Return to Native Trees of the Southern Rocky Mountains

Every autumn, from times uncounted, the calendar of the Ute Indians contained as one of the great, gala events of the years the annual expedition to the mountains for the nuts of the pinyon pine... the pine nuts or Indian nuts of the dry areas of the west played an important part in shaping the lives of the Indians there. Abundant, nourishing, keeping well, they formed the staple food of winter. Edwin Way Teale

Pinyon-juniper woodlands are one of the most common forests in the arid west. Widespread across parts of Colorado, New Mexico, Arizona, Utah, Nevada, and California, the pinyon - juniper woodlands cover 150,000 square miles, an area larger than the state of Colorado. They generally lie between 4500 and 6500 feet in elevation, above the deserts, grasslands and sagebrush, and below mountain forests into which they merge.

There are three kinds of pinyon pine in these forests. The " common" Pinyon pine, also known as the "true", Two-needle, New Mexico, or Colorado Pinyon pine, Pinus edulis , is the pinyon of Colorado, northern New Mexico and north-eastern Utah. Pinyon is found in the Uinta foothills near Flaming Gorge Reservoir of Wyoming.

In northern New Mexico Pinyon is widespread, found almost everywhere in its customary elevation range. In Colorado Pinyon grows all along the western border on dry lowlands, slopes and mesas; on the western side of the Sangre de Cristos, in Great Sand Dunes National Monument, in the eastern foothills and plains south of Colorado Springs, well up the Arkansas River valley to the Buena Vista area, on the Palmer divide between Colorado Springs and Castle Rock, along the foothills up to Golden, and east of Trinidad.

There is an interesting Pinyon grove in Owl Creek Canyon northwest of Ft. Collins, Colorado. Pinyon does not naturally grow anywhere near this area. These trees are thought to have sprouted accidentally from cache of Pinyon nuts left by Indians about 400 years ago. Young Pinyon pines are now growing in the vicinity, so the tree is spreading naturally there.

In New Mexico and Colorado Pinyon pine is found from 4000 to 9300 feet above sea level, most commonly below 7500 feet. It grows in sunny locations with dry, hot summers, and is often associated with junipers. Annual precipitation is 12 to 18 inches where the Pinyon grows. At high levels in its range Pinyon may be found on south-facing slopes mixed with Ponderosa pine, Douglas fir, and Gambel oak.

Pinyon often has a widely branching trunk and rounded form, and is rarely more than 20 or 30 feet tall, and often is much less. Sometimes it is as wide or wider than it is tall. In its lower range Pinyon trees grow widely separated and rather short. Horsemen riding in the pinyon woodlands sometimes feel like giants, looking over the top of mature trees. As elevation and moisture increase Pinyon trees grow larger and closer together. Pinyon is slow-growing: a tree may reach 100 years before producing cones. They commonly live 350 or 450 years; some trees achieve a thousand years. When young they gain trunk diameter at a rate of about an inch per decade.

Pinyon timber was used in building the early pit houses of Mesa Verde, from 400 to 900 A.D. Pinyon was well known to the builders of the later cliff dwellings, too, both for wood for roof beams (now used for tree-ring dating) and door lintels. They ate the nuts as well. Pinyon pitch was used to caulk native baskets.

The New Mexico Pinyon is one of the main sources of the edible pine nuts of the American southwest. The "nuts" are the seeds found between the scales of the cones. Pinyon pine nuts were a major food source for native American Indians in the area where the nut pine grows, in some cases providing most or all of the winter diet.

The large edible nuts are essential for the tree's survival as well. In the arid setting where Pinyon grows, seeds scattered on the ground will not germinate. Small seeds eaten by animals are destroyed. But the Pinyon nut is so large and nutricious, and sometimes so abundant, that birds and animals bury caches of seeds for future use; they can't eat all the nuts at once.

In late summer and fall Clark's nutcracker, Steller's jay, and the Pinon jay extract the ripe seeds from the cones and make large caches, burying them in the forest floor. The nut caches are naturally important to the birds' survival in winter. The birds' nut caches are also a key factor in the spread and survival of the Pinyon pine, whose seeds have a better chance of germination buried in moist soil than lying on the dry surface. In Arizona a Clark's Nutcracker was seen to carry 95 pinyon seeds in its cheek pouch for 14 miles. One hundred and fifty nutcrackers can cache approximately a ton of Pinyon seeds in one season - four million seeds. The birds and the trees seem to depend on each other for their survival and propagation.

These nuts provide a very important food source for food for Pinyon jays, Clark's nutcrakers, black bear, mule deer, turkeys, woodrats, pinon mice, porcupines, and several kinds of squirrels and chipmunks. Even the Abert's squirrel can be tempted to leave the Ponderosa woods for pinon nuts.

