The Buck Lake Native Plant Garden has planted a hedge of shore pines as a backdrop to the large swale on one side and shrubs and perennials on another. The dark green needles of the trees are beautiful any time of the year. Look for them adjacent to the huge Douglas fir in the middle of the garden.

In the wild, Pinus contorta ssp. contorta grows in both mixed forests and along windy coastal bluffs, from Alaska to Northern California, adapting equally well to sandy dunes and boggy areas. On coastal bluffs, it is often bent and twisted by the wind, hence its name "contorta." In garden settings, it can be kept to a height of 20 to 30 feet by candling, that is pinching back the elongated spring
growth. It is, however, a tree that will need plenty of
room to grow and, unless you have a very large property,
may be best grown as a single specimen.

Shore pines have nutritious, oily seeds favored by many
species of birds, as well as chipmunks and squirrels. Deer
will graze the needles. The needles are also prized as
nesting material for birds and rodents.

Native American people used the tree's pitch to heal
open wounds.