Pine cones grow on pine trees. They are how pine trees reproduce, or, in other words, make more trees. Usually, male and female pine cones are born on the same tree. Typically, the male cones, which produce pollen, are located on the lower branches of the tree. This is to prevent the pollen from falling on the female cones of the same tree.
When you imagine a pine cone, you are probably imagining a female pine cone with woody, spirally scales. This is because male pine cones are much smaller and live only for a short length of time, usually in the spring. Male pine cones do not make the hard-shelled woody case like the female pine cones do. They are soft and spongy.
Female pine cones use their woody structure to keep their seeds safe. They keep their seeds safe so the seeds can hopefully be pollinated and grow. Each female pine cone has numerous spirally arranged scales, with two seeds on each fertile scale.
Male pine cones produce pollen, which is like a powder. The male cones release their pollen, which is carried around the air by blowing wind, and hopefully to another female pine cone on a different pine tree. If the pollen reaches a female pine cone, this process is called pollination.
After pollination, and as time passes (usually about two to three years), the pollinated pine seeds grow and eventually peel loose and off of the cone and fall to the ground. If a good spot for the seed is available, a new pine tree will grow! However, there are many ways fertilized pine seeds can move from place to place.
