In case you wondered why the growing bud on a longleaf pine is called a candle:

This nine foot loblolly is about 3 years old,
as you can see since John S. Quarterman can reach 8 feet high and it’s a foot higher than that:

This ten foot slash is also about 3 years old:

This longleaf is only 2 years old, and already 5 feet tall:

Pictures by Gretchen Quarterman, 19 April 2010, Lowndes County, Georgia.