Seasonal Wild Flowers

Latin name

Chamaecyparis lawsoniana

Family

Cupressaceae

Flowering season

March to April

English distribution

It is planted throughout the country.

The escape is also found throughout the country except for

parts of the North, Central and East Midlands and the

Southeast.

See the BSBI distribution map for Lawson's Cypress

Habitat

It is a neophyte, which was introduced in the 1850s, and

has been very widlry planted in parks, estates, gardens,

amenity areas, churchyards and windbreaks.

There are numerous cultivars.

It was first recognised as a naturalised escape in the late

1950s and grows on waste ground, banks and open

woodland.

Description

Lawson's Cypress is a resinous, evergreen, coniferous

tree growing up to 65m.

Male cones are reddish-brown and up to 8mm. They

have scales and 8 whorls of microsporophylls with

up to 5 pollen sacs. 

Female flowers are a shiny dark blue and up to 9mm.

They become fleshy as they develop into cones up

to 12mm.

The cones ripen in the first year. Old cones become

woody and brown and may remain on the tree.

It spreads readily by seed.

Leaves are 2mm and scale-like with a central, sunken

gland.

They are on much-branched twigs.

The tree can be straight and tall, or much branched.

The trunk is reddish, soft, spongy and fissured.