A novel way to grow a pine

My daughter sent this to me from Facebook and will involve my young grand daughter trying to grow it. Perhaps some of you might like to give it a go.

 

That looks cute! And a good way to encourage young gardeners

 

I might try it myself but will go and hunt for a Scots pine cone to use.

 

We grew one from seed, Sheal we just got a seed from a cone planted it in some compost and it grew then we planted into garden

 

Oh, I will try that next time I go up in the hills and find a pine cone. Guess a fresh fallen one is best.

 

I would like to try it with a Cedar of Lebanon cone! Will have to look out for one on my walks with the dog.

 

Yes, they're best @Victoria. Those that are open may have already lost their seeds, but one that hasn't can be started off on a sunny window ledge to dry it out and start to open.

 

Or in my case Sheal on a sunny patio.

 

Has anyone noticed pine cones open and close with the humidity
So if its closed it might well have been open a few days/ weeks earlier.
Could be a few seeds still in it though.

As for cedar of lebanon they are designed to fall apart on the tree when ripe, the ones you find whole on the ground might well contain viable seeds though, I have grown plants from those cones but I dont think the cone would hold together, being not so woody as a pine cone.

 

Yes.

 

Sorry just saying
What I mean is when its open it sheds its seed, so an old cone might well not contain any seed.

 

Sorry Pete, just couldn't resist a direct honest answer! I had a bowl of cones as decoration many moons ago and noticed they opened and closed with temperatures/moisture, quite weird actually. Also wired and hung some as Christmas decorations and still have some in decorations but they stay open all the time here, even in the loft.

 

Pinecone and a bit of seaweed.
Best way of forecasting the weather

 

Probably more reliable than most forecasts. I'll add 'old bones' (still attached to the body)!

 

Nope, you should go for the scientifically proven method. Hang a piece of string somewhere where you can see it. If the string is wet, it's raining. If it's dry, it's not raining. If it's horizontal, it's windy.