Leucadendron argenteum old male flowerhead

The male Leucadendron argenteum tree produces more pollen cones or flowerheads than the female does fruit-cones. Silver trees are wind-pollinated. Once the pollen disappears from the old male flowerhead, this multicoloured aftermath of bract and floret remains lasts for a short while before dropping off.

The male flowerhead becomes up to 5 cm in diameter, the female one is roughly similar size before pollination, about 9 cm tall and 6 cm wide when mature, after pollination.

The fruit cones on the female tree have reason to last longer, for they later deliver the ripe seeds. They persist on the trees often for years, even the lifetime of the tree before seed dispersal. The fruit is a black, hairy nut about 1 cm long. It is wind-borne, aided by the persistent style that remains attached as a kind of parachute (Coates Palgrave, 2002; iNaturalist; http://pza.sanbi.org).