Bouquets of Cones

A large murder of crows has descended on our fields and lawns the past few days, eating grubs in the grass. Whenever we go outside, they escape to the treetops.  Looking up, I noticed a clump of female cones on the Cunninghamia lanceolate planted in the bed east of the “rose lawn.”  Up near the top of our Cunninghamia, there are several clusters of cones which were highlighted by our rare winter sun. These monoecious trees are fast growers, nearly keep pace with the sequoias planted at the same time. With no cones to speak of at this time, I imagine our other two trees are males.