Tree rings provide a record of radial growth throughout a tree's life, so much information can be obtained from tree rings. Many studies have been undertaken to study the relationship between tree rings and monthly temperature, but few have focused on the relationship with daily temperature. Although the phenology of stem xylem development and temperature are closely related, many studies indicate that threshold temperatures determine the beginning of cambial activity in spring, but few have attempted to explore the temperatures impacting on radial growth from tree rings. Radial growth of Huashan pine on the Huashan peaks was sensitive to climate change and was mainly limited by water supply in early summer and temperature in spring. In addition, thermal conditions were also a limited factor at this high-altitude site. In this study, tree ring chronology of Huashan pine and climate data recorded at a nearby weather station were used to investigate the relationship between radial growth of Huashan pine and daily mean temperature. The onset date, end date, duration and the cumulative temperature from different initial temperatures were calculated. Correlations between the changes in daily mean temperature over 36 years and the ring width, early-wood width, late-wood width, minimum density and maximum density were analyzed. The onset date of a specific temperature in spring significantly impacted the radial growth of Huashan pine. The onset date and duration of 3 ℃ and 8 ℃ were significantly negatively correlated with ring width, which indicated that the earlier onset date would promote growth in ring width. Early-wood width was sensitive to the onset date of 3 ℃, while late-wood width was more sensitive to the onset date of 8 ℃. However, temperatures higher than 11 ℃ limited the ring width both of early-wood and late-wood, and the most obvious temperature was 11 ℃. The end date of 10 ℃ and lower temperatures were little related to ring width. The duration of 3 ℃ and 8 ℃ were also significantly positively associated with ring width. Ring density and width responded similarly to changing temperature. These results indicated 3 ℃ was the threshold temperature for early-wood formation in spring, 8 ℃ was critical for formation of late wood, but daily temperatures higher than 11 ℃ may cause water stress, which negatively affected radial growth. Collectively, the results indicated the tree ring chronology of Huashan pine contained abundant climate information, and that threshold temperatures determined the growth of Huashan pine xylem and cambial activity. By analyzing the relationship between growth phases at different temperatures and ring characteristics, the critical temperatures influencing radial growth of Huashan pine could be identified. Though the physiological processes corresponding to the critical temperature were unclear, this study provided useful information for understanding the tree growth response to rising temperature and historical climate reconstruction.