General: Slash pine (Pinus elliottii) is one of the hard yellow pines indigenous to southeastern United States. The slash pine is a medium to large tree that reaches heights of 80' to 100' tall. It has a round top and "brooms" of needles at the ends of the branches. Its’ needles may be 5" to 11" long and are borne 2 to 3 to a fascicle. The orange-brown bark is scaly with plates. It is durable and hard, nearly equivalent to that of longleaf pine (Pinus palustrus). It has thick, plate-like bark with an extensive root system, and a moderate taproot. Its cones measure 8-16 cm (3 – 6 inches) long, and are a glossy brown color. And the cone scales are thin with fine prickles

Pinus elliottii var. elliottii is found in the Coastal Plain of north and Central Florida. Whereas, the Southern slash pine or Pinus elliottii var,. densa is found in South Florida, West Indies, Guatemala, and Honduras in Central America.

The slash pine is commonly associated with the loblolly pine (Pinus taeda); however, the length and number of needles per fascicle, cones, and bark can be used to differentiate them.

Distribution: The slash pine can be found on coastal plains throughout the Indian River Lagoon area, and in freshwater upland areas. It occurs on coastal plains from South Carolina to Central Florida, and west to Louisiana. The Pinus elliottii occurs from Central Florida through South Florida and the Florida Keys. Slash pine was introduced in Kentucky, Virginia and eastern Texas in the 1900's, and now reproduces naturally within these states.

Habitat: The climate within the natural range of slash pine is warm and humid, and it likes wet summers, drier falls and springs. It grows well with rainfall averages about 1270 mm (50 in) per year, and summer rains of 13 mm (0.5 in) or more occur about four times per month. The mean annual temperature in the slash pine region is 17° C (63° F), with extremes of 41° C (106° F) and -18° C (0° F), and a growing season of 250 days. The slash Pine grows well on a variety of acidic soils in full sun or partial shade. It does poorly in basic soil (high pH) and is not recommended for irrigation water has a high pH. Once established, it is more tolerant of wet sites than most other pines and is moderately salt-tolerant. It is not highly drought-tolerant, but more so than most other pines. The horizontal branches break easily in ice storms. It is not recommended to plant the tree too close to high traffic areas, since shaded lower branches, die and drop, as the tree grows taller. This is dangerous because branches could fall on people or vehicles, unless there is a regular maintenance plan to remove them.