Matt I've always heard that folks in zone 5 and lower should plant in the fall, and zone 6 up plant in the Spring. Like you, I've also heard always plant pines in late winter/early Spring. I've heard alot of reasons for both arguments and am not sure who's right. That being said the state nurseries in this area won't start shipping until December so that makes me think late winter/early Spring is the way to go for my area.
We are 35 miles north of Nashville, in what I think is zone 6b. Nashville is probably zone 7, but 15 miles north of Nashville you go up a steep ridge for a mile or two and come up out of the enormous bowl that covers several states called the Cumberland Basin. As close as we are to Nashville the trees still leaf out a couple weeks later here, grass comes out of dormancy a couple weeks later, and in general the weather is a couple weeks "behind" Nashville. If it snows here and in Nashville, the snow might melt in one day in Nashville but linger for a few days here. Guess it's just the difference in being in the Cumberland Basin and above the Rim.
We planted some small pin oaks, river birch, bald cypress, and black tupelo (black gum) at our house 4 years ago. It's amazing how big the pin oaks and river birches have already gotten. The black tupelos & bald cypress' are very healthy but have not grown nearly as fast. I'm surprised the bald cypress haven't grown faster, as they are planted on a creek bank. At our land we are going to keep 4 or 5 acres in pasture, and I intend for all the rest to eventually be wooded. I've done a little "direct seeding" of my own last fall and over the winter. Not very scientific but I've been tossing Virginia and Loblolly pine cones, hickory nuts, black walnuts, and pecans all over the reforest areas. Some will probably take root
