The Whitebark Pine Ecosystem Foundation (WPEF) believes the endangered whitebark pine, Pinus albicaulis Engelm, can make a recovery and it is moving into a new stage of promotion, growth and diversity in its battle to save one of Canada’s most iconic trees.
Randy Moody, President of WPEF, described the whitebark pine as “The tree always photographed with the mountains in background.”
Native to BC and Alberta, the whitebark pine has a close relationship with Clark’s nutcracker (sometimes referred to as Clark’s crow or woodpecker crow) and the grizzly bear. “Historically, the tree has only grown where the nutcracker put it.” The cones have a purple cast making it easy to distinguish from the similar looking limber pine.
The tree is not recommended as a landscape tree because of its slow growth rate but it could be the perfect tree for challenging sites in urban areas with its unique bark for winter interest, strong wildlife component and its ability to tolerate diverse soil types.
Moody explained although the tree is now only found in challenging locations, this is due to the disease and competition. The tree will tolerate and thrive in diverse conditions.
What the tree doesn’t tolerate is white pine blister rust and as a non-economic species it didn’t attract the same level of funding as white pine. Much of the group’s current funds are private sponsorship from surprising sources like hydro, pipelines and Americans. But they are also supported by wildlife organizations and governments.
“Support is growing,” said Moody. “People want to get involved. We used to get most of our support from the US. Now it is coming from far flung places. People want to get involved. There is a shift in awareness. People used to always confuse the whitebark pine with the eastern white pine but it is now known for its presence in ski areas.”
The group is adopting methods similar to the successful programs run by the Canadian Chestnut Council, testing many methods for recovery at the same tijme. “We’re adopting a multipronged approach,” said Moody.
Blister rust is the primary reason for the tree’s demise and searches in the US have found no native trees with resistance to the blight. The quest is now for trees with a level of tolerance. These tend to be bushy trees; after shedding infected branches, they fill out and form clumps. With an expected bumper crop of seeds in 2018, seed collection is being organized for nursery growing and selective breeding. They also plan to sell seedlings to interested groups. (The priority is for ecological plantings but they will consider urban planting if it will help increase awareness for this endangered species.)
Michael Murray also with WPEF explained the seed will be collected from the healthiest trees their dedicated volunteers can find. “Safety and technical aspects are a challenge with volunteers.”
“Tolerance would develop in the native population at some point. We are trying to speed up the process,” said Moody.
There is a great many gaps in our knowledge of white bark pine and its decline. At this point, the group is working on a number of small projects to determine which is most cost effective and feasible including the harvest of the healthiest seed sources and planting of seedlings that will hopefully be sold in a couple years. At this time, they have no seedlings. They are also testing for white pine blister rust resistance and tolerance, and grafting the best plant material, and crossing it for greater tolerance.
“We expect a good cone supply this year!”