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bald cypress
bald cypress (Taxodium distichum)
Features and Behaviors
FEATURES
The bald cypress tree may grow to nearly 100 feet tall. Some Illinois bald cypress trees are more than 1,000 years old. This tree sometimes produces "knees" in or near the water. "Knees" are structures that grow from the roots to the water's surface. The pale, red-brown bark is scaly. Leaves are yellow-green needles that may be up to three-fourths inch long. Leaves fall off the tree in autumn. Fruits are spherical, brown to green, wrinkled cones.
BEHAVIORS
The bald cypress tree grows in swamps and wet areas. This tree flowers from September through November.
Illinois Range
Taxonomy
Kingdom: Plantae
Division: Coniferophyta
Class: Pinodsida
Order: Pinales
Family: Cupressaceae
Illinois Status: common, native
