(Pinus pinea) This Mediterranean native has been gracing woodlands since prehistoric times. During the Renaissance, it played a prominent role in Italian gardens, and is still widely used for bonsai. The Royal Horticultural Society has given this tree its highest honor, the Award of Garden Merit.
Italian Stone Pine is a rounded, dense evergreen with pliable blue-green needles and thick reddish-brown bark, deeply grooved. Its cones take a very long time to mature, and so are unlikely to be present on a young tree.
