Some experts, like Paul Zedler at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, contend that Xylococcus reproduction might simply encompass a larger timeframe than human observers might expect, similar to the long reproductive cycles in species like the giant sequoia, Sequoiadendron gigantea. The giant sequoia annually produces 300,000 to 400,000 seeds, with many seedlings emerging from the duff on the forest floor, but only very few of these seedlings thrive unless conditions are correct. This means that despite the massive seed production, the giant sequoia seldom has young plants that can maintain the density of old groves. Some specimens of Xylococcus can live up to a century or more, and like the giant sequoia, produce thousands of their seeds annually through their drupes, meaning that perhaps their reproduction occurs on a longer ecological time scale.
