Siberian pine (kedr)
Pinus sibirica
The pine-nut tree of the taiga: slow to start, then cones full of rich nuts that nutcrackers, chipmunks, bears and people all race for.
Hardiness: zones 2 to 6
Light: full sun
Size: about 100 ft tall, 25 ft wide
Harvest: September to October
From: Siberia and northern Mongolia
Here: Hardy in the Lake Erie shore climate (zone 6b to 7a), so it can live outdoors in the ground.
Good for: food, wildlife, screens and hedges.
Native to: Northern Europe & the taiga, Central Asian steppe. Hardy in zones 2 to 6.
The story
Kedr, the Siberian pine, is the great nut tree of the taiga, and Siberians have gathered its cones every autumn for as long as anyone has lived there. The nutcracker, a bird that buries far more seeds than it eats, plants most of the forest. A tree may live five hundred years.
Planting
Full sun in cool, moist, acid, well-drained soil, with room for a very large tree. Plant young container-grown trees in spring; seed needs a long cold winter before it sprouts.
Growing
Slow for the first ten years, then steady. Keep grass away from young trees and water in dry summers. It needs no pruning and shrugs off winters below -50°C.
Harvest and use
Cones ripen in September and October of their second year. Dry them, shake out the nuts, and eat them raw, toasted or pressed for oil.
What to watch for
Patience: a seedling can take twenty-five years or more to bear, a grafted tree far less. It dislikes hot, humid summers.
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General guidance, not professional advice. Conditions vary by yard and year; for local specifics ask your county extension office. Never eat a wild plant you cannot identify with certainty. Traditional uses are shared as history, not medical advice. © 2026 Sean Priest · Irie Orchard. Terms & credits · Privacy · Home