Pinus radiata (syn. Pinus insignis), the Monterey pine, insignis pine or radiata pine, is a species of pine native to the Central Coast of California and Mexico (Guadalupe Island and Cedros island). It is an evergreen conifer in the family Pinaceae. P. radiata is a versatile, fast-growing, medium-density softwood, suitable for a wide range of uses. Its silviculture reflects a century of research, observation and practice. It is often considered a model for growers of other plantation species. It is the most widely planted pine in the world, valued for rapid growth and desirable lumber and pulp qualities. Although P. radiata is extensively cultivated as a plantation timber in many temperate parts of the world, it faces serious threats in its natural range, due to the introduction of pine pitch canker (Fusarium circinatum). Description P. radiata is a coniferous evergreen tree growing to tall in the wild, but up to in cultivation in optimum conditions, with upward pointing branches and a rounded top. The leaves ("needles") are bright green, in clusters of three (two in var. binata), slender, long and with a blunt tip. The ovulate cones are long, brown, ovoid (egg-shaped), and usually set asymmetrically on a branch, attached at an oblique angle. The bark is fissured and dark grey to brown. When not cut short by disease or harvesting, it has a lifespan of 80 to 90 years. The specific epiphet radiata refers to the cracks which radiate from the umbo of the cone scales. It is closely related to bishop pine and knobcone pine, hybridizing readily with both species; it is distinguished from the former by needles in threes (not pairs), and from both by the cones not having a sharp spine on the scales. The modern tree is vastly different from the native tree of Monterey. In plantations the tree is commonly planted at 4 square meter spacing on a wide variety of landscapes from flat to moderately steep hills. Because of selective breeding and more recently the extensive use of growth factor seedlings, forests planted since the 1990s have very straight tall trunks without the problem of twin leaders. The trees are pruned in three lifts so that the lower two-thirds of a mature tree is free of branches and hence of knots. Distribution and habitat In the United States, it is native to three very limited areas located in Santa Cruz, Monterey, and San