strange question about black pine needles

[Joe Dupre']

I'm really new to black pines and I recently got a half dozen seedlings from Musser Forests. About half of them have obvious buds and tiny branches down low. Something caught my eye and has me curious. As far as I can tell, one pair of needles emerge from the trunk at any given location. Looking closely, it appears, in a few places, two pairs of needles exit from one place on the trunk. Is this an indication of a potential future bud?

 

[Shibui]

Not entirely sure what you are seeing.
It is possible the multi needles could be coming from very tiny shoots? Usually those smaller shoots are readily visible as tiny shoots though. Worth noting that most small shoots way back on the stems don't amount to anything. While the apex is strong they are suppressed and gradually die off as not needed while there's a strong apical shoot.

 

[Joe Dupre']

Not entirely sure what you are seeing.
It is possible the multi needles could be coming from very tiny shoots? Usually those smaller shoots are readily visible as tiny shoots though. Worth noting that most small shoots way back on the stems don't amount to anything. While the apex is strong they are suppressed and gradually die off as not needed while there's a strong apical shoot.

Yes, my hunch is multiple needles coming from tiny shoots. There's one area, where under a magnifying glass, I can see tiny "buds" about half the size of a grain of sand. Hopefully they will enlarge after candle cutting, warmer temps and feeding.