My brother and his wife came up to Pennsylvania from Florida for a few days
and brought me and my wife a gift. This is one large HUGE pine cone. I never
seen anything like this and I lived in Georgia for 5 years. This is over 12" tall
and around 7" wide and its not even open yet. It weights 7.85lbs. I would not
want one of these coming down on my head. Sorry about the bad tree pictures
but I took a picture of a picture off there phone. The hand drawing is what his
wife said the needles look like. So... What do I have ?
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/39553/Dsc06533.jpg?easyrotate_cache=1503861031)
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/39553/Dsc06532.jpg?easyrotate_cache=1503861620)
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/39553/Dsc06534.jpg?easyrotate_cache=1503861658)
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/39553/Dsc06536.jpg?easyrotate_cache=1503861690)
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/39553/DSC06537.JPG?easyrotate_cache=1503861732)
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/39553/Dsc06530.jpg?easyrotate_cache=1503861806)
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/39553/Dsc06531.jpg?easyrotate_cache=1503861831)
Maybe I found it...
Araucaria pine cone, it's been reported to kill people when falling.
Technically its not a pine tree, so its not a pine cone.
Araucaria is a genus of evergreen coniferous trees in the family Araucariaceae.
It is found naturally in south-east Queensland Australia
The cones can weigh as much as 40 lbs.
Natural populations of this species have been reduced in extent and abundance
through exploitation for its timber,
The seeds taste like chestnuts and can be made into bread.
The Bunya nuts are still sold as a regular food item in grocery stalls and street-side
stalls around rural southern Queensland.
When the nuts are boiled in water, the water turns red, making a flavoursome tea.
The trees live for about 500 years.
Yup, that's the cone from a Bunya Pine, Araucaria bidwillii.
It's related to the Norfolk Island pine and Monkey puzzle trees.
I was going to say Monkey Puzzle. They are native to Chile. I climbed one to tie a rope off to a few years ago to ensure that it fell where we wanted it to. It was like climbing a giant sandspur. I was leaking from several spots after that endeavor. It saws a lot like SYP but has a whorl of knots similar to white pine.
How many monkey puzzle cones do you want? I just inherited 2 huge trees. The "leaves" are like concertina wire.
If it's legal to do so then I would be listing them for sell on E-bay.
People up this way would pay BIG bucks for such items.
I don't know if you could ship things with seeds in them
across state lines.
I just took a peek.
The highest price cone on E-bay right now is $90.00
Each....
What does it take to sprout one?
Don't figure I'll be around 5 centuries to see one mature. How long before they start dropping those things on passers-by?
I know to never park anywhere near one. When you hear those bowling ball cones drop, run. They hit the branches like a pinball machine and you never know where they will land. The leaves are about 2-3 ft long and have razor sharp spines the whole length.
Y'all ain't foolin' me. That there's a pineapple. ;D
Last one we weighed was 8 pounds.
Quote from: grouch on August 28, 2017, 07:30:02 PM
What does it take to sprout one?
Don't figure I'll be around 5 centuries to see one mature. How long before they start dropping those things on passers-by?
I let you know after I plant one.
couldn't imagine seeing the squirrel that carries them away ;D
It sure would be a big ol woodchuck, eh coxy? They're all kinda rat looking critters anyways!
Quote from: Kbeitz on August 29, 2017, 06:37:40 PM
Quote from: grouch on August 28, 2017, 07:30:02 PM
What does it take to sprout one?
Don't figure I'll be around 5 centuries to see one mature. How long before they start dropping those things on passers-by?
I let you know after I plant one.
Extracting the seed could be a chore