Cupressus goveniana

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Cupressus goveniana
Cupressusgoveniana1.jpg
Hesperocyparis goveniana at the UC Botanical Garden, Berkeley, California
Status TNC G2.svg
Imperiled  (NatureServe) [2]
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Gymnospermae
Division: Pinophyta
Class: Pinopsida
Order: Cupressales
Family: Cupressaceae
Genus: Hesperocyparis
Species:
H. goveniana
Binomial name
Hesperocyparis goveniana
((Gordon) Bartel
Cupressus goveniana range map 4.png
Natural range of Hesperocyparis goveniana ( sensu stricto )
Synonyms [3]
List
    • Callitropsis goveniana (Gordon) D.P.Little
    • Cupressus goveniana Gordon
    • Cupressus aromatica Gordon & Glend.
    • Cupressus attenuata Gordon & Glend.
    • Cupressus barkeri J.Dix
    • Cupressus bourgeaui Gordon
    • Cupressus californica Carrière
    • Cupressus cornuta Carrière
    • Cupressus goveniana var. attenuata (Gordon & Glend.) Carrière
    • Cupressus goveniana var. cornuta (Carrière) Carrière
    • Cupressus goveniana subsp. gibsonensis Silba
    • Cupressus goveniana var. glauca Carrière
    • Cupressus goveniana var. gracilis Carrière
    • Cupressus goveniana var. huberiana Carrière
    • Cupressus goveniana var. parva Lemmon
    • Cupressus goveniana var. pendula A.Henry
    • Cupressus goveniana var. viridis Carrière
    • Juniperus aromatica Carrière
    • Neocupressus goveniana (Gordon) de Laub.

Hesperocyparis goveniana commonly known as Californian cypress [4] and Gowen cypress, [5] 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.

Contents

Distribution

The tree is endemic to the Monterey Peninsula in coastal Monterey County, located on the Central Coast of California, in the Western United States.

The tree is found in small, scattered populations, and not in large forests of its species. Hesperocyparis goveniana occurs with Hesperocyparis macrocarpa (Monterey cypress), in the two groves where the Monterey cypress occurs naturally, in Monterey County. [6] Outside of California, Hesperocyparis goveniana has been introduced to Robinson Crusoe Island in Chile. [7]

It is on the IUCN Red List of endangered species. [1]

Description

Hesperocyparis goveniana is an evergreen tree with a conic to ovoid-conic crown, very variable in size, with mature trees of under 1 m (3 ft 3 in) on some sites, to 50 m (160 ft) tall in ideal conditions. [8]

The foliage grows in dense sprays, dark green to somewhat yellow-green in color. The leaves are scale-like, 2–5 mm (0.08–0.20 in) long, and produced on rounded (not flattened) shoots.

The seed cones are globose to oblong, 11–22 mm (0.43–0.87 in) long, with 6 to 10 scales, green at first, maturing brown or gray-brown about 20–24 months after pollination. The cones remain closed for many years, only opening after the parent tree is killed in a wildfire, thereby allowing the seeds to colonize the bare ground exposed by the fire. The male cones are 3–5 mm (0.12–0.20 in) long, and release pollen in February/March.

Typically cones of H. goveniana are smaller than those of H. macrocarpa.

Taxonomy

Hesperocyparis goveniana was first described and given the scientific name Cupressus goveniana by George Gordon in 1849. [3] It was described from a specimen grown in the gardens of the Royal Horticultural Society from seed collected by Karl Theodor Hartweg. It was named by Gordon for the then secretary of the society, James Robert Gowen. [9] In 2009 genetic research into the relationships of Cupressus and Juniperus lead to the reclassification of almost all the new world species into a new genus, Hesperocyparis by Jim A. Bartel. [3] This move has been disputed, [10] but as of 2024 Plants of the World Online (POWO), [3] World Flora Online (WFO), [11] and the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service PLANTS database (PLANTS) all list Hesperocyparis goveniana as the correct name. [12]

The varieties or subspecies, formerly included under Cupressus goveniana include:

Monterey County, strictly coastal, within 3 km (1.9 mi) of the coast and below 200 m (660 ft) altitude. Foliage dark green, not rough, with leaf tips not spreading; cones globose.
Mendocino and Sonoma counties, coastal, within 10 km (6.2 mi) of the coast and below 500 m (1,600 ft) altitude. [14]
Santa Cruz and San Mateo counties, in the Santa Cruz Mountains 10–20 km (6.2–12.4 mi) inland and at 300–760 m (980–2,490 ft) altitude. With yellow–green foliage slightly rough-textured from the acute and slightly spreading leaf tips; cones often oval. [16]

Related Research Articles

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.

<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>Cupressus 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, X Cuprocyparis leylandii or X 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>Callitropsis nootkatensis</i> Species of conifer

Callitropsis nootkatensis, formerly known as Cupressus nootkatensis, is a species of tree in the cypress family native to the coastal regions of northwestern North America. This species goes by many common names including: Nootka cypress, yellow cypress, Alaska cypress, Nootka cedar, yellow cedar, Alaska cedar, and Alaska yellow cedar. The specific epithet nootkatensis is derived from its discovery by Europeans on the lands of a First Nation of Canada, the Nuu-chah-nulth people of Vancouver Island, British Columbia, who were formerly referred to as the Nootka.

