Pinus parviflora, also known as Japanese white pine, is a pine in the white pine group, Pinus subgenus Strobus, native to Japan.
It is a coniferous evergreen tree, growing to 15âÂÂ25 m (rarely to 30 m) in height, forming a wide, dense, conical crown. The leaves are needle-like, in bundles of five, with a length of 3âÂÂ7 cm. The cones are 4âÂÂ8 cm long, with broad, rounded scales; the seeds are 7âÂÂ10 mm long, with a vestigial 3âÂÂ10 mm wing.
Two varieties are usually accepted; var. parviflora in southern Japan, and var. pentaphylla (Mayr) A.Henry in northern Japan. The second variety was first described as a separate species Pinus pentaphylla by Heinrich Mayr in 1890, but in reducing it to the rank of variety in 1910, Augustine Henry pointed out that the differences cited by Mayr between the two were minimal and inconsistent, with much overlap.
At higher altitudes in northern Japan, it can occur with the related high altutude species Pinus pumila, and sometimes produces hybrids with it; these are known as Pinus àhakkodensis Makino, named after the Hakkà Âda Mountains where it was first found.
The Latin specific epithet parviflora means "with small flowers".
It is a popular tree for bonsai, and is also grown as an ornamental tree in parks and gardens. The cultivars 'Adcock's Dwarf' and 'Bonnie Bergman' have gained the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit.