Cupressus (common name
cypress) is one of several genera of evergreen conifers within the family Cupressaceae; for the others, see cypress. It is considered a polyphyletic group. Based on genetic and morphological analysis, the genus
Cupressus is found in the subfamily
Cupressoideae. The common name "cypress" comes via the Old French from the Latin , which is the latinisation of the Greek κυπάρισσος (
kypárissos). The name derives from Cyparissus, a mythological figure who was turned into a tree after killing a stag.
As currently treated, these cypresses are native plants in scattered localities in mainly warm temperate climate regions in the Northern Hemisphere, including northwest Africa, the Middle East, the Himalayas, southern China and northern Vietnam. As with other conifers, extensive cultivation has led to a wide variety of forms, sizes and colours, that are grown in parks and gardens worldwide.
Cypress are evergreen trees or large shrubs, growing to tall, exceptionally up to 102 m tall (the second-tallest tree species on earth, after
Sequoia sempervirens) in
Cupressus austrotibetica. The leaves are scale-like, 2–6 mm long, arranged in opposite decussate pairs, and persist for three to five years. On young plants up to two years old, the leaves are needle-like and 5–15 mm long. The cones are 8–40 mm long, globose or ovoid with 4 to 14 scales arranged in opposite decussate pairs; they are mature in 18–24 months from pollination. The seeds are small, 4–7 mm long, with two narrow wings, one along each side of the seed.
Many of the species are adapted to forest fires, holding their seeds for many years in closed cones until the parent trees are killed by a fire; the seeds are then released to colonise the bare, burnt ground. In other species, the cones open at maturity to release the seeds.
Cultivation: Many species of cypress are grown as decorative trees in parks and, in Asia, around temples; in some areas, the native distribution is hard to discern due to extensive cultivation. A few species are grown for their timber, which can be very durable. The fast-growing hybrid Leyland cypress (
Cupressus ×
leylandii), much used in gardens, draws one of its parents from this genus (
Cupressus macrocarpa, Monterey cypress); the other parent,
Callitropsis nootkatensis (Nootka cypress), is also sometimes classified in this genus, or else in the separate genus
Xanthocyparis, but in the past more usually in
Chamaecyparis.
Cultural references: It was believed in the Hellenic culture that the cypress tree was sacred to the gods and it is now used as an emblem of grief.
The name of the genus comes from Cyparissus, a young man loved by Apollo, very attached to a deer which he ended up killing by mistake during a hunting trip. To ease the pain Apollo transformed the boy into a plant.
The association with mourning continued in Roman times, up to the present day, also for a practical reason: the roots of the cypress are straight into the ground, and expand slightly laterally, not damaging the burials.
Taxonomy: There has long been significant uncertainty about the New World members of
Cupressus, with several studies recovering them as forming a distinct clade from the Old World members. A 2021 molecular study found
Cupressus to be the sister genus to
Juniperus, whereas the western members (classified in
Callitropsis and
Hesperocyparis) were found to be sister to
Xanthocyparis.
Phylogeny: | Stull et al. 2021 |
|---|
| 1= Source: Wikipedia, article Cupressus sp..
Content adapted from Wikipedia, available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license.
Accessed on 17/07/2026.
Geographic distribution |  Loading map... |
|
📖 Recommended citationPlease use the following reference when citing this species account.EcoRegistros.
2026. Cypress
(Cupressus sp.) – Species account. Accessed from www.ecoregistros.org on 24/09/2026.
|