Cupressaceae

lone cypress at sunset

 

CUPRESSACEAE

Gray

pronounced: koo-press-AY-see-eye

the cypress family

Cupressus is the Latin name for the Cypress tree. This is the most widely distributed conifer family, found in all continents except for Antarctica, stretching from 71º N in arctic Norway (Juniperus communis) to 55º S in southern Chile (Pilgerodendron uviferum), while Juniperus indica is found up to an altitude of 5200 m in Tibet, the highest altitude known for a woody plant. The family includes Sequoiadendron giganteum, the largest of all trees, Sequoia sempervirens, the tallest of all trees, and Fitzroya cupressoides, the oldest of all trees, that lives to over 3000 years. The leaves of these plants are opposite or whorled, and usually paired or in threes. The mature leaves are usually small and scale-like, decurrent or appressed to the stem, or needle-like in young plants and in some species.

 


Photograph by Hersfold at en.wikipedia, via Wikimedia Commons