Source: WUNC, 9/28/21


The sun sets between the longleaf pines of the Weymouth Woods Nature Preserve in Southern Pines on Sept. 23, 2021. The longleaf pine is an iconic tree species in North Carolina. It once covered 90 million acres across the Southeastern U.S. But today, less than 5 million acres remain. For decades, the tree was chopped down for timber. It was also used for its resin, which coated the hulls of 18th-century ships and drove the shipbuilding economy.

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