Common name: Dwarf baldcypress, dwarf swamp cypress
Latin name: Taxodium distichum ‘Peve Minaret’
Plant size: 6-10′ high by 3′ wide in 10 years
USDA Hardiness Zones: 5-11 (marginally in Zone 4)
Cultural needs: Moist, acidic soil; sun
T.d. ‘Peve Minaret’ is a dwarf variety of the magnificent swamp cypresses of the Florida Everglades. The dwarf bald/swamp cypress was selected in the Netherlands, another wet region. The similar-looking species baldcypress, pictured, is easy to keep small if contained, is less expensive, and can live in wet ground or water features. The species baldcypress in the photo below originally grew in a shallow pond, (right, contained in a hollowed-out feather rock) then moved to dry ground, where, seven years later, it proves that it is drought resistant and not much bigger.
The almost prehistoric swamp cypress trees are famous for their knees (see photos), stately tall trunks, feathery leaves, and their ability to grow in water for well over 1,000 years and reach 100′ in height. You can grow them from seeds or buy 2′ plants found at www.willisorchards.com. And the “bald” part of cypress? It’s deciduous. Like larches in the autumn, baldcypress leaves turn a beautiful coppery color then drop, to leave the silvery bark to carry structural detail through the winter. Spring growth emerges a fresh lime green.
