Ricerche Simili:
Taxobox
image = Taxodium distichum NRCSMS01010.jpg
image_width = 270px
image_caption = Bald Cypress forest
in a central
Mississippi lake
regnum =
Plantae
divisio =
Pinophyta
classis =
Pinopsida
ordo =
Pinales
familia =
Cupressaceae
subfamilia =
Taxodioideae
genus = ''Taxodium''
genus_authority =
Rich.
subdivision_ranks = Species
subdivision =
''
Taxodium ascendens'' - Pond Cypress
''
Taxodium distichum'' - Bald Cypress
''
Taxodium mucronatum'' - Montezuma Cypress
''Taxodium'' ()
Within the family, ''Taxodium'' is most closely related to
Chinese Swamp Cypress (''Glyptostrobus pensilis'') and
Sugi (''Cryptomeria japonica'').
Species of ''Taxodium'' occur in the southern part of the
North American continent and are
deciduous in the north and semi-evergreen to
evergreen in the south. They are large
trees, reaching diameter, with 10-25 scales, each scale with 1-2
seeds; they are mature in 7-9 months after
pollination, when they disintegrate to release the seeds. The male (
pollen) cones are produced in pendulous
racemes, and shed their pollen in early spring.
Species
The three
taxa of ''Taxodium'' are treated here as distinct species, though some
botanists treat them in just one or two species, with the others considered as varieties of the first described. The three are distinct in
ecology, growing in different environments, but
hybridise where they meet.
''
Taxodium ascendens''
Brongn. - Pond Cypress
The Pond Cypress occurs within the range of Bald Cypress, but only on the southeastern coastal plain from
North Carolina to
Louisiana. It occurs in still
blackwater rivers, ponds and swamps without
silt-rich flood deposits.
''
Taxodium distichum''
(L.) Rich. - Bald Cypress
The most familiar species in the genus is the Bald Cypress, native to much of the
southeastern United States, from
Delaware to
Texas, especially
Louisiana and inland up the
Mississippi River to southern
Indiana. It occurs mainly along rivers with silt-rich flood deposits.
''
Taxodium mucronatum''
Ten., 1853 - Montezuma Cypress, Ahuehuete
The Montezuma Cypress occurs from the Lower
Rio Grande Valley south to the highlands of southern
Mexico, and differs from the other two species in being substantially evergreen. A specimen in
Santa María del Tule, Oaxaca, the
Árbol del Tule, is in diameter. It is a
riparian tree, occurring on the banks of streams and rivers, not in swamps like the Bald and Pond Cypresses.
Uses
s at low water, Wee Tee Lake, South Carolina
The trees are especially prized for their
wood, of which the
heartwood is extremely
rot and
termite resistant. The heartwood contains a
sesquiterpene called cypressene,
The shredded
bark of these trees is used as a
mulch, although the current harvest rate for this product is unsustainable and is causing substantial
environmental damage especially in the south where cutting boundaries are not being followed.
Evolution
In earth's history ''Taxodium'' was widespread. It is known since the
Jurassic and can be found as
fossil e.g. in layers from
Tertiary times.
References
External links
Gymnosperm Database - Taxodium Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary website National Audubon Society, undated. ''Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary. A Companion Field Guide''. Artype Inc., Ft. Myers. 25 p.