Cupressus bakeri

Baker Cypress is an upright and medium growing tree with silver-green foliage that is tolerant of high heat and drought, thriving on steep rocky slopes with little summer rain. It is related to Juniper trees and has similar foliage but Baker Cypress grows more perfectly conical with more attractive branching patterns and lacey brown bark. These plants do best in well drained soils with moderate to low summer watering. They are very drought tolerant once established. The short branching habit lends this tree to use as an excellent bonsai species.

These trees are well adapted to fire and have a similar cone cycle to Knobcone Pines. The cones on Baker Cypress don't open even when they are ripe and hold the seeds safely inside with fleshy scales filled with water. The water acts as insulation during a fire to protect the seeds from heat. As the cones dry out they start to open over the next few weeks and months before dropping the seeds to germinate. Even if the parent tree is killed, millions of seeds are protected and released to start a new generation. Of course, now that we prevent wildfires from occurring as often the cycle that typically allows Baker Cypress to release its seeds has been broken. Baker Cypress already has a very limited range and can be found only in a handful of isolated populations - leading this tree to be listed as 'Threatened' by IUCN standards. We are attempting to distribute seedlings of this amazing tree to ensure its survival and are hoping to encourage landscapers to start using Baker Cypress on large scale projects.