The Characteristics of Bald Cypress

Size and Form

• Bald cypress specimens as tall as 130 feet are not unheard of, with the average bald cypress between 100 and 120 feet tall. The trunk diameters of this tree sometimes reach as much as 10 feet, but most are in the 3- to 5-foot range. The bald cypress is pyramidal when immature, but the older specimens develop a flattened top, with their widths as wide as 60 feet. The trunks of the bald cypress sometimes take on a buttressed appearance, with the trunk much larger at its base than higher up on the tree. In some instances, in wet locations, what looks like woody "knees" project upward from the roots.

Foliage

• The needles of the bald cypress are flat, flexible and soft to the touch, notes the "National Audubon Society Field Guide to Trees: Eastern Region." They reach lengths between 3/8 and 3/4 inch, growing in two rows on the thin twigs. The branches full of the green needles have a feathery appearance. In the fall, the needles change to a shade of red-brown before coming down from the tree.

More Features

• The female flowers of a bald cypress mature into cones shaped like globes, with diameters up to 1 inch. They turn from green to brown. The bark of the bald cypress is gray or brown, featuring scaly ridges or elongated and fibrous strips that peel away from the trunk. The wood of the bald cypress is so hard and resistant to decomposition that it is integral in the creation of docks, bridges and interior trim.

Growing Conditions

• In the wild, a bald cypress grows in bogs, swamps, wetlands and floodplains. In many instances, pure stands of many trees occur. The bald cypress, although it prefers very wet soils, can tolerate drier ones. If the soil is acidic, the tree thrives, but neutral soils or calcareous ground will result in the tree's needles being yellow. A bald cypress is cold hardy to U.S. Department of Agriculture plant hardiness zone 5. The tree does well in windy sites and needs to be in full sunshine.