pondcypress Cupressaceae (Taxodiaceae) Taxodium ascendens Brongn.   symbol: TAAS
	Leaf: Linear or awl-like and small, 3/8 inch long, held close to the twig, green to yellow-green. Flower: Males in long (3 to 5 inches) hanging panicles, females are small and occur near branch tips. Fruit: Nearly round cone with peltate scales, 3/4 to 1 inch in diameter, initially yellow-green but turning brown and breaking into individual scales when mature. Twig: May be deciduous or not. Slender, covered with tight scale-like foliage, later brown and rough as needles age and fall off; buds rounded. Typical deciduous branchlets ascend vertically from branches. Bark: Fibrous and shreddy, red-brown and gray where oxidized. Thought to become thicker than that of baldcypress. Form: Medium sized tree with a pyramidal crown, clear bole and often buttressed base, generally smaller than baldcypress.
	USDA Plants Database Taxodium ascendens is native to North America. Range may be expanded by planting. See states reporting pondcypress (opens a new window).