White Pine Pinecone

White Pine, the state tree of Michigan, Maine and Ontario, are planted on the hill above us and every (or almost every night) we walk the edge of the plantation that is part of the Hermitage, the Mennonite retreat center next door to us.  Yesterday this newly-forming beauty beckoned and here is its portrait SOOC (straight out of camera).   The muted green of the background gives a mysterious air to this native that once covered much of Michigan.   In researching the formation of a pinecone, I discovered this is stage 1 (pine cone in three stages).

The largest stand of old growth White Pine remaining in the lower peninsula is at Hartwick Pines State Park.  There are several locations in the upper peninsula -- Huron Mountains, Estivant Pines, Porcupine Mountains, and the Sylvania Wilderness Area in the Ottawa National Forest.   They are impress giants, not Sequoias, but good enough!