Cupressus sempervirens

Last updated

Mediterranean cypress
Med Cypress.jpg
Mediterranean Cypress foliage and cones
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Gymnospermae
Division: Pinophyta
Class: Pinopsida
Order: Cupressales
Family: Cupressaceae
Genus: Cupressus
Species:
C. sempervirens
Binomial name
Cupressus sempervirens
L.
Cupressus sempervirens range.svg
Green: probable natural range in the Mediterranean Basin
Orange: range including human introductions
Red (small areas): Residual natural stands

Cupressus sempervirens, the Mediterranean cypress (also known as Italian cypress, [1] Tuscan cypress, Persian cypress, or pencil pine), is a species of cypress native to the eastern Mediterranean region and Iran. Cupressus sempervirens is a seeded vascular plant. As a seeded plant, it uses seeds to reproduce. [2] While some studies show it has modern medicinal properties, it is most noted for uses in folk medicine, where the dried leaves of the plant are used for a variety of ailments. [3] It is well adapted to the conditions and the environment that it lives in due to the ability to survive in both acidic and alkaline soils, and withstand drought. [4] Cupressus sempervirens is widely present in culture, most notably in Iran, where it is both a sacred tree and is a metaphor for "the graceful figure of the beloved". [5]

Contents

Description

Cupressus sempervirens is a medium-sized coniferous evergreen tree to 35 m (115 ft) tall, with a conic crown with level branches and variably loosely hanging branchlets. [6] It is very long-lived, with some trees reported to be over 1,000 years old. [7]

The foliage grows in dense sprays, which are dark green in colour. The leaves are scale-like, 2–5 mm long, and produced on rounded (not flattened) shoots. The seed cones are ovoid or oblong, 25–40 mm long, with 10-14 scales, which are green at first, and mature to brown about 20–24 months after pollination. The male cones are 3–5 mm long, and release pollen in late winter. The cones of C. sempervirens can withstand years of being sealed. [2] It is moderately susceptible to cypress canker, caused by the fungus Seiridium cardinale, and can suffer extensive dieback where this disease is common. The species name sempervirens comes from the Latin for 'evergreen'. [8]

Cupressis sempervirens produces lateral shoots, or branches, which often grow upwards towards a light source. [9] Cones of C. sempervirens can remain sealed for long periods of time, and are known to perform serotiny. [2]

Uses

Mediterranean cypress has been widely cultivated as an ornamental tree for millennia outside of its native range, mainly throughout the whole Mediterranean region, and in other areas with similar hot, dry summers and mild, rainy winters, including California, southwest South Africa, and southern Australia. It can also be grown successfully in areas with cooler, moister summers, such as the British Isles, New Zealand, and the Pacific Northwest. It is also planted in Florida and parts of the coastal southern United States as an ornamental tree. In some areas, particularly the United States, it is known as "Italian" or "Tuscan cypress". Commonly seen throughout New Mexico, the Mediterranean cypress is also known as the "drama tree" because of its tendency to bend with even the slightest of breezes.[ citation needed ] Within its native range, the Mediterranean cypress has been historically planted in gardens and cemeteries, and used as a windbreak alongside roads. [10]

4000-year-old Cypress of Abarkuh, Iran Cypress of Abarqu.JPG
4000-year-old Cypress of Abarkuh, Iran

The vast majority of the trees in cultivation are selected cultivars with a fastigiate crown, with erect branches forming a narrow to very narrow crown often less than a tenth as wide as the tree is tall. The dark green "exclamation mark" shape of these trees is a highly characteristic signature of Mediterranean town and village landscapes. Formerly, the species was sometimes separated into two varieties, the wild C. sempervirens var. sempervirens (syn. var. horizontalis), and the fastigiate C. s. var. pyramidalis (syn. var. fastigiata, var. stricta), but the latter is now only distinguished as a Cultivar Group, with no botanical significance.[ citation needed ]

It is also known for its very durable, scented wood, used most famously for the doors of St. Peter's Basilica in the Vatican City, Rome. Cypress used to be used in distilleries as staves to hold mash ferments to make alcohol before the invention of stainless steel.[ citation needed ]

In cosmetics it is used as astringent, firming, anti-seborrheic, anti-dandruff, anti-aging and as fragrance. [11] It is also the traditional wood used for Italian harpsichords. [12]

Cone dispersal with seeds of Cupressus sempervirens Cupressus sempervirens cone and seeds.jpg
Cone dispersal with seeds of Cupressus sempervirens

C. sempervirens finds a litany of uses including as wood, in traditional medicine, and for other therapeutic purposes. The wood is insect-repellent; hence its use in furniture—i.e. for pantry cabinets—while the cypress's oil is marketed as massage liniment.

