Sargent Cypress – Cupressus sargentii 

Sargent Cypress at Hoyt Arboretum

USGS Distribution Map

This rare cypress can reach a height of about 80 feet (25 meters) but often grows to be no higher than 30 feet (9 meters).

Leaves: The scaled leaves wrap around tiny branching twigs. The leaves usually don't have visible resin dots like Modoc cypress and MacNab cypress.

Cones: Up to 1" (2.5 cm), round with 6 or 8 scales and resin blisters. 

Bark: The brown bark is furrowed on large trunks.

Where it grows: This rare cypress grows in the coastal mountains of California. Several small trees were discovered at one location in Oregon, near Selma in an area burned in the 2002 Biscuit Fire ( on the map). See Cypress Species in Oregon by Frank Callahan.

Names: Named after Charles Sargent, founding director of the Arnold Arboretum at Harvard University. Recently some have proposed removing North American cypresses from Cupressus and placing them in a new genus, Hesperocyparis. Others have argued for keeping North American cypresses in Cupressus. For more information, see The Gymnosperm Database.