Genus Chamaecyparis

Chamaecyparis is a genus of conifers in the cypress family Cupressaceae, native to eastern Asia and western and eastern North America.

Species in the genus Chamaecyparis of plants

Formosan Cypress - It is a slow-growing, but long-lived and ultimately large to very large coniferous tree growing to 55–60 m tall with a trunk up to 7 m in diameter. The bark is red-brown, vertically fissured and with a stringy texture. The foliage is arranged in flat sprays; adult leaves are scale-like, 1–3 mm long, with pointed tips, green both above and below with only an inconspicuous stomatal band at the base of each scale-leaf; they are arranged in opposite decussate pairs on the shoots. The juvenile leaves, found on young seedlings, are needle-like, 4–8 mm long, soft and glaucous bluish-green. The cones are ovoid-oblong, 6–12 mm long and 4–8 mm diameter, with 8–16 scales arranged in opposite pairs, maturing in autumn about 7–8 months after pollination.

Lawson's cypress - It is a large evergreen coniferous tree, maturing up to 200 feet tall or more, with trunks 4-6 feet in diameter, with feathery foliage in flat sprays, usually somewhat glaucous blue-green in color. The leaves are scale-like, 3-5 mm long, with narrow white markings on the underside, and produced on somewhat flattened shoots. The seed cones are globose, 7-14 mm diameter, with 6-10 scales, green at first, maturing brown in early fall, 6–8 months after pollination. The male cones are 3-4 mm long, dark red, turning brown after pollen release in early spring. The bark is reddish-brown, and fibrous to scaly in vertical strips.

Hinoki cypress - It is a slow-growing tree which grows to 35 m tall with a trunk up to 1 m in diameter. The bark is dark red-brown. The leaves are scale-like, 2-4 mm long, blunt tipped , green above, and green below with a white stomatal band at the base of each scale-leaf. The cones are globose, 8-12 mm diameter, with 8-12 scales arranged in opposite pairs. The related Chamaecyparis pisifera can be readily distinguished in its having pointed tips to the leaves and smaller cones.

Sawara cypress - It is a slow-growing coniferous tree growing to 35–50 m tall with a trunk up to 2 m in diameter. The bark is red-brown, vertically fissured and with a stringy texture. The foliage is arranged in flat sprays; adult leaves are scale-like, 1.5–2 mm long, with pointed tips , green above, green below with a white stomatal band at the base of each scale-leaf; they are arranged in opposite decussate pairs on the shoots. The juvenile leaves, found on young seedlings, are needle-like, 4–8 mm long, soft and glaucous bluish-green. The cones are globose, 4–8 mm diameter, with 6–10 scales arranged in opposite pairs, maturing in autumn about 7–8 months after pollination.

Atlantic White Cypress - It is an evergreen coniferous tree growing to 20-28 m tall, with feathery foliage in moderately flattened sprays, green to glaucous blue-green in color. The leaves are scale-like, 2-4 mm long, and produced in opposite decussate pairs on somewhat flattened shoots; seedlings up to a year old have needle-like leaves. The seed cones are globose, 4-9 mm diameter, with 6-10 scales, green or purple, maturing brown in 5–7 months after pollination. The pollen cones are purple or brown, 1.5–3 mm long and 1–2 mm broad, releasing their yellow pollen in spring.