The regional Central Forest Nursery of the regional government of Castilla y León (Spain) has released grafted plants of 5 elite clones of Pinus pinea, a.k.a. Mediterranean stone pine for its big hardshelled seeds. Their edible kernels, the genuine Mediterranean pine nuts, are nowadays the most expensive nuts of the world due to their scarcity and dependence on collection from the wild.

Different grafting techniques and deployment strategies for improved genetic materials of stone pine, Pinus pinea, offer more landowners the possibility to consider the tree as a viable crop. The stone pine is an emblematic tree that produces Mediterranean pine nuts, the most expensive nuts in global markets due to their scarcity.

[in Spanish]

El Grupo Operativo Pinea “Mejoras e innovación en la producción del piñón nacional”

Since its first detection in Europe in 1999, the invasive Western Conifer Seed Bug, Leptoglossus occidentalis, has been gaining increasing attention in the Mediterranean countries. This interest is mainly due to the putative impact of L. occidentalis on the edible seed of the Mediterranean stone pine, Pinus pinea L., a gourmet nut whose current retail price can exceed 70-100 €/kg.