The dry seeds that come from the Cupressus sempervirens are sometimes used to help people control their skin conditions such as acne, and are of use in healing cuts or scrapes. [3] The oil that comes from the leaves of the plant can aid in recovery from minor ailments like nose congestion. [3] It can also prevent damage to land caused by violent weather. [13]

Habitats

Cupressus sempervirens grows primarily in places with wet winters and hot summers; in the spring and autumn, the tree grows out its roots, stems, and leaves. [4] Like most plants, Cupressus sempervirens requires light for such growth. [7] Due to the fact that the tree must survive wet winters and hot, dry summers, its roots are adapted to be stout and shallow, for easier gathering of the material and nutrients that the soil provides for them. [4] The roots of Cupressus sempervirens are adapted to function effortlessly in either low or high pH environments. [3]

In culture

Iran

Stylized Cypress Trees from Persepolis, Shiraz, Iran. One of the three varieties of C. sempervirens native to Iran is called the Shirazi Cypress. Stylized Trees and Flowers on the Apadana Staircase (Best Viewed Size "Large") (4688859421).jpg
Stylized Cypress Trees from Persepolis, Shiraz, Iran. One of the three varieties of C. sempervirens native to Iran is called the Shirazi Cypress.

In Persian, C. sempervirens is called the "Graceful Cypress" (sarv-e nāz), and has a distinguished presence in culture, poetry and gardens. It bears several metaphors, including the "graceful figure and stately gait of [the] beloved". [5] Iranians considered cypress to be a relic of Zoroaster. A Zoroastrian tradition recorded by Daqiqi maintains that King Vishtaspa, after converting to Zoroastrianism, ordered a cypress brought from paradise by Zoroaster to be planted near the first fire temple. [5]

In the words of the Shahnameh, cypress represents a single-minded, professional and wise man. In ancient Iran, during Yaldā Night, a Yalda tree was decorated, which was generally made of cypress and pine trees. It is said that the decoration of cypress and pine around Christmas was adapted from ancient Iran The Iranians viewed these two trees, especially the cypress, as a symbol of resistance against darkness and cold. Traditionally, they would stand in front of the cypress on the first day of January, and vow to be strong and stable until the next year, when another sapling would be planted. According to Iranian beliefs, greens at the beginning of the year are a sign of blessing throughout that year, and based on this belief, the custom of planting greens at the beginning of the year and at the same time as the Nowruz celebration gradually replaced the Cypress tree. Cypress, specifically C. sempervirens, was the first choice for Iranian gardens. In all of the famous Persian Gardens, such as Fin Garden, Shazdeh Garden, Dowlat-Abad, and others, this tree plays a central role in their design.[ citation needed ] The oldest living cypress is the Sarv-e-Abarkooh in Iran's Yazd Province. Its age is estimated to be approximately 4,000 years. [14] [ failed verification ]

Symbolism

In classical antiquity, the cypress was a symbol of mourning, and in the modern era it remains the principal cemetery tree in both the Muslim world and Europe. In the classical tradition, the cypress was associated with death and the underworld because it failed to regenerate when cut back too severely. Athenian households in mourning were garlanded with boughs of cypress. [15] Cypress was used to fumigate the air during cremations. [16] It was among the plants that were suitable for making wreaths to adorn statues of Pluto, the classical ruler of the underworld. [17]

The poet Ovid, who wrote during the reign of Augustus, records the best-known myth that explains the association of the cypress with grief. The handsome boy Cyparissus, a favorite of Apollo, accidentally killed a beloved tame stag. His grief and remorse were so inconsolable that he asked to weep forever. He was transformed into a cypress tree, with the tree's sap as his tears. [18] In another version of the story, it was the woodland god Silvanus who was the divine companion of Cyparissus and accidentally killed the stag. When the boy was consumed by grief, Silvanus turned him into a tree, and thereafter carried a branch of cypress as a symbol of mourning. [19]

The cypress is also associated with Artemis and Hecate. Ancient Roman funerary rites used it extensively.[ citation needed ]

