Sara, I have cones on my tree and it's about 25 years plus. If you are ever in Astoria, Oregon, there is a magnificent Sciadopity's located on the corner of 17th and Franklin and loaded with cones.

Thanks, zephyrgal - when did yours first cone?

Will be driving from Silverton OR to Olympia WA next month to get to the ACS Regional meeting but I don't think that takes us through or near Astoria. If you happen to be there and can snap a photo, I'd love to see it!

Sara

Sara, hope this link works from a previous post with a photo of the Astoria tree. You could take a side trip up the coast from Silverton on your way to Olympia and visit my yard in Wheeler then continue on 101 through Astoria and all the way up the Washington coast to your destination. It is a beautiful drive and worth the sidebar. We will be putting our property up for sale and would love to have coneheads visit and buy it. It is income property as well! http://forums.gardenweb.com/forums/load/conif/msg0321181715447.html

Wow that tree is gorgeous, I would love to see it. We have to do a photo shoot at South Seattle Community College on the way to Olympia (not really on the way!) as it was just accepted as an ACS Reference Garden, and then get to Olympia by early afternoon so we won't have time to make that coastal drive, which is too bad as I'd love to visit (but I have my hands full down here so am not a likely purchaser!)

Sara

This is much easier...

Here is a link that might be useful: Umbrella pine cones

Oh too bad about the visit, err, lack of. If you search my name on here you can find other posts with photos of our yard and cabins that incur the income. FWIW, it's a beautiful setting and worthy of a conifer/gardener lover.

Thx Edwin - if you just highlight zephyrgal's link and click on it, it opens! In any case it is a lovely tree and I hope I get to see it.

Sara, the westerly was so strong I didn't see the (high)light, that's why I tried to create some sunshine here in the form of a simply link...

Zephy here knows what I'm talking about...I hope ;0)

Don't mean to discourage visits to wonderful sounding gardens,but you can load up on Sciad.cones at O.G.
when you visit in Sept.Should have a few Cathaya as well
if you're interested plus loads of ripe Cup.x notabilis.The latter would be a great plant for your large garden I think.
Doug

Yes, coniferjoy/Edwin, thanks for making the link simple for people to see. By the way, how are the cuttings that I sent doing?

Ooh I will save room in my suitcase! Can't wait to visit. Jan is polishing her lenses!

Sara

Frequently produces cones in southern Britain at least, also in in e.g. Italy (pic below)

Resin

I don't know yet, I'll let you know when the uppotting time will begin, which will be in a couple of weeks from now.
I'm also very curious how they will like and how they will develop.
Is the blue mutation higher up still there?

Seems like these plants have to be pretty old to cone - those Italian trees look like they're quite mature. Doug how old are the trees at the OG?

Sara

Edwin, yes the blue mutation seems to be in various locations on the Cham. pisifera "Avenue" tree. Perhaps, one of our local GW members would like to take some cuttings as well and send/share with you. I will send new photos to you soon.

Have seen it with cones often in my area, on specimens of various sizes. Jacobson, Trees of Seattle - Second Edition (2006) designates the tree as "common" there, lists 8 sites having examples ranging in height from 28' to 58 1/2', including a church parking lot where the umbrella pine there is "Seattle's first Heritage tree, dedicated in October 1996".

Elsewhere in western WA large examples can be seen in Evergreen Park Cemetery, Everett (several trees in the older, north part) and Hulda Klager Lilac Gardens, Woodland (one north of the house, among other trees but easily found). Both sites are near I-5, the cemetery is in fact almost immediately west of the freeway and the Lilac Garden has signs to it starting on the freeway itself. Coming from the north the big copper beech near the north end of the cemetery is quite prominent.

For additional details about these and numerous other conifers of at least regionally significant size see Van Pelt, Champion Trees of Washington State (University of Washington, Seattle, 1996).

The one and only mature Sciadopytis inside of conifer garden is 'Wintergreen' at about 20'.It is multi-stemmed
and has had seed cones for at least the last 5 years.
I've been looking at this specimen for 10 yrs so would guess it was planted as 10-12 year old in about fall of 2000.Doug
Ps never forget the huge ones on a Long Island estate
tour at the 2009 ACS national meeting.....around 90' if memory serves.

Yes: I wouldn't call 20' "mature" when the species is a large tree when fully developed.

And can live to be ~1000 years old!

Resin

I think that mature often refers to 'fully developed', in this case, for example, old enough to reproduce. Senescence is another story!

Resin that is an impressive age!

Sara

A tree that grows over 60' tall is not fully developed when a third that height. Korean fir is well-known for coning when little, here where Noble fir is planted everywhere its oversize cones may some years be seen perched on the small upper branches of quite young examples also. Some grafted conifers cone well before becoming structurally mature as well, presumably because the scions retain the sexual maturity of the parent plant. Maybe sometimes the kind and condition of the root-stocks used also has an effect.

Hi, Have anyone tried to collect some cones and saw the seeds? I reckon the tree in Astoria, OR as well as the ones in Seattle and Europe must be loaded with seeds, will they be viable?
I've seen some seeds on stores online but so far didn't give it a try

I've found the seeds easy to germinate, but impossible to keep alive once they do.

Resin

Oh that's too bad, Resin. Do you mean they just show up the cotyledons and then die? May be the mixture of soil it's not the right one. The same happens to me with other conifers. It's hard to know what they need but I've learned that the more sand the better... (or at least it worked so far)

"Do you mean they just show up the cotyledons and then die?"

Yep. Or even before the cotyledons expand.

"May be the mixture of soil it's not the right one"

That could well be important; fungal diseases like Pythium are the likely culprits. So yep, well-drained, sandy soil and good ventilation is likely best.

Resin