Yup all same trees. The smaller bark, cones and needle pic were off a limb that broke off. The other bark was of a trunk.
I’d have to check their native range. We aren’t wetlands either. I sell a fair amount of them, but pretty sure they aren’t growing wild around here. I sell more loblolly, but mostly because they are more readily available and the name is more recognized.
Loblolly are definitely more available in the nursery trade that most other types. In my region anyway. White pine are marginal, but easy enough to get. Ponderosa are fine, but getting them is a logistical challenge. Vanderwolf and Cesarini Blue are personal favorites of mine. The ice storms are equally destructive to them all, unfortunately.
I tried counting the number of needles per fascicle (fancy word for a tuft of needles). Loblolly and slash, I've heard, can cross pollenate and have two needles per tuft. Around my neck of the woods we lump them together and just distinguish them our native long leaf pines (which have three needle per tuft). It's not uncommon to find needles that fit partial loblolly and partial slash traits around here. That's about as much as I've learned to distinguish between pine trees. My guess for this one would be a black pine. Sorry to stay away so long, they've had me hopping lately.
This was what I was thinking of. Also called Tooth ache tree. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zanthoxylum_clava-herculis Sometimes folks call this Hercules Club https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aralia_spinosa
You may be right! I've never heard of that one before, I'm decent with native trees but invasives throw me for a loop!