Most trees like to live

      in

      families, and in each family there are–of course–children!

      That's why trees work to grow strong–so they can have babies. You can see this

      for yourself when they're

      in

      bloom.

      Pine trees release so much pollen,

      it can look like a cloud of dust.

      share the same "house," so

      to speak. With some trees,

      such as the willow, trees are

      either male or female—the

      male trees produce pollen and

      don't grow blossoms, and the

      female trees grow blossoms

      and don't produce pollen—

      but this is the exception.

      After the female blossoms are

      successfully pollinated, seeds

      develop, By fall the seeds

      of beech and oak trees are

      mature, and they drop to the

      ground,

      where many hungry

      animals are waiting for these

      delicious treats. Wild boars

      IN

      THE

      SPRING

      IT

      CAN

      BE

      dusty under trees, and you

      may find your shoes covered with a layer of tiny,

      yellowy-green particles. That's male pollen—

      tiny grains that want to land on female blossoms.

      Pollen grains are carried by the

      wind,

      so they can't

      really seek out blossoms

      themselves.

      When

      they meet

      a female blossom, it's by accident. That's why

      a

      tree

      must produce

      a

      huge amount of

      pollen,

      so

      that

      a

      few

      grains will reach their

      goal.

      With most trees, the female blossoms are on

      the same tree that produces the male pollen, They

      in particular adore beechnuts and acorns because

      they're full of fat

      and oil

      that help

      them

      build up

      a

      thick

      layer of fat of their own. This way the animals carry

      their winter food supply under their

      skin,

      and they

      can go for

      a

      few days without finding anything to eat.

      *

      Tree parents aren't too happy about

      all

      this because,

      after all, their children are supposed to grow from

      these

      seeds,

      That's why

      some

      trees,

      such

      as

      beeches,

      decide among themselves when they will bloom.

      Some years their branches have no seeds, and many

      wild boars don't survive the winter. But every three

      to five years, all the beech trees bloom like crazy at

      the

      same

      time.

      There are lots of

      beech