The plants around us. Volum II The plant around us. Volum II | Page 7

GASTRONOMIC USE
Gastronomic use: The cade tree is very variable in
shape, forming a spreading shrub 2–3 m tall to a small
erect tree 10–15 m tall. It has needle-like leaves in
whorls of three; the leaves are green, 5–20 mm long
and 1–2 mm broad, with a double white stomatal band
(split by a green midrib) on the inner surface. It is
usually dioecious, with separate male and female
plants. The seed cones are berry-like, green ripening
in 18 months to orange-red with a variable pink waxy
coating; they are spherical, 7–12 mm diameter, and
have three or six fused scales in 1-2 whorls, three of
the scales with a single seed. The seeds are dispersed
when birds eat the cones, digesting the fleshy scales
and passing the hard seeds in their droppings. The
pollen cones are yellow, 2–3 mm long, and fall soon
after shedding their pollen in late winter or early
spring.