Overcrowded young stands of white pine can
be thinned by removing all the tips on some trees
and leaving an adequate number of well developed trees evenly distributed over the area.
This practice can be applied in natural stands
that are too thick, or in areas which were planted
for Christmas trees, but were not marketed.
Consult your local county ranger for a
recommendation on the need for thinning.
White pine can be damaged if tipping is done
improperly. Be sure to follow the above
guidelines. Ask a contractor for references
before selling your tips. Check on the contractor
periodically to be sure guidelines are being
followed. Correct tipping practices remove the
lateral branches of white pine which would die
back in a few years anyway. By leaving the
current year's growth on dominant branches, the
same trees can be tipped annually for up to three
years.
FROM
One tree could produce
20 pounds of tips.
The income from selling white pine tips
will more than pay for the cost of planting
the trees. When done properly a
substantial income can be gained at an
early age, and a well- managed stand of
white pine will remain to produce timber
in future years.
White pine can be damaged if
tipping is done improperly.
North Carolina Department of
Environment, Health and Natural Resources
DEHNR
James B. Hunt Jr., Governor
5000 copies of this brochure were printed at a cost of $625.00, or .12 each.
If harvesting is done properly,
the same trees can produce tips
for at least three years.
In recent years, a very good market
has developed in North Carolina for
roping and wreaths made from freshly
cut branch tips from eastern white
pine. The scent and appearance of
fresh evergreens is popular during the
Christmas season. Wreaths and
roping made from white pine tips are
shipped all along the east coast and as
far west as Chicago and St. Louis.
The scent and appearance of fresh evergreens is
popular during the Christmas season.
White pine tips are the ends of lower branches of
young white pine trees that have been cut for use as
greenery. On healthy trees, these tips usually have
stem diameters of between 1/4 and 1/2 inches and
are 10 to 18 inches long. A fast-growing, opengrown white pine that is seven to 10 years old may
yield approximately 15 to 20 pounds of tips per year
for at least three years. Once the tips are cut, they
are sent immediately to greenery companies where
they are placed in cold storage. The greenery
companies make garland (roping) and wreaths with
the freshly cut tips. If white pine tips are harvested
properly, the trees are not damaged and there is no
significant loss of growth.
Tipping season begins in mid to late October and
runs until December. It is best to wait until after
the old needles shed, usually by mid October. Tips
must not be collected until the greenery companies
are ready to make roping. White pines should be at
least seven years old, and 10 to 12 feet high before
they are tipped. Trees should produce tips for at
least three years if the tipping is done correctly.
First, it is very important to leave the upper
third to half of the tree untouched. This leaves
enough foliage on the tree to protect it from growth
loss. Only the lateral branches are tipped. Second,
leave the current year's growth (terminal and first
whorl of branches) on all dominant lateral
branches. This allows the tree to be tipped several
years in a row. The quality of the next years tips
may actually improve by concentrating moisture
and nutrients into fewer branches, in much the
same way pruning apple trees can improve the size
and quality of the fruit.
Lateral tips less than
10 inches long and 1/4
inch diameter should be
left on the tree. Tips
should not be longer
than 18 inches and
should not contain side
branches.
When tips are
collected, they should
be placed in burlap or
other porous bags to
allow air circulation.
Never place tips in plastic bags or stack bags and
do not leave bags in open sunlight. This allows the
tips to heat and turn brown in a matter of hours. It
is best to transport tips to market the same day they
are collected or the following morning. If this is not
possible, the tips should be refrigerated until they are
sold.
When tipping, leave the terminal
and first whorl of branches on
all the dominant lateral
branches, as show here.
Currently, the best market for white pine tips is
from Avery to Surry Counties in the northern
mountains of North Carolina. This market could
easily expand throughout the natural range of
Eastern White Pine in North Carolina, which
extends throughout the mountains from the
Virginia border to Henderson and Transylvania
counties and west to Tennessee.
There are two basic ways to market tips:
On the tree: The land owner sells the rights to the
tips to a contractor. The landowner has no labor
involved. The contractor collects the tips and pays
the landowner a price per pound for what is
collected.
Tips delivered: The landowner collects the tips
and transports them to a greenery company. Tips
delivered are worth four to five times as much as
tips on the tree.
The amount of tips produced per acre varies widely
depending on the size and condition of the trees.
While one tree could produce as much as 20
pounds of tips, the average per tree will probably be
less than 10 pounds. Production of 2,000 pounds
per acre would be feasible for 10-year-old trees.