Bald Cypress (Taxodium distichum) is a large, needle-leaf aquatic tree often with cone-shaped “knees” projected from submerged roots with trunks enlarged at base and spreading into ridges with a crown of widely spreading branches, flattened at top.The tree often attains a height of 100 to 150 feet and trunk diameter of 3 to 6 feet or more.Bald Cypress is commonly found in wet, sandy depressions, shallow ponds and wet, swampy soils of riverbanks, but will grow very well on well-drained upland sites, making a very handsome ornamental tree.Bald cypress is called the “wood eternal” because of the heartwood’s resistance to decay.
Habitat:
Intermediate shade tolerant; found in swamps, ponds and bottomlands and can withstand flooding.
Uses:
Used for greenhouses, fencing, shingles, railroad ties and boxes. Seeds are eaten by waterfowl and small mammals. Ornamental Value.
Botantical Name:
Taxodium is Latin for "yew like", in reference to the needles; distichum refers tothe 2 ranked needles.
