What Kind of Flowers Do Cypress Trees Produce?

The bald cypress is the common tree of the Southern swamp. Typically, this picturesque plant has a swollen trunk, grows in brackish water and is often covered with Spanish moss. Since the tree is a conifer, it does not form true flowers, but grows both male and female cones.

Cone Description

Male cones form in the early spring on long catkin-like structures and slowly release their abundant supply of pollen into the air. The female cones receive the pollen and by fall produce viable seeds that are wrapped tightly in the bluish-gray cone. The cone is pear-shaped and turns woody as the seeds mature.

Monoecious Plant

The bald cypress is a monoecious plant, which simply means the plant produces male and female flowers (in this case cones) on the same tree. The pollen from the male flower can fertilize the flowers that are located on the same tree.

The Carolina Parakeet and the Bald Cypress

The Carolina parakeet was one of the few animals that could break down and consume part of the tightly formed bald cypress cone. Unfortunately, this unique southern bird became extinct around 1900, so the seeds of the bald cypress are no longer dispersed by wild animals, thus limiting the range of the bald cypress.

Bald Cypress Seed Dispersal

The cone of the bald cypress is so tough that it is not digested by any animal, and so it falls into the swamp where the murky water breaks down the tough hide of the cone and releases the seeds. Today, this is the main way in which the seed is dispersed.

Fall Colors

The bald cypress is one of the few conifers that change colors and drop their needles in the fall. This makes the tree a deciduous conifer instead of an evergreen, a trait that is common to most conifers.

References

• The Bald Cypress Tree
• The Bald Cypress