The largest tree on our Columbia, Missouri, property is an eastern white pine that rises next to the driveway. Offering shade and beauty, the stately pine also has its disadvantages; since it is close to the garage, its shed needles clog the underlying gutters each fall and the tree's small pollen cones are dropped on the driveway, vehicles and walkways in the spring.
Monoecious, pines harbor both male and female cones. The large, woody "pine cones" that we see high in the tree or that collect at its base are remnants of the female "seed cones." while the small, soft "pollen cones" drop from the tree and deteriorate after releasing pollen in the spring. More properly called microsporangiate strobili, these male cones develop in clusters just behind the new needle bundles and their numbers vary widely from year to year.
Yesterday, when we returned from Colorado, we found drifts of the tiny pollen cones on our driveway, blown by the wind against the garage door and retaining wall. As I discovered this morning, they amounted to a heaping wheelbarrow's worth and have since been relocated to our compost bin.
Monoecious, pines harbor both male and female cones. The large, woody "pine cones" that we see high in the tree or that collect at its base are remnants of the female "seed cones." while the small, soft "pollen cones" drop from the tree and deteriorate after releasing pollen in the spring. More properly called microsporangiate strobili, these male cones develop in clusters just behind the new needle bundles and their numbers vary widely from year to year.
Yesterday, when we returned from Colorado, we found drifts of the tiny pollen cones on our driveway, blown by the wind against the garage door and retaining wall. As I discovered this morning, they amounted to a heaping wheelbarrow's worth and have since been relocated to our compost bin.