The first European to describe the tree and its uses was Nunez Cabeza de Vaca in 1535. Nunez and three companions were shipwrecked on the Gulf coast in 1527 - the only survivors of an expedition of 572 persons. For eight years the four wandered in the wilderness of the southwest, having nothing in the way of supplies. They survived, not by dominating the peoples they encountered, but by attempting to aid them, at which task they succeeded to such a degree that at imes they were followed by crowds of natives seeking help. They survived starvation on the plains of Texas when they found Pinyon trees with nuts. After reaching Mexico City Nunez cut off his long beard and wrote an account of his travels.

Reports of walled cities to the north excited greed in Mexico. The golden wealth of the Aztecs might be found there as well. Coronado, an aristocrat and steady government administrator, was directed to lead two hundred hot-heads north to riches despite his personal inclinations. A few days out he received word that the reports of gold were false, from a reliable observer who had been there, but it was impossible to turn back the gold seekers, so the Spanish occupation of New Mexico began. Casteneda, a companion of Coronado and the chronicler of the expedition, noted "great quantities of pine nuts," and he compared them with approval to nut pines of Spain, a different species of pine. No golden cities in Quivera, but there is a fine nut pine.

More than a few early exploration parties in the Rockies, both Spanish and American, were saved from starvation by Pinyon nuts. The rescue of the Donner Party from the snows of the Sierras in 1846 was made possible by Pinyon nuts. Several men set out to seek help, and all but one fell by the wayside due to starvation. The solitary remaining messenger of distress nearly failed in his mission, but was revived by a handful of Pinyon nuts offered by generous Indians who found him at the last of his strength. Everyone who lived or traveled in the area where Pinyon grows soon learned of the edible seeds. Pinyon nuts remain an important ingredient in southwestern cooking and are sold as a gourmet food item. At one time large quantities were sold by street vendors in New York City.

Large seed crops occur every four to seven years. The seeds ripen around the middle of August but the cones are still tightly closed, green, and resinous. The cones open gradually during the next several months as they dry out. The nuts are harvested, from about Labor Day to November or even later, by shaking the branches with open cones over a sheet or box, or by twisting off the cones. Closed cones will open if left to dry, spread out indoors. Do not cut trees or break branches; they take far too long to replace. Crack the shells with pliers, or with a rolling pin. A great variety of dishes can be made with this delicious nut. Refer to The Pinon Pine by Ronald Lanner (University of Nevada, 1981) for more information on nut collection and recipes.

In fact the interdependency of the birds which cache Pinyon nuts and the life cycle of the nut tree itself is so pronounced that the Pinyon appears to have evolved to benefit from or adapt to the birds' behavior. It is said that the Pinyon pine was invented by jay birds. The tree developed large edible seeds, just as attractive to humans as to birds. The birds also evolved an ability to efficiently extract seeds from the cones. The Pinyon jay's beak is specialized to extract nuts from unopened cones. The birds have learned to detect empty seed shells without bothering to crack them open, based on color and weight. They never bother with empty nut shells.

Scientific description for the common Pinyon waited until 1846 when specimens were collected by Doctor Frederick Aldolphus Wislizenus, a physician and amateur naturalist in search of new plants, while in Santa Fe. Wislizenus sent the specimens back to George Engelmann in St. Louis who wrote the first technical description of this tree and who conferred the species name Pinus edulis, edulis meaning edible. Pinyon is the English version of the Spanish pinon. In Spanish nut pines are called pinos pinoneros .

The delightful fragrance of Pinyon smoke creates a talisman of a region and a culture, both region and culture centered in New Mexico. Like the scent of the Ponderosa, Pinyon smoke instantly recalls a flood of evocative associations of place, season, and way of life to those who know it. Appropriately Pinus edulis is the state tree of New Mexico, and since the associations of Pinyon pine are with a culture centered in that state, and since that tree is more widespread there, it would be well if we heartily endorsed the common name New Mexico Pinyon. In every state where they grow Pinyon pines are valuable and unique, deserving of our recognition and protection.

Identifying features of Common or New Mexico Pinyon pine

Needles

Needles mostly in bundles of two, occasionally three; rarely one; 3/4 to 2 inches long; yellow-green; slightly thicker than most pine needles (about 1 millimeter), curved, and sharp-pointed.

Cones

Rounded rather than pointed, 1 to 2 inches long; usually wider than long, opening into a rosesette; scales are large and thick with no bristle. A small number of cone scales compared to other local pine cones. Bright green with beads of sticky resin when immature in midsummer. Seeds thin-shelled and wingless, brown, oval, and edible, about half an inch long. Some seed shells may be empty.

Bark

Pale to dark brown, or pale reddish brown, with rough furrows with small rough scales.