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When does fertilization occur after pine pollen reaches a female cone?
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pine
A stand of stone pines (Pinus pinea) in Doñana National Park near Seville, Spain.
In the genus Pinus (pine), fertilization does not occur immediately upon pollination. After pollen reaches a female cone in the spring, the reproductive process spans two full growing seasons.123
During the first growing season, the pollen grain germinates and the pollen tube begins to grow slowly through the nucellus. It is not until the following spring—approximately 14 months after the initial pollination—that the nucleus of a male cell within the pollen tube unites with the oosphere (egg) nucleus to complete the process of fertilization.213