| Common Name: |
Common Bald Cypress |
| Type: |
Deciduous Conifer |
| Family: |
Taxodiaceae |
| Leaves: |
Leaves are spirally arranged on the branchlets, 2-ranked on the deciduous shoots. Leaves are bright yellow-green in spring; it darkens in summer to a soft sage green; in autumn it becomes a russet, soft brown to a mellow orangish brown |
| Stem: |
Of two kinds: later branchlets green, deciduous; young branchlets green, becoming brown the first winter. |
| Size: |
50 to 70' high by 20 to 30' wide, can grow to 100'or more. |
| Hardiness: |
Zone 4 to 9. For an idea of your plant zone please visit the USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map. |
| Habit: |
A lofty, deciduous conifer of slender, pyramidal habit, almost columnar in youth, with a stout straight trunk buttressed at the base and short, horizontal branches, ascending at the ends, th lateral branchlets pendulous; sometimes becoming irregular, flat-topped and picturesque in old age. |
| Rate: |
Medium, 50 to 70' high in 30 to 50 years. |
| Flowers: |
Monoecious, staminate in drooping, 4 to 5" long panicles; March-April; pistillate cones are subglobose, comprising several spirally arranged peltate scales, each bearing 2 erect, basal ovules. |
| Diseases & Insects: |
Twig blight, wood decay, cypress moth, spider mites, and a gall forming mite. |
| Landscape Value: |
A stately tree, a decided accent of texture and form; in parks or large estates it makes a distinctive specimen; very good for wet areas; possiibly a worthwhile highway plant or state tree; have seen used in groupings and groves around lakes and the effect is spectacular; interestingly the knees form in the shallow water at lake's edge and seldom on the other side. The tree is exceptionally wind-firm. |
| Soil Preference: |
Very adaptable tree from wet to dry to well-drained soils. Makes its best growth on deep, fine, sandy loams with plenty of moisture in the surface layers and moderately good drainage. In the wild, it occurs primarily in permanent swamps. Soils should be acidic for chlorosis will occur on high pH soils |
| Care: |
Make sure they have a minimum of 8 hours of sunlight a day. They need generous watering in late spring when their leaves are first appearing and in late fall when leaves begin to fall. If there is no considerable rainfall for 30 days, make sure you water the young trees. Do not allow lawn grasses to grow beneath trees. |
| Fertilization: |
Use slow release fertilizer in late winter and early summer for sandy, nutrient defficient soils.
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| Planting Instructions: |
Dig a hole three times the diameter of the root system, with a depth no deeper than the original soil line on trunk. Break up the soil to the finest consistency possible. Place plant in hole and fill, compacting the fill dirt. Water the plant heavily to seal soil around the roots and remove air pockets.
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