When you read that only certain tree species are expected to be found in a specific region, this is a general guide. Some species will be found outside their expected range. One such species, uncovered in the Atlanta area, is the spruce pine, Pinus glabra. It is also known as cedar pine. I discovered a group growing on the campus where I work near Douglasville, Georgia and another one in Mableton, Georgia. These were interesting finds, above their normal range.
Characteristics of the spruce pine are interesting. The form of young trees is broadly pyramidal, and crowns of older trees appear open and irregular. Trees are often trimmed for Christmas tree use. Trees grow straight and branches spread 
horizontally, and droop somewhat. The tree is more tolerant of shade than most pines, and lower limbs die and drop more quickly in the shady conditions.
Young trees have smooth, gray bark which quickly becomes thin, brown and platy. This bark develops peeling scales and ridges as it matures, with the trunk’s many lower limbs and scales appearing much like a redcedar and the more mature ridges appearing more like an oak or spruce. This texture of the bark gives the tree its name. Upper branches retain the smooth, gray appearance of young trees.
The tree’s glossy, dark needles are slender, and soft and twisted. They are not twisted with each other, but twisted individually. They are only 1 ½ to 4 inches long, and appear in fascicle bundles of 2. The short needles give the tree a softer texture than most pines. Needles remain on the tree for up to three seasons.
Trees begin producing cones in about 10 years. Pollen cones are less than 1/2 inch long, and are produced on separate and lower branches from female ones. Female cones are reddish-brown when mature, and turn gray with age. They are broadly egg-shaped, measuring only 2 to 3 1/2 inches long. They grow from the branch 
with little or no stem, drooping downward. Mature cones open when dry, and release seeds with wings. These seeds are dispersed by the wind.
While the spruce pine is one of the most seldom seen pines in southeastern North America, it is one of the area’s larger growing pines. Its natural range extends from northwest Florida to the middle of Georgia, Alabama and Mississippi, and includes southeastern South Carolina and Louisiana. The tree is full grown at 60 to 75 years, and it can grow to 125 feet tall with a trunk 4 feet in diameter. It is most often found 90 to 100 feet tall, with a trunk less than 3 feet in diameter. Trunks self-prune to 50 feet high. Spruce pines are tolerant of 
shade, and they grow best in moist to wet bottom land soils that are acidic, and coarse to medium in texture. They grow well in poorly drained areas. Though the tree has a deep taproot and deep laterals about 30 inches below the surface, it has low drought tolerance. It is cold hardy to 2 degrees F, preferring long and hot, humid summers such as are common in coastal areas of the Southeast. The wood of the spruce pine has fiber only 2/3 as long as similar pines, and it has few resin canals. It is brittle and not well suited for commercial timber use. It is used on occasion for lumber and pulpwood, and most frequently as a landscape tree.
The spruce pine is easily recognized, but it 
is seldom seen even within its natural range. Finding this tree where I work, so far from its natural range, was interesting.
