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Bald
Cypress (Taxodium) |
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The genus Taxodium, as treated here, contains a single species, the Bald Cypress of the southern United States and Mexico. Some botanists divide this single species into 2 or 3 species. Bald Cypress is closely related to the Redwood and the Giant Sequoia of California despite the great differences in their distributions. In the United States Bald Cypress is primarily a species of swamps, marshes, and rivers. However in parts of its range the species does very well in much drier habitats. In very wet habitats the base of the tree sends up "knees" which protrude upward in a circle about the trunk.
Characteristic Features:
The cones are round with a wrinkled surface. They fall apart when they mature. The leaves are needle-like and occur in roughly two opposite rows and in opposite pairs. |
