Pine cone art and crows

Weather changes affect my body, but I’m not here to complain about aches and pains. Did you know that the elements also affect pine cones?

Cones are produced by pine trees. The Scots pine thrived here in Ireland until 2000 years ago. The species was believed to have died out, but in 2016, researchers (Mc Geever & Mitchell) found that a small cluster of trees had survived. Those pines, in County Clare, are considered a native collection.

I have arranged fuchsia flowers, daisies, and pine cones into a mandala.

I came across hundreds of cones yesterday afternoon, and they worked their ancient magic on me.

Designed to absorb water, the scales on cones swell and close as moisture levels change around them. By opening when the weather is dry and windy, the cones release seeds to be carried away by the wind. In wet weather, seed dispersal isn’t effective, so in rain, or when the humidity is high, the scales close on the female cones to protect the seeds. When the time is right, they are carried off. Some grow into new trees.

As I arranged the mandala, two boys were having great craic speeding down the hill. Each time, they pushed a bike and a scooter back up again to repeat the process. No phones in sight, no digital devices, just physical fun and fresh air.

As you’ll hear in this short clip, the crows were communicating too!