''Taxodium ascendens'', also known as pond cypress, is a deciduous

conifer Conifers are a group of conifer cone, cone-bearing Spermatophyte, seed plants, a subset of gymnosperms. Scientifically, they make up the phylum, division Pinophyta (), also known as Coniferophyta () or Coniferae. The division contains a single ...

of the genus ''

Taxodium ''Taxodium'' is a genus of one to three species (depending on taxonomic opinion) of extremely flood-tolerant conifers in the cypress family, Cupressaceae. The generic name is derived from the Latin word ''taxus'', meaning " yew", and the Greek ...

'', native to North America. Many

botanist Botany, also called , plant biology or phytology, is the science of plant life and a branch of biology. A botanist, plant scientist or phytologist is a scientist who specialises in this field. The term "botany" comes from the Ancient Greek wo ...

s treat it as a variety of bald cypress, '' Taxodium distichum'' (as ''T. distichum'' var. ''imbricatum'') rather than as a distinct species, but it differs in habitat, occurring mainly in still blackwater rivers, ponds and swamps without silt-rich flood deposits. It predominates in cypress dome habitats.

Description

''Taxodium ascendens'' reaches on average in height. Compared to ''T. distichum'', the leaves are shorter (3–10 mm long), slenderer and are on shoots that tend to be erect rather than spreading. The trunk is expanded at the base, even on young trees, assisting the tree in anchoring in the soft, muddy soil. The cones also tend to be smaller, not over 2.5 cm diameter. The bark is also a paler gray color. Like bald cypresses, pond cypresses growing in water have a characteristic growth trait called

cypress knee A cypress knee is a distinctive structure forming above the roots of a cypress tree of any of various species of the subfamily Taxodioideae, such as the bald cypress. Their function is unknown, but they are generally seen on trees growing in swa ...

s; these are woody projections called ' pneumatophores', which are sent above the water from the roots.

Distribution

This species is native to the southeastern United States, from southeastern Virginia to southeastern Louisiana and south into Florida except for the

Florida Keys The Florida Keys are a coral cay archipelago located off the southern coast of Florida, forming the southernmost part of the continental United States. They begin at the southeastern coast of the Florida peninsula, about south of Miami, and e ...

. Stunted individuals of pond cypress are notable in the dwarf cypress savanna of the Everglades National Park.

Habitat

Taxodium ascendens in the Black Water, Okefenokee

''Taxodium ascendens'' occurs naturally in shallow ponds, lake margins, swamps and wetlands. It prefers wet, poorly drained and acidic soils, at an altitude of above sea level.

References

Flora of North America (as ''T. distichum'' var. ''imbricarium'')

Floridata
* :File:The Senator Tree Longwood Florida.JPG

External links

{{Taxonbar, from=Q759873 ascendens Trees of the Southeastern United States Plants used in bonsai Trees of the United States Deciduous conifers