Can you hybridize great bristlecone longaeva trees?

[Antony82]

Would it be be possible to artificially hybridize great bristlecone longaeva trees with something like a Mugo or JBP?

Why just seems like it would make an extremely Hardy and beautiful bonsai species.

 

[Shibui]

I doubt that anyone has tried yet.
Some pines routinely hybridize when they are growing nearby but those are usually closely related. Mugho and JBP are both from Subgenus Pinus, subsection Pinus while your bristlecone is from subgenus Strobus, Subsection Balfourianae.
Wikipedia has a list of pinus hybrids but it looks like most are within the natural subsections. That does not mean it is not possible to hybridize from different subsections though. Maybe you're the one to do it?

 

[Wires_Guy_wires]

Collect some pollen from a male, mix with 1 part flour, store in the freezer and keep it dry.
Then when female flowers pop up, cover them with a plastic bag to prevent random wind pollination and throw the pollen in there.

If it's possible, seeds will develop. If not, they won't.

The most difficult part would be to find both males and females from both species, to try male longaeva x female mugo and male mugo x female longaeva for instance.
Some (in)compatibilities work one way, but not the other.
But as Shibui says, the further two families are away on the genetic tree, the more difficult they hybridize.

 

[Mike Corazzi]

Sounds kinky.

 

[Leo in N E Illinois]

@Antony82
Hybridizing pines is as @Wires_Guy_wires describes it. You needed to bag female flowers (cones) BEFORE they become receptive to receive pollen. They are quite small at this time, not easy to spot if you are not familiar. Seed cones take 18 months on average to mature, so that open cone is 18 months older than the receptive phase. Male cones are usually about an eighth inch in diameter, give or take.

Some pines, like strobus, usually need to be at least 30 or 40 years of age to begin producing seed cones, though there is variation on this.

So you need trees of sufficient age and good health to produce cones, and you need to bag female cones before pollen cones release pollen. Collect pollen then make your cross. Collecting pollen one year ahead of use and storing pollen in refrigerator makes timing a little easier as pollen can be added to bags as soon as female cones are identified.

As you see, pine hybridizing requires planning.