How to Harvest Red Pine Cones

Pick red pine cones before they open.

Female red pine cones take two years to fully mature from tiny green buds to mature, 2-inch brown cones. Once they mature, they are fertilized in early summer by the tree's red cones. Once fertilized, the cone will continue to grow until it is finally ripe in autumn. To obtain the red pine cones, you must harvest the female cones before they are released and carried away by the wind sometime between October and November.

Things You'll Need

• Paper bag
• Tray
• Kiln

Instructions

1. Pull the brown, closed pine cones off the tree. The middle third of the red pine's crown produces the best cones.

2. Place the red pine cones in a paper bag, close it and leave it on a sunny windowsill. Check the bag periodically. The cone will open and drop its seeds sometime between October and November. Or, you may force the pine cones to open. Place the pine cones on a tray and then bake them in a kiln at 130 degrees Fahrenheit for nine hours.

3. Collect the red pine seeds from the bottom of the bag or tray.

Tips & Warnings

• Red pine cone seeds can be planted immediately after collection. If you intend to plant the seeds the following spring, they must first be cold stratified for two months to break their dormancy.

References

• Rook.org: Pinus Resinosa
• U.S. Department of Agriculture: Red Pine
• U.S. Forest Service: Pinus Resinosa
• Brandeis University Life Sciences: Pine