigan, southern Ontario, northern New York and New Hampshire.

The Tree: Jack pine trees normally reach heights of 65 feet, with diameters of 10 inches. One can find exceptional trees that are 100 feet tall with a diameter of 2 feet.

General Wood Characteristics: The sapwood of jack pine is nearly white, while the heartwood is light brown to orange. The sapwood may make up one-half or more of the volume of a tree. The wood has a rather coarse texture and is somewhat resinous. It is moderately light in weight, moderately low in bending strength and compressive strength, moderately low in shock resistance, and low in stiffness. It also has moderately small shrinkage. Lumber from jack pine is generally knotty. In lumber, jack pine is sometimes included along with other pines with which it grows, including red pine and eastern white pine.

Mechanical Properties (2-inch standard)

				Compression
	Specific gravity	MOE x10^6 lbf/in^2	MOR lbf/in^2	Parallel lbf/in^2	Perpendicular lbf/in^2	WML^a in-lbf/in^3	Hardness lbf	Shear lbf/in^2
Green	0.40	1.07	6000	2950	300	7.2	400	750
Dry	0.46	1.35	9900	5660	580	8.3	570	1170
^aWML = Work to maximum load. Reference (56).

Drying and Shrinkage

Type of shrinkage	Percentage of shrinkage (green to final moisture content)
	0% MC	6% MC	20% MC
Tangential	6.6	NA	NA
Radial	3.7	NA	NA
Volumetric	10.3	NA	NA
References: (56).

Kiln Drying Schedules^a

Conventional temperature/moisture content-controlled schedules^a
Condition	4/4, 5/4 stock	6/4 stock	8/4 stock	10/4 stock	12/4 stock	British schedule 4/4 stock
Lower grades	T9-C4	NA	T9-C3	NA	NA	NA
Upper grades	T12-B4	NA	T11-B4	T7-A3	T7-A3	L
^aReference (28, 185).

Conventional temperature/time-controlled schedules^a
	Lower grades			Upper grades
Condition	4/4, 5/4 stock	6/4 stock	8/4 stock	4/4, 5/4 stock	6/4 stock	8/4 stock	12/4, 16/4 stock
Standard	291	291	291	291	NA	NA	NA
^aReferences (28, 185).

High temperature^a
Condition	4/4, 5/4 stock	6/4 stock	8/4 stock	Other products
Standard	400	400	400	Studs/412
^aReferences (28, 185).

Working Properties: Jack pine ranks average in workability with tools. It has lower nail holding capacity than red pine, and it is more liable to split when nailed.

Durability: Jack pine’s durability is very limited when exposed to conditions favorable to decay (9).

Preservation: Penetration with preservatives is difficult (9).

Uses: Jack pine is used for pulpwood, box lumber, pallets, and fuel. Less important uses include railroad crossties, mine timber, slack cooperage, poles, and posts.

Toxicity: In general, working with pine wood may cause dermatitis, allergic bronchial asthma or rhinitis in some individuals (4,7&15).

Additional Reading and References Cited (in parentheses)

1. Boone, R. S.; Kozlik, C. J.; Bois, P. J., and Wengert, E. M. Dry kiln schedules for commercial woods - temperate and tropical. Madison, WI: USDA Forest Service, FPL-GTR-57; 1988.

2. Dallimore, W.; Jackson, A. B., and Harrison, S. G. A handbook of Coniferae and Ginkgoaceae. London, UK: Edward Arnold Ltd.; 1966.

3. Elias, T. S. The complete trees of North America, field guide and natural history. New York, NY: van Nostrand Reinhold Co.; 1980.

4. Hausen, B. M. Woods injurious to human health. A manual. New York, NY: Walter de Gruyter; 1981.

5. Henderson, F. Y. A handbook of softwoods. London: HMSO; 1977.

6. Little, jr. E. L. Checklist of United States trees (native and naturalized). Washington, DC: USGPO, USDA Forest Service, Ag. Handbook No. 541; 1979.

7. Mitchell, J. and Rook, A. Botanical dermatology: plants and plant products injurious to the skin. Vancouver, BC: Greenglass Ltd.; 1979.

8. Record, S. J. and Hess R. W. Timbers of the new world. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press; 1943.

9. Rudolph, T. D. Jack pine, an American wood. Washington, DC, USA: USDA Forest Service, FS-252; 1985.

10. Rudolph, T. D. and Laidly, P. R. Pinus banksiana Lamb. Jack Pine. in: Burns, R. M. and Honkala, B. H., tech. coords. Silvics of North America. Volume 1, Conifers. Washington, DC: USDA Forest Service; 1990; pp. 280-293.

11. Rudolph, T. D. and Yeatman, C. W. Genetics of jack pine. Washington, DC, USA.: USDA Forest Service, Res. Pap. WO-38.; 1982.

12. Simpson, W. T. Dry kiln operator's manual. Madison, WI: USDA Forest Service, FPL Ag. Handbook No. 188; 1991.

13. Summitt, R. and Sliker, A. CRC handbook of materials science. Vol. 4. Boca Raton, FL: CRC Press, Inc.; 1980.

14. USDA. Wood handbook: wood as an engineering material. Madison, WI: USDA Forest Service, FPL Ag. Handbook No. 72; 1974.

15. Woods, B. and Calnan, C. D. Toxic woods. British Journal of Dermatology. 1976; 95(13):1-97.