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Bald Cypress

Taxodium distichum

Found in brownwater and blackwater swamps, usually in riverine situations, depressions in bottomland forests, lake margins, river banks, rarely in wooded seeps. FloraQuest, phone app (app page) What its natural habitat tells you

51
Strong

Native to Alabama. How scores work Is it native here?

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Height
50–70 feet
Spread
20–30 feet
Light
Full sun, Partial shade
Soil moisture
Usually moist

Space about 25 ft apart from its recorded spread. Enter your bed size for a count

Will it fit your yard?

At a glance

Life cycle
Woody perennial
Leaves
Deciduous
Bloom
March to April
Fruiting season
October

Recorded in 53 Alabama counties.

Natural habitats

Places it grows wild. Not a planting requirement.

1 of 2

Swamps

Loblolly bay in a coastal swamp
Regional / representative. Shown: Southern coastal swamps, Florida to Virginia; state not identified, a neighboring state.Loblolly bay in a coastal swamp, Marian Ellis Rowan, 1901. Public domain. Source record.

Ponds, lakes and their shores

Georgia pond and emergent wetland
Regional / representative. Shown: Chattahoochee River National Recreation Area, Georgia; representative pond ecosystem, a neighboring state.Georgia pond and emergent wetland, Robert 'Bob' Hynes, 1997. Public domain. Source record.

Also found with this plant

Wildlife whose habitat models include habitats this plant grows in, in Alabama. Shared habitat, not food. 155 animals.

All wildlife of Alabama

Ecological relationships

Who uses this plant?

What these records mean

17CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including AL

Genus host records with ranges including AL · Taxodium

  • Chloropteryx tepperariaAngled-Winged Emerald
  • Cutina albopunctellaGray Cypress Looper
  • Cutina distinctaDistinguisged Cypress Owlet
  • Dasychira dominickariaDominick's Tussock Moth
  • Datana ministraYellow-Necked Caterpillar Moth
  • Dioryctria pygmaeellaBald Cypress Coneworm
  • Eacles imperialisImperial Moth, Imperial Spiny Caterpillar
  • Hyalophora cecropiaCecropia Silkmoth, Cecropia Moth
  • Iridopsis pergracilisCypress Gray, Black-Shouldered Gray
  • Isoparce cupressiBald Cypress Sphinx
Show all 17
  • Lithophane abitaBald Cypress Pinion
  • Macaria aequiferariaWoody Angle
  • Orgyia detritaLive Oak Tussock Moth, Fir Tussock Moth
  • Palthis angulalisDark-Spotted Palthis
  • Perimede erransellaGray Perimede
  • Synchlora frondariaSouthern Emerald
  • Thyridopteryx ephemeraeformisEvergreen Bagworm Moth
Shropshire & Tallamy 2025, Lepidoptera of North America north of Mexico, ZooKeys 1261 (ODbL)
0BeesSoutheastern regional records
0Specialist beesPollen specialists
2BirdsRecorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim

Recorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim · Taxodium

  • Aix sponsaWood Duck
  • Meleagris gallopavoWild Turkey
Hurlbert, Olsen, Sawyer & Winner 2021, Avian Diet Database, Scientific Data 8: 260 (CC0)

Direct food only: birds recorded eating this genus across North America. Caterpillars on host plants also feed nesting birds. NC Native Plant Society: butterfly gardening

No records yet · Ants · Beetles · Flies · Adult butterflies / moths · Other wasps · Other insects

Growing and identification

Plant details

Family
Cupressaceae
Hardiness
Zones 4a–9b
Soil pH
Acidic
Flower color
Purple
Growth rate
Rapid
Growth habit
Single stem
Foliage color
Green
Fruit begins
October
Fruit ends
October

Safety has not been reviewed for this plant; check toxicity and thorns before planting.

Growing sources and scope
  • Bloom · “March to April” · FloraQuest: Carolinas, Georgia (Southeastern Flora Team), phone app (app page) (ranked first; USDA PLANTS differs) · Carolinas and Georgia
  • Flower color · “Purple” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
  • Foliage color · “Green” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
  • Fruit begins · “October” · FloraQuest: Carolinas, Georgia (Southeastern Flora Team), phone app (app page) (ranked first; USDA PLANTS differs) · Carolinas and Georgia
  • Fruit ends · “October” · FloraQuest: Carolinas, Georgia (Southeastern Flora Team), phone app (app page) (ranked first; USDA PLANTS differs) · Carolinas and Georgia
  • Growth habit · “Single stem” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
  • Growth rate · “Rapid” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
  • Hardiness · “Zones 4a–9b” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
  • Height · “50–70 feet” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox (ranked first; USDA PLANTS differs)
  • Leaves · “Deciduous” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
  • Life cycle · “Woody perennial” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
  • Light · “Full sun (6 or more hours of direct sunlight a day); Partial shade (direct sunlight only part of the day, 2-6 hours)” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox (ranked first; Tennessee Smart Yards, Virginia DCR Coastal Plain differ)
  • Soil · “Moist; Occasionally wet” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox (ranked first; Tennessee Smart Yards, Virginia DCR Coastal Plain differ)
  • Soil pH · “Acidic” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
  • Spread · “20–30 feet” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox

Conservation status

Alabama rankS4S5
Global rankG5
AL statusNot verified
Federal statusNot verified

Conservation source Global and federal source

In your garden

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Sources