Posted by David Snyder on March 24, 2000 at 23:54:35:
I've been following the deck discussion over the last several days but I must of missed what prompted your response about pitch pine. So pardon me if this comment is off the mark. Pitch pine is also the name of pine tree which grows abundantly on the east coast of North America, the Latin name is Pinus rigida. It is a common tree in NJ where I live. Although it can grow as tall as 20 meters, it is more often a rather scragly tree, gnarled and not having much of a straight trunk. For this reason it is not used for lumber (at least as far as I'm aware). It was used extensively for making pitch and charcoal. I doubt it ever was use for decking. Sorry about the botany lesson, but it's my profession and I just can't keep quiet...