Cedar pine

Cedar pine trees are the conventional name for several plant species from the Quinquefoliae section of the subgenus Strobus of the genus Pine ( Pinus ) ^[1] , whose seeds ( pine nuts ) are eaten. In Russian, the name “cedars” was assigned to them ^[2] , although they are only in distant kinship with real cedars . In addition, the seeds of cedar pine trees in a strictly scientific sense are not nuts .

The cedar pine trees include the following species growing in Eurasia ^[3] :

• Pinus pumila - Elfin Pine ,
• Pinus cembra - European cedar pine, or European pine, or European cedar,
• Pinus koraiensis - Korean cedar , or Korean Pine, or Korean Cedar pine, or Manchurian Cedar pine,
• Pinus sibirica - Siberian cedar pine, or Siberian pine, or Siberian cedar.

In addition to these species, the North American Pinus albicaulis - White Pine Pine , but it is usually not classified as cedar, belongs to the Cembrae subsection, the distinguishing feature of which are non- expanding , lumpy cones. It should also be noted that the seeds of all kinds of pines are edible, but most of them are too small to collect. At the same time, seeds of many species of pine are used for food in different regions of the world, including Pinus pinea - Pine pine in southern Europe (seeds used in pesto sauce), Pinus gerardiana - Gerard's pine in southern Asia , Pinus edulis - Edible pine , or Colorado pine, and Pinus cembroides - Mexican pine , or Cedar pine in North America .

Left to right: Pinus cembra , Pinus pinea , Pinus sibirica