In article , wrote...

Hi! I'm wondering if there someone who can help me to identify a gymno
sp. by its cone. I don't have any picture right now to send, but I will
soon.

My boyfriend brought it back from California state and since he doesn't
know anything about plants, he just brought back the cone and no info on
the tree or other characteristics. It looks like a Ponderosa pine (Pinus
ponderosa) cone a lot, but it is much bigger : it mesures around 30cm.
The "scales" are thick at their end, just like a piece of wood and the
"mucron" (sorry! I only know the french term) is longer and more curved.
The edges of the "scales" are also very sharp. Right now, the only
reference I have is a book on canadian trees species... I'm wondering if
southernmost specimens would make bigger cones since the growth
conditions are better?

thanks for the help!

Sounds just like Coulter pine, _Pinus coulteri_:

http://www.botanik.uni-bonn.de/conif...n/coulteri.htm
http://www.cnr.vt.edu/dendro/dendrol.../Pcoulteri.htm
http://www.nearctica.com/trees/conifer/pinus/Pcoult.htm

_Pinus sabiniana_ also has large [but smaller] cones, also with
prominent umbos [those hook-like spines] at the tips of the
scales.

http://www.parks.ci.portland.or.us/u...rees/PISA.html

The location of the source within California may help sort out
the identification.

cheers