Species Spotlight: Cypress (Taxodium distichum, ascendens, mucronatum)

This month’s Species Spotlight (by our First Curator’s Assistant, Andy Bello) turns the light on three different species that constitute the genus Taxodium: Bald Cypress (Taxodium distichum), Pond Cypress (Taxodium ascendens) and Montezuma Cypress (Taxodium mucronatum). All three species are located in our collections at The National Bonsai & Penjing Museum. 

Old Bald Cypress (Taxodium distichum) at Lake Drummond, VA (Photo by Andy Bello)

Taxodium are extremely flood-tolerant, deciduous conifers in the cypress family Cupressacae. These trees can reach heights of about 100-150 feet and trunk diameters reaching more than 37 feet. A distinctive feature of taxodium is the formation of pneumatophores, also known as “cypress knees.” Some bonsai experts debate whether the knees aid in the uptake of oxygen or if they support the trees in wet soil conditions. 

Species history and general facts

Bald cypresses are mainly found along rivers with silt-rich flood deposits throughout the Southeastern United States and even up the Mississippi River into Southern Indiana. 

Pond cypresses live within the Southeastern Coastal Plain, from North Carolina to Louisiana, and grow in more stagnant blackwater rivers, ponds and swamps, rather than silt-rich flood deposits. 

Montezuma cypresses are found between the lower Rio Grande Valley down to the highlands of Guatemala. This cypress is a riparian tree that grows along streams and rivers. This species tends to be evergreen and not deciduous, given its distribution in a consistently warm climate. Montezuma cypresses on average have the largest trunk size, with some reaching about 37.5 feet in diameter.

Take a look at some of the cypresses we have at the Museum!

Bald Cypress

This bald cypress (Taxodium distichum) #269 is located in the North American Collection. It has been in training since 1972, and the late Vaughn Banting donated the tree in 2000. Banting originally purchased the tree as a nursery plant. This bald cypress, along with one at the Pacific Bonsai Museum, are the first two trained into a configuration Banting championed called “Flat Top Style.” The flat top style with knees protruding from the soil is a very distinctive trait of bald cypresses.

Read more about the history of this bald cypress, Vaughn Banting and the flat top style here.


Montezuma Cypress

This montezuma cypress (Taxodium mucronatum) #274, now located the North American Collection, was donated by Mike Naka in 2004 in honor of his grandfather and bonsai master, the late John Y. Naka. 

John Naka purchased this bonsai from a nursery in Los Angeles after traveling from Denver in 1946 and began training the tree in 1948. The bonsai is trained in the formal upright style to invoke the massive height and girth often seen in the species. By keeping the primary branches short and closer to the trunk, Naka provided an even grander image of the species’ height. 

Montezuma cypresses are evergreen in their native warm climate, but their seasonal beauty can truly be appreciated when they are allowed to thrive in Northern climates.

Pond Cypress (with bald cypresses)

This group planting of a pond cypress (Taxodium ascendens) and multiple bald cypresses (Taxodium distichum) #250 is located in the North American Collection. Jim Fritchey and Dick Wild donated the planting, comprised of trees collected from the wild Floridian swamps, in 1990 after arranging the original planting in 1988. 

As the forest in this planting evolved, a number of trees were removed after some trees couldn’t keep up with the competition for light – a common phenomenon in natural forests. The composition was rearranged to ensure the longevity of the planting.

The photo above is how the planting appears at the Museum today. The large pond cypress on the left with a strong lean provides directionality, while the group of bald cypresses on the right provides depth. The seven-foot stone slab, which weighs about 1,500 pounds, evokes a natural look compared to the typical ceramic container. 

Come and visit The National Bonsai & Penjing Museum in all four seasons to experience the beauty of Taxodium in the collection. The lush bright green spring growth and the brilliant red and orange fall foliage is best to appreciate in person. I hope that these trees inspire everyone to work more with native species and create bonsai in a meaningful manner.

Species Spotlight: Chinese Elm (Ulmus parvifolia)