A typical angiosperm flower is usually bisexual, with entomophilous plants having four whorls of organs: the calyx, corolla, stamens, and gynoecium. The flower is usually colorful, and thus, distinct from the dull-colored reproductive organs of gymnosperms; however, this formula is not applicable to all flowers. For example, the male flower ofSarcobatus baileyiis reduced into only a single stamen. Such unusual flowers are largely poorly documented and underappreciated. To fill such a lacuna in our knowledge of the male reproductive organ ofS. baileyi, we collected and studied materials of the male inflorescence ofS. baileyi(Sarcobataceae). The outcomes of our Micro-CT (micro computed tomography), SEM (scanning electron microscopy), and paraffin sectioning indicate that a male inflorescence ofS. baileyiis more comparable with the cone of conifers; its male flowers lack the perianth, are directly attached to a central axis and sheltered by peltate indusium-like shields. To understand the evolutionary logic underlying such a rarely seen male inflorescence, we also studied and compared it with a female cone ofCupressus sempervirens. Although the generaSarcobatusandCupressusbelong to two distinct major plant groups (angiosperms and gymnosperms), they apply the same propagule-protecting strategy.