In Turkey, Istanbul's Karacaahmet Cemetery uses the tree extensively.; in Istanbul Turkish the tree is referred to as "mezarlık servisi" (cemetery tree). Its common name in Turkish and the name used in Turkish forestry is "kara selvi" (black cypress). Cypresses are mentioned extensively in the Shahnameh , the great Iranian epic poem by Ferdowsi.[ citation needed ]

In Jewish tradition, the cypress was held to be the wood used to build Noah's Ark and The Temple, and is mentioned as an idiom or metaphor in biblical passages, either referencing the tree's shape as an example of uprightness or its evergreen nature as an example of eternal beauty or health. It is popular in modern Israeli cemeteries, with contemporary explanation being that its shape resembles a candle and its evergreen nature symbolizes the immortality of the soul.[ citation needed ]

In popular culture the Italian cypress is often stereotypically associated with vacation destinations to the Mediterranean region; Italy in particular. The tree has been seen on travel posters for decades. [20] [21]

Other characteristics

In July 2012, a forest fire, lasting five days, devastated 20,000 hectares of forest in the Valencian village of Andilla. However, amid the charred landscape, a group of 946 cypress trees about 22 years old was virtually unharmed, and only 12 cypresses were burned. Andilla cypresses were planted by the CypFire European project studying various aspects of the cypresses, including fire resistance. [22]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Evergreen</span> Plant that has leaves in all seasons

In botany, an evergreen is a plant which has foliage that remains green and functional throughout the year. This contrasts with deciduous plants, which lose their foliage completely during the winter or dry season.

Cypress is a common name for various coniferous trees or shrubs of northern temperate regions that belong to the family Cupressaceae. The word cypress is derived from Old French cipres, which was imported from Latin cypressus, the latinisation of the Greek κυπάρισσος (kyparissos). Cypress trees are a large classification of conifers, encompassing the trees and shrubs from the cypress family (Cupressaceae) and many others with the word cypress in their common name. Many cypress trees have needle-like, evergreen foliage and acorn-like seed cones.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cupressaceae</span> Cypress family of conifers

Cupressaceae is a conifer family, the cypress, with worldwide distribution. The family includes 27–30 genera, which include the junipers and redwoods, with about 130–140 species in total. They are monoecious, subdioecious or (rarely) dioecious trees and shrubs up to 116 m (381 ft) tall. The bark of mature trees is commonly orange- to red-brown and of stringy texture, often flaking or peeling in vertical strips, but smooth, scaly or hard and square-cracked in some species.

<i>Cupressus</i> Several genera of evergreen conifers

Cupressus is one of several genera of evergreen conifers within the family Cupressaceae that have the common name cypress; 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 cipres from the Latin cyparissus, which is the latinisation of the Greek κυπάρισσος (kypárissos).

<i>Hesperocyparis macrocarpa</i> Species of conifer

Hesperocyparis macrocarpa also known as Cupressus macrocarpa, or the Monterey cypress is a coniferous tree, and is one of several species of cypress trees endemic to California.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Leyland cypress</span> Species of conifer

The Leyland cypress, Cupressus × leylandii, × Cuprocyparis leylandii or × Cupressocyparis leylandii, often referred to simply as leylandii, is a fast-growing coniferous evergreen tree much used in horticulture, primarily for hedges and screens. Even on sites of relatively poor culture, plants have been known to grow to heights of 15 metres (49 ft) in 16 years. Their rapid, thick growth means they are sometimes used to achieve privacy, but such use can result in disputes with neighbours whose own property becomes overshadowed. The tree is a hybrid of Monterey cypress and Nootka cypress. It is almost always sterile, and is propagated mainly by cuttings.

<i>Cupressus dupreziana</i> Species of conifer in the family Cupressaceae

Cupressus dupreziana, the Saharan cypress, or tarout, is a very rare coniferous tree native to the Tassili n'Ajjer mountains in the central Sahara desert, southeast Algeria, where it forms a unique population of trees hundreds of kilometres from any other trees. There are only 233 specimens of this endangered species, the largest about 22 m tall. The majority are estimated to be over 2000 years old, with very little regeneration due to the increasing desertification of the Sahara. Rainfall totals in the area are estimated to be about 30 mm annually. The largest one is named Tin-Balalan is believed to be the oldest tarout tree with a circumference of 12 meters or 36 feet.

<i>Hesperocyparis arizonica</i> Species of conifer

Hesperocyparis arizonica, the Arizona cypress, is a North American species of tree in the cypress family Cupressaceae, native to the southwestern United States and Mexico. Populations may be scattered rather than in large, dense stands.

