SPECIES
T. distichum
T. mucronatum

Taxodium Richard 1810

Common Names

Baldcypress.

Taxonomic notes

Two species, T. distichum and T. mucronatum.

Description

"Trees deciduous or evergreen. Branchlets terete. Lateral roots commonly producing erect, irregularly conic to rounded "knees" in periodically flooded habitats. Leaves alternate, in 2 ranks or not. Adult leaves divergent to strongly appressed, linear or linear-lanceolate to deltate, generally flattened, free portion to ca. 17 mm; abaxial glands absent. Pollen cones with 10-20 sporophylls, each sporophyll with 2-10 pollen sacs. The pollen cones are usually borne at the base of alternate leaves, forming pendent axillary panicles; they occur less commonly singly or in racemes. Seed cones maturing and shattering in 1 season, nearly globose; scales falling early, 5-10, valvate, ± peltate, thin and woody. Seeds (1-)2 per scale, irregularly 3-angled, wingless; cotyledons 4-9. x = 11" (1).

Range

Southern US, Mexico and Guatemala (1), in riparian and wetland habitats.

Big Tree

See T. mucronatum.

Oldest

See T. distichum.

Dendrochronology

See T. distichum.

Ethnobotany

Observations

Remarks

Name from Taxus, the generic name of yew, and the Greek root -oides, "like" (1).

Citations

(1) Watson, Frank D. at the Flora of North America web page.

See also:
Elias 1987.
Watson, F. D. 1985. The nomenclature of pondcypress and baldcypress. Taxon 34:506-509.

[Taxodium] [Cupressaceae] [home]

This page is from the Gymnosperm Database
URL: http://www.geocities.com/RainForest/Canopy/2285/cu/tax/index.htm
Edited by Christopher J. Earle
E-mail:earlecj@earthlink.net
Last modified on 19-Dec-98

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