What Type of Plants Make Seeds in Cones?

Deciduous Trees

• Most coniferous trees are evergreen, but a few have deciduous foliage. The Japanese larch (Larix kaempferi) produces 1 ½-inch-long cones and has narrow, striped, needle-like foliage that turns yellow in fall. This pyramid-shaped tree grows to 70 feet tall with a 40-foot spread and is hardy in U.S. Department of Agriculture plant hardiness zones 5 to 7. Japanese larches prefer full sun and well-drained soil.

  The Mexican swamp cypress (Taxodium distichum var. mexicana) also has needle-like foliage and produces brown cones. This sun-loving tree tolerates drought and a range of soils and is hardy in zones 6 to 9. Mexican swamp cypress trees grow to 80 feet tall.

Evergreen Trees

• Evergreen trees keep their foliage year-round. Many narrow-leaved evergreens grow in a range of colors, sizes and textures and are coniferous. The Colorado blue spruce (Picea pungens) produces 4-inch-long cones and has pointy, blue- to silver-green needles. This dense, columnar-to-pyramidal tree grows to 90 feet tall with a 20-foot spread and is hardy in USDA zones 2 to 7. It prefers full sun and moist, well-drained soil.

  In contrast, the Japanese red pine (Pinus densiflora) grows to 60 feet tall with an equal spread. It has 5-inch-long, bright green needles and produces yellow, 2-inch-long cones. This irregularly shaped tree often has a twisting trunk. It is hardy in zones 3 to 7 and prefers full sun and well-drained soil.

Shrubs

• Some evergreen shrubs are coniferous. The Fat Albert spruce (Picea pungens "Fat Albert") grows to 15 feet tall with a 10-foot spread. It has metallic-blue needles and produces oblong, green cones that turn brown as they mature. Fat Albert shrubs are hardy in zones 3 to 7 and prefer full sun and moist, well-drained soil.

  The Compacta Carolina hemlock (Tsuga caroliniana "Compacta") produces small, light brown cones that have open scales. It grows to 5 feet tall with a 3-foot spread and has short, flat needles. Carolina hemlocks thrive in full sun to partial shade and moist, cool soils. They are hardy to zone 5.

Ground Covers

• A few evergreen groundcovers produce cones. Sargent's Chinese juniper (Juniperus chinensis var. sargentii) has aromatic, gray-green foliage and produces blue-gray cones with a waxy bloom. This evergreen grows to 2 feet tall with a 10-foot spread. It is hardy in zones 4 to 9 and prefers full sun and well-drained soil.

  The blue rug juniper (Juniperus horizontalis "Wiltonii") produces tiny, .3-inch-long, bright blue cones. This low-growing evergreen reaches heights of 6 inches and spreads to 6 feet wide. It prefers full sun and well-drained soil and is hardy in zones 4b to 9. Its silver-blue foliage takes on a purple hue in winter.