Pollen cones on juniper.

[Mike Corazzi]

Good? Bad? Indifferent?

 

[KikurageOtomo]

Personally I suspect you'd do more damage to the foliage trying to meticulously remove each small pollen cone, at least proportionate to the energy consumed producing the cones.

 

[Eckhoffw]

Good. Pollinate the world.

 

[Lorax7]

Good for propagation of the species, bad for my allergies.

 

[Mike Corazzi]

They're fun to flip.

 

[Esolin]

Indifferent. I let a tree do its thing and consider big cone blooms as a sign of health.

 

[Crazy Diamond]

Good. Pollinate the world.

True words to live by.

 

[Dragon60]

Use them to make some gin!

 

[Crazy Diamond]

Use them to make some gin!

Gin is made with the female juniper cones I think, also not all juniper species are suitable for it

 

[Lorax7]

Gin is made with the female juniper cones I think, also not all juniper species are suitable for it

I’m pretty sure it’s made with the berries, not the cones.

 

[Crazy Diamond]

I’m pretty sure it’s made with the berries, not the cones.

Female cones are the "berries" they are not real berries so I dont call them that

 

[Wires_Guy_wires]

Indifferent. I let a tree do its thing and consider big cone blooms as a sign of health.

I've read and heard the exact opposite! That doesn't mean either of those things is right..
Some say it's a stress survival response, some say it's a sign of vigor. I say it's annoying, because people love thinking I've pinched my junipers, while it was just the cones dropping off.

 

[Lorax7]

I've read and heard the exact opposite! That doesn't mean either of those things is right..
Some say it's a stress survival response, some say it's a sign of vigor.

It’s probably both. From an evolutionary perspective, the best times for tree sex are:

1. When the tree is doing extremely well and has energy to spare and, thus, can afford to allocate resources to reproductive activity without consequence for the tree’s survival.
2. When the tree is on the verge of death and propagating the species before its impending doom is the optimal survival strategy for its kind.

 

[Esolin]

It’s probably both. From an evolutionary perspective, the best times for tree sex are:

1. When the tree is doing extremely well and has energy to spare and, thus, can afford to allocate resources to reproductive activity without consequence for the tree’s survival.
2. When the tree is on the verge of death and propagating the species before its impending doom is the optimal survival strategy for its kind.

I agree with this. It could be either, but if you're observant you can generally tell if your juniper is struggling (sickly color/not producing much if any growth in a season). If it's adding cones on top of decent seasonal growth and has good color, it's most likely healthy and happy. If you did heavy work to a juniper, it then didn't grow or do much all season, and then pushed a major cone bloom, okay yeah, maybe it's really stressed and dying. You always gotta consider more than one indicator when assessing health.

 

[Wires_Guy_wires]

It’s probably both. From an evolutionary perspective, the best times for tree sex are:

1. When the tree is doing extremely well and has energy to spare and, thus, can afford to allocate resources to reproductive activity without consequence for the tree’s survival.
2. When the tree is on the verge of death and propagating the species before its impending doom is the optimal survival strategy for its kind.

I always love these statements for some reason. Basically it comes down to: the best time to have sex is when you're not dead, yet.
I can agree with that!

Maybe to add to the discussion: I've found that unhealthy trees tend to drop their pollen cones and their fruits. So if something is on the verge of death, a full flowering cycle might be a sign that it's getting well again.

 

[Crazy Diamond]

Yes, ive seen cases like that, an old Orange tree giving all his last resources to make the biggest orange crop of his life and then dying short after

 

[Esolin]

I think it can also depend on the juniper species. Nana procumbens for example, don't get cones unless they push mature foliage, and to do that they often need to be rootbound and forced to grow slower. So perhaps for them at bit of stress is required. But I have two rocky mountain junipers of the same cultivar. One I've been pampering and one I've been neglecting. The pampered one is bushy, full of cones and a healthy color. The neglected one has no cones and is shedding its older foliage for the year to balance its limited energy. I also have a Tam juniper I've been neglecting and it's only got a few tufts of cones here and there, far less than it's had in past years when it got more water and fert. Based on my experiences, I'd say cones are usually a sign of health, except in those rare 'last hurrah' cases as mentioned.