<i>Hesperocyparis bakeri</i> Western North American species of conifer

Hesperocyparis bakeri, previously known Cupressus bakeri, with the common names Baker cypress, Modoc cypress, or Siskiyou cypress, is a rare species of western cypress tree endemic to a small area across far northern California and extreme southwestern Oregon, in the western United States.

<i>Hesperocyparis goveniana</i> Californian species of western cypress

Hesperocyparis goveniana commonly known as Californian cypress and Gowen cypress, is a species of western cypress that is endemic to a small area of coastal California near Monterey. It was formerly classified as Cupressus goveniana.

<i>Hesperocyparis pygmaea</i> Californian species of western cypress

Hesperocyparis pygmaea, the Mendocino cypress or pygmy cypress, is a taxon of disputed status in the western cypress genus. It is endemic to certain coastal terraces and coastal mountain ranges of Mendocino and Sonoma Counties in northwestern California. It is a variable tree, and closely related to Hesperocyparis abramsiana and Hesperocyparis goveniana, enough to sometimes be considered conspecific with them.

<i>Hesperocyparis guadalupensis</i> Island endemic species of western cypress tree

Hesperocyparis guadalupensis, commonly known as Guadalupe cypress, is a species of western cypress from Guadalupe Island in the Pacific Ocean off the western coast of Mexico's Baja Peninsula. It was previously known as Cupressus guadalupensis until 2009. It is a medium-sized tree with fine green to blue-green foliage. In its native habitat it depends on water from the fogs that envelop high ground in the northern half of the island. It became an endangered species due to feral goats living on Guadalupe Island that – for more than a century – prevented new trees from growing. In 2005 the goats were finally removed from the tree's island home as part of an island restoration project. New trees are growing and other plants are beginning to recover, though the future of the species is not yet assured. Guadalupe cypress is closely related to the vulnerable Tecate cypress, which grows on the mainland in Baja California and southern California. It is used as an ornamental tree in Mediterranean climates, particularly in Europe, but has no other significant human uses.

<i>Cupressus atlantica</i> Species of conifer

Cupressus atlantica, the Moroccan cypress, is a rare coniferous tree endemic to the valley of the Oued n'Fiss river in the High Atlas Mountains south of Marrakech in western Morocco. The majority are old, with very little regeneration due to overgrazing by goats, and they are critically endangered.

<i>Cupressus cashmeriana</i> Species of conifer

Cupressus cashmeriana, the Bhutan cypress or Kashmir cypress, is a species of evergreen conifer native to the eastern Himalaya in Bhutan and adjacent areas of Arunachal Pradesh in northeastern India. [ Now in vulnerable category, IUCN list retrieved in 2006 ]. It is also introduced in China and Nepal. It grows at moderately high altitudes of 1,250–2,800 metres (4,100–9,190 ft).

<i>Hesperocyparis macnabiana</i> Species of flowering plant

Hesperocyparis macnabiana is a species of western cypress in from California that was previously named Cupressus macnabiana.

<i>Cupressus torulosa</i> Species of conifer

Cupressus torulosa, commonly known as the Himalayan cypress or Bhutan cypress, is a species of cypress tree native to the mountainous northern regions of the Indian subcontinent, in the western Himalayas.

<i>Hesperocyparis forbesii</i> Western North American species of western cypress

Hesperocyparis forbesii, with the common names Tecate cypress or Forbes' cypress, is a nonflowering, seed bearing tree species of western cypress native to southwestern North America in California and Baja California. It was formerly known as Cupressus forbesii.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sarv-e Abarkuh</span> Exceptionally old cypress tree in Yazd province, Iran

The Cypress of Abarkuh, also called the Zoroastrian Sarv, is a Persian cypress tree in Abarkuh in Yazd Province of Iran. It is protected by the Cultural Heritage Organization of Iran as a national natural monument and is a major tourist attraction with a height of 25 metres and with a perimeter of 11.5 metres at its trunk and 18 metres higher up around its branches. It is estimated to be over four millennia old and is likely the oldest or second-oldest living lifeform in Asia.

<i>Hesperocyparis stephensonii</i> Californian species of western cypress

Hesperocyparis stephensonii is a species of western cypress known as the Cuyamaca cypress that is found only in two very small areas in Southern California and northwestern Baja California.

<i>Hesperocyparis nevadensis</i> Californian species of western cypress

Hesperocyparis nevadensis is a species of western cypress tree with the common name Paiute cypress native to a small area in the Sierra Nevada Mountains of California in the western United States. It was formerly known as Cupressus nevadensis.

