PINACEAE (Pine Family)
Plants trees, monoecious, evergreen, resinous. Leaves alternate
or whorled, flattened and linear, or if needlelike then in fascicles of 2–5.
Megastrobili conelike, woody, dehiscent. Seeds winged [lacking wings
elsewhere], 0.8–3.0 cm long (including the wing), the wing usually longer than
the rest of the seed. About 27 genera, about 130 species, nearly worldwide, but
most diverse in temperate regions.
Ten genera, about 200 species. North America, Central America,
Europe, Asia, Africa, Pacific Islands.
In addition to the Pinus and Tsuga, several other
genera of Pinaceae are cultivated in Missouri and may persist around old
homesites. These include the larches (Larix), spruces (Picea),
firs (Abies), true cedars (Cedrus), and Douglas firs (Pseudotsuga).