Leaf:  Small needles borne singly in 2 rows, pointed at the tip, 3/8 to 3/4 inches (10 to 19 mm) long, linear, flat, featherlike, soft, flexible; light yellow-green above, greenish-white beneath; some (those on the flowering twig) being awl-shaped and overlapping on the branchlets; turning brown and shedding with twig in autumn.

Cones:  Male cones tiny, slender, purplish, borne in branched tassel-like clusters, 3 to 6 inches (7.5 to 15 cm) long; female cones round, gray, growing singly or in pairs at the end of the twig, 3/4 to 1 inch (2 to 2.5 cm) in diameter, each with several flattened, 4-angled, hard cone-scales shed at maturity in autumn,  developing in a single season; cones borne on the twigs of the previous season.

Fruit:  Spherical, wrinkled, purplish cones about 1 inch (2.5 cm) in diameter; 2  brown, 3-angled seeds nearly 1/4 inch (6 mm) long, under each cone-scale.

Twig:  Slender, reddish-brown; leaf scars absent.

Bark:  Thick, pale reddish-brown or gray, divided perpendicularly into broad, flat ridges with long, thin scales, becoming fibrous, peeling off in strips. 

Form:  Large tree to over 100 feet (30 m) tall; trunk diameter up to 8 feet (2.4 m); crown open and spreading, flattened at top to pyramidal; base of trunk often swollen and spreading into ridges or buttresses; "knees" usually produced if tree is growing in water.

Discussion  

Bald cypress wood is used for structural purposes such as flooring, water tanks, ships, cross-ties, shingles, coffins, laundry appliances, and greenhouse equipment.  It is commonly employed in general construction and for the manufacture of fence posts, railway ties, and the exterior and interior finish of buildings, doors, sashes, etc.  For the effective paneling of walls and doors, it quite equals in beauty some of the more expensive, imported hardwoods.  Moderately hard, strong, and heavy wood is used to make vats, poles and pilings, stadium seats, boxes, and crates.  In the State Museum at the Cabildo in New Orleans, there is a piece of water pipe made of cypress wood, still in perfect condition, although it has been buried for over a thousand years. 

Bald cypress is often planted as an ornamental and as a roadside tree; the majestic height and fall color make it a favorite in some areas.  

Cypress knees are cone-shaped structures that rise out of the water from the tree's submerged roots.  These knees are hollow, and it has long been supposed that they furnish air to the roots beneath the swamp water.  The knees are often made into lamp bases and other objects, which natives sell to tourists passing through cypress country.

Distinguishing Characteristics   

Bald cypress is distinguished by the feathery appearance of its leaves and by its spherical, wrinkled cones.

Distribution 

New Jersey across to southern Illinois and southern Missouri to eastern Texas, east to Florida. 

Images

Click each small picture to see a larger image.

November, 2002 BE	October, 2002 BE	October, 2002 RC	October, 2002 RC	October, 2002 BE	October, 2002 BE
March, 2003 EL	March, 2003 EL	March, 2003 EL	March, 2003 EL

Location

N 39.27929º    W -89.87847º
100 Block South High Street, Carlinville, Macoupin County, IL.

Copyright

Photos © 2002 Rachel Curry and Bethany Edwards, Carlinville High School, linke@carlinvilleschools.net

References

G. H. Collingwood and Warren D. Brush, Knowing Your Trees, 1964, The American Forestry Association. 

Robert H. Mohlenbrock, Forest Trees of Illinois, 1996, Illinois Department of Natural Resources.

F. Schuyler Mathews, Field Book of American Trees and Shrubs, 1915, G. P. Putnam's Sons.

William C. Grimm, Familiar Trees of America, 1967, Harper & Row.

Elbert L. Little, Field Guide to Trees:  Eastern Region, 1980, Alfred A. Knopf.

Ohio Public Library Information Network and The Ohio Historical Society
http://www.oplin.lib.oh.us/products/tree/fact%20pages/baldcypress/baldcypress.html

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