References

  1. ↑ BSBI List 2007 (xls). Botanical Society of Britain and Ireland. Archived from the original (xls) on 2015-06-26. Retrieved 2014-10-17.
  2. 1 2 3 "Cupressus sempervirens (Mediterranean cypress) description". www.conifers.org. Retrieved 2023-10-17.
  3. 1 2 3 4 Selim, Samy A; Adam, Mohammed E; Hassan, Sherif M; Albalawi, Abdulrhman R (December 2014). "Chemical composition, antimicrobial and antibiofilm activity of the essential oil and methanol extract of the Mediterranean cypress (Cupressus sempervirens L.)". BMC Complementary and Alternative Medicine. 14 (1): 179. doi: 10.1186/1472-6882-14-179 . ISSN   1472-6882. PMC   4052795 . PMID   24890383.
  4. 1 2 3 "Supporting EFSA assessment of the EU environmental suitability for exotic forestry pests: Final Report". EFSA Supporting Publications. 11 (3). March 2014. doi: 10.2903/sp.efsa.2014.en-434 . ISSN   2397-8325.
  5. 1 2 3 Aʿlam, Hūšang (2020-08-30), "CYPRESS", Encyclopaedia Iranica Online, Brill, retrieved 2023-10-30
  6. ↑ See also Uses section for the differing cultivated variants
  7. 1 2 Mauri, Achille; Girardello, Marco; Strona, Giovanni; Beck, Pieter S. A.; Forzieri, Giovanni; Caudullo, Giovanni; Manca, Federica; Cescatti, Alessandro (2022-02-03). "EU-Trees4F, a dataset on the future distribution of European tree species". Scientific Data. 9 (1): 37. Bibcode:2022NatSD...9...37M. doi:10.1038/s41597-022-01128-5. ISSN   2052-4463. PMC   8813948 . PMID   35115529.
  8. ↑ Rojas-Sandova, J (2022-01-07). Cupressus sempervirens (Mediterranean cypress) (Report). doi: 10.1079/cabicompendium.17105 .
  9. ↑ Weick, Cynthia Wagner; Aamir, Naela; Reichart, Jayme (June 2023). "The Ethnobotanical Evolution of the Mediterranean Cypress (Cupressus sempervirens)". Economic Botany. 77 (2): 203–221. doi: 10.1007/s12231-023-09570-1 . ISSN   0013-0001. S2CID   257968346.
  10. ↑ Caudullo, G; de Rigo, D. (2016). "Cupressus sempervirens in Europe: distribution, habitat, usage and threats" (PDF). European Atlas of Forest Tree Species.
  11. ↑ Carrasco, F. (2009). "Ingredientes Cosméticos". Diccionario de Ingredientes\ 4ª Ed. www.imagenpersonal.net. p. 267. ISBN   978-84-613-4979-1.
  12. ↑ Hubbard, Frank (1965). Three Centuries of Harpsichord Making . Harvard University Press. p.  201. ISBN   0-674-88845-6.
  13. ↑ Orhan, Ilkay Erdogan; Tumen, Ibrahim (2015), "Potential of Cupressus sempervirens (Mediterranean Cypress) in Health", The Mediterranean Diet, Elsevier: 639–647, doi:10.1016/b978-0-12-407849-9.00057-9, ISBN   978-0-12-407849-9, PMC   7149725
  14. ↑ Craig Glenday, ed. (2011). Guinness World Records . BANTAM DELL. p.  95. ISBN   9781904994671.
  15. ↑ Servius, note to Vergil's Aeneid 3.680.
  16. ↑ Isidore of Seville, Etymologiae 17.7.34.
  17. ↑ Natalis Comes, Mythologiae 2.9.
  18. ↑ Ovid, Metamorphoses 10.106ff.
  19. ↑ Servius, note to Vergil's Georgics 1.20.
  20. ↑ "Image: Italian_Lakes,_travel_poster_for_ENIT,_ca._1930.jpg, (3091 × 5015 px)". upload.wikimedia.org. 2009-04-15. Retrieved 2015-09-06.
  21. ↑ "Image: 01422-2T.jpg, (300 × 453 px)". postercorner.com. Archived from the original on 2015-02-22. Retrieved 2015-09-06.
  22. ↑ "The curious case of Valencia's flameproof cypresses". sociedad.elpais.com. 14 August 2012. Retrieved 2015-09-06.

Further reading

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.