The seed cones are globose, 15–30 mm diameter, with 20–30 spirally-arranged scales; they are mature about six months after pollination.

The tree-ring chronologies developed from this species have shown distinct responses to temperature variations.

In the southern sites, the ring width (RW) and earlywood (EW) are strongly related to cool season temperature (July–October).

[5] Bedgebury National Pinetum has about fifty trees in its collection, the most of them planted in the Conifer Conservation Project Area.

[6] It succeeds in Scotland where it receives the necessary rainfall for its good growth[7] and produces fertile seeds there.