<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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Northern California coastal forests</span> Temperate coniferous forests ecoregion in northern California and southwestern Oregon

The Northern California coastal forests are a temperate coniferous forests ecoregion of coastal Northern California and southwestern Oregon.

<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>Cupressus pygmaea</i> Species of conifer

Cupressus pygmaea, the Mendocino cypress or pygmy cypress, is a taxon of disputed status in the genus Cupressus 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 Cupressus abramsiana and Cupressus goveniana, enough to sometimes be considered conspecific with them.

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

Cupressus guadalupensis, the Guadalupe cypress, is a species of cypress from Guadalupe Island in the Pacific Ocean off western North America.

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

The Santa Cruz cypress is a species of North American tree within the Cypress family. The species is endemic to the Santa Cruz Mountains within the Santa Cruz and San Mateo counties of west-central California. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service listed the species on the Endangered Species Act in 1987 due to increasing threats from habitat loss and disruption of natural forest fire regimes. In 2016, the conservation status of the Santa Cruz cypress changed to Threatened. The cited reasoning was a decrease in threats against their habitat.

<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>Cupressus macnabiana</i> Species of flowering plant in the family

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

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

Cupressus forbesii, now reclassified by some as Hesperocyparis forbesii, and with the common names Tecate cypress or Forbes' cypress, is a nonflowering, seed bearing tree species of cypress native to southwestern North America.

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

Cupressus stephensonii is a species of conifer known as the Cuyamaca cypress, and is endemic to Southern California. It has been classified as Hesperocyparis stephensonii. It was previously listed as Cupressus arizonica subsp. stephensonii and Cupressus arizonica var. glabra.

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

Cupressus nevadensis, now reclassified as Hesperocyparis nevadensis, with the common name Paiute cypress, is a species of cypress tree native to a small area in Sierra Nevada of California, in the western United States.

<i>Hesperocyparis</i> Genus of conifers

Hesperocyparis is a genus of trees in the family Cupressaceae, containing North American species otherwise assigned to the genus Cupressus. They are found throughout western North America. Only a few species have wide ranges, with most being restricted-range endemics.

Neoendemism is one of two sub-categories of endemism, the ecological state of a species being unique to a defined geographic location. Specifically, neoendemic species are those that have recently arisen, through divergence and reproductive isolation or through hybridization and polyploidy in plants. Paleoendemism, the other sub-category, refers to species that were formerly widespread but are now restricted to a smaller area.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cypress canker</span> Plant fungal disease

Cypress canker is a disease affecting Cupressus species, caused by one of several species of fungus in the genus Seiridium. Infection causes die-back of twigs and branches in susceptible cypress trees, with rapidly increasing amounts of damage and the death of the tree.

References

  1. 1 2 Farjon, A. (2013). "Cupressus goveniana". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2013: e.T42219A2962566. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2013-1.RLTS.T42219A2962566.en . Retrieved 13 November 2021.
  2. NatureServe (2024). "Cupressus goveniana". Arlington, Virginia. Retrieved 8 February 2024.
  3. 1 2 3 4 "Hesperocyparis goveniana (Gordon) Bartel". Plants of the World Online . Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew . Retrieved 8 February 2024.
  4. BSBI List 2007 (xls). Botanical Society of Britain and Ireland. Archived from the original (xls) on 2015-06-26. Retrieved 2014-10-17.
  5. "Cupressus goveniana Gordon – (not an active name) – Gowen cypress". CalFlora. Retrieved 2023-01-04.
  6. Hogan, C. Michael; Frankis, Michael P. "Monterey Cypress (Cupressus macrocarpa)". iGoTerra.com. Retrieved 25 December 2018.
  7. Greimler, Josef; Lopez, Patricio; Stuessy, Tod F.; Dirnbiick, Thomas (July 2002). "The Vegetation of Robinson Crusoe Island (Isla Masatierra), Juan Fernandez Archipelago, Chile". Pacific Science. University of Hawai'i Press. 56 (3): 263-284 [277] via Scholarspace.
  8. "Hesperocyparis goveniana (Gordon) Bartel". Jepson eFlora: Taxon page. University of California, Berkeley. Retrieved 2023-01-04.
  9. Gordon, George (1849). "New Plants, Etc., From the Society's Garden". The Journal of the Horticultural Society of London. London. IV: 295–296. Retrieved 8 February 2024.
  10. Mаеrki, Didier (31 January 2017). "Editorial: Recent developments in the taxonomy of the genus Cupressus and consequences for their conservation" (PDF). Bulletin of the Cupressus Conservation Project. 6 (1): 3–24. Retrieved 7 February 2024.
  11. "Hesperocyparis goveniana (Gordon) Bartel". World Flora Online . Retrieved 8 February 2024.
  12. Hesperocyparis goveniana, USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service PLANTS Profile, 8 February 2024
  13. Calflora Database: Hesperocyparis pygmaea
  14. Gymnosperm Database: C. goveniana var. pygmaea (Hesperocyparis pygmaea)
  15. CalFlora Database: Hesperocyparis abramsiana
  16. Gymnosperm Database: C. goveniana var. abramsiana (Hesperocyparis abramsiana)