Pinus caribaea

Pinus caribaea is an evergreen Tree growing to 30 m by 20 m at a fast rate.
It is hardy to zone 10. The flowers are pollinated by Birds, Wind.
Suitable for: light and medium soils and prefers well-drained soil. Suitable pH: acid and neutral soils and can grow in very acid and saline soils.
It cannot grow in the shade. It prefers dry or moist soil and can tolerate drought. The plant can tolerate maritime exposure.

Industrial Crop: Hydrocarbon Management: Standard Regional Timber
A plant of the moist tropics where it is found at elevations from near sea level to 1,500 metres. It grows in areas where the mean annual temperature is in the range 22 - 37°c, and the mean annual rainfall is 1,000 - 3,000mm. It grows best in frost-free areas at elevations up to about 700 metres in more fertile sites with good subsoil drainage and an annual rainfall of 2,000 - 3,000mm. Grows best in a sunny position. Soils are usually loams or sandy loams, sometimes with high amounts of gravel and generally well drained. It can tolerate seasonal waterlogging. The tree prefers a pH in the range 5.0 - 5.5, but can tolerate a range from 4.3 - 6.5. It tolerates salt winds and hence may be planted near the coast. The tree has been widely planted throughout the tropics, and has often escaped from cultivation. It is considered to be an invasive weed in some areas. A fast growing tree, generally averaging more than 1 metre increase in height per year when young. Bole straightness generally improves from the subtropics towards the tropics. Young plantations usually start bearing female cones when they are 3 - 4 years old but these do not produce fertile seed owing to the inadequate supply of pollen at this age, unless older plantations adjoin the site. Initial spacing when growing in plantations depends on the markets for which the pine is being grown and the technique used in tending the plantation. Mechanical cultivation requires a spacing of at least 3 metres between rows, but close spacing is possible within rows. When it is grown for pulpwood, a spacing of 2 x 2 metres is used to give maximum stem production of suitable sizes in the shortest time possible without thinning. Pruning is recommended to reduce fire danger, improve form, improve access within the crop, and reduce the size and frequency of knots, especially in saw logs. In plantations grown for pulpwood on a short rotation of 10 - 15 years, there may be one early cleaning thinning at 3 - 4 years old to remove malformed trees, or no thinning at all. Where both saw logs and pulpwood are being produced, a heavy thinning at 10 years for pulpwood may leave an open crop for logs saw harvested during the second thinning at 17 years. The tree can be effectively tapped for oleoresins from when it is 10 years old and has a bole diameter of at least 20 cm. An average of 25 g per tree per day of oleoresins can be tapped. The tree is rated as moderately fire resistant. Can be attacked by termites.