A summer drive through Ebey’s Reserve reveals thriving fields of barley, corn, and other crops that we commonly associate with agriculture. But there’s another, far less conventional, crop that grows in Ebey’s Reserve: the seeds of Douglas-fir, noble fir, western hemlock, western red cedar, and western white pine trees.

This crop, which is used for reforestation, is raised at Longview Timber’s seed orchard. The orchard, which was protected in 2005 by the Whidbey Camano Land Trust via a conservation easement, is opening for rare presentations and public tours Friday and Saturday, April 16 and 17.

“Whidbey Island is an ideal location for the seed orchard because the rain shadow of the Olympic Mountains makes the weather extremely dry in May and June,” said Dan Cress, the independent consultant who will be giving presentations and leading tours along with Rick Brooker of Longview Timber. “May and June is when the buds for next year’s pollen and cone buds set, and dry weather has a huge impact on the quality and quantity of cones that get picked a year and a half later.”

The seed orchard is young and not yet in full production, but in another six years, it will produce tens of thousands of cones that will be shipped to Oregon. There, the seeds will be extracted from the cones and then shipped to tree nurseries across the Northwest, where they’ll be sown. The trees spend one or two years in the nurseries before being hand planted in Western Washington and Oregon. It takes 40 to 60 years for them to grow to harvestable size, and then the cycle begins again.

When it’s in full production, the 38-acre seed orchard will generate enough seeds reforest 4,000 acres of land every other year.

There are two free presentations and tours: one takes place on April 16 from 4 to 6:30 p.m. and another on April 17 from 10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Each participant will receive several free tree seedlings of different varieties at the end of the tour. Space is limited. To take part, please sign up in advance by calling the Whidbey Camano Land Trust at 360-222-3310, or by emailing info@wclt.org. The Land Trust will provide directions when you reserve your spot.