{"id":5357,"date":"2018-12-23T09:20:31","date_gmt":"2018-12-23T09:20:31","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blogs.reading.ac.uk\/crg\/?p=5357"},"modified":"2018-12-23T09:20:31","modified_gmt":"2018-12-23T09:20:31","slug":"adventbotany-2018-day-23-i-met-tunnicliffe-in-a-forest-of-conifers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/research.reading.ac.uk\/herbarium\/2018\/12\/23\/adventbotany-2018-day-23-i-met-tunnicliffe-in-a-forest-of-conifers\/","title":{"rendered":"#AdventBotany 2018, Day 23: I met Tunnicliffe in a forest of Conifers"},"content":{"rendered":"

by Claire Smith<\/a><\/h1>\n
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Photo \u00a9 Claire Smith<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

As children I\u2019m sure we\u2019ve all sprinkled far too much glitter onto a pine cone and hung it from the Christmas tree\u2026 but have you ever wondered where your festive pine cones come from?<\/p>\n

Well, you could have a look through this Forestry Commission 1966 \u201cKnow Your Conifers\u201d booklet<\/a> with cover art by Charles Tunnicliffe. If you\u2019d prefer a paper version to the PDF, The MERL have both the 1966 and 1970 editions in their library<\/a>. You can phone the The MERL on 0118 378 8660 if you\u2019d like to make an appointment to have a look. Their collections also include further examples of Tunnicliffe\u2019s artwork, including the seasonal \u201cWhat to Look For\u2026\u201d Ladybird books.<\/p>\n

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Image Crown Copyright, courtesy Forestry Commission (1966), licensed under the Open Government Licence from https:\/\/www.forestresearch.gov.uk\/<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Most of the pine cones sold for crafting in the UK are harvested from Pinus nigra <\/i>var. austriaca<\/i> – The Austrian Pine. The cones take around two and a half years to reach maturity and take on the open shape that allows their seeds to be wind-dispersed during the winter. Austrian Pine is commonly harvested for construction lumber and pulpwood for making paper. It takes between 15 and 40 years for trees to reach sufficient maturity, and although large seed crops are only produced at 2\u20135 year intervals, that\u2019s still a lot of cones to decorate!<\/p>\n

So how about some cones that you don\u2019t need to decorate?<\/p>\n

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Herbarium specimens of Picea likiangensis<\/i> at RNG<\/b><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

These Herbarium specimens are the mature cones of Picea likiangensis, <\/i>the likiang spruce. If you\u2019re not planning a trip to Bhutan or China to see it you could plant one in your garden (if you\u2019ve got room for a 25m tall tree), and the cones as they develop are a beautiful shade of pink.<\/p>\n

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Developing cones of the likiang spruce \u00a9 Kerry D. Woods (flickr.com)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

If you don\u2019t have space to grow a 25m tall tree just for the cones, how about a pine cone that could easily take the place of a Christmas tree? Pinus coulteri is commonly known as the big-cone pine, because the cones are (wait for it\u2026) very big! It\u2019s also called the “widowmaker”, as the cones can weigh several kilograms and are rather spiky.<\/p>\n

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A single cone if Pinus coulteri<\/i> from the RNG<\/b> collection<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

If you don\u2019t want to decorate with pine cones, you could always eat them. Well, not the whole thing, unless you\u2019re a squirrel, but the seeds of the Italian stone pine (P. pinea<\/i>) or the Korean pine (P. koraiensis<\/i>) are the varieties most commonly grown commercially to produce pine nuts. If you have any sprouts left over from your Christmas dinner you could try out this recipe for sprouts with bacon and pine nuts<\/a>, or this one for sprouts, pine nuts and blue cheese<\/a>.<\/p>\n

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Not so much Son of Man as Daughter of Pine\u2026 with apologies to Magritte!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

In America the pine nut is an important food for a number of Native American peoples, and they\u2019re collected from the Pinyon pine (Pinus edulis<\/i>). In the video below Shanna Yazzie, a Navajo from Cameron, Arizona, show us how they\u2019re traditionally picked, prepared and enjoyed.<\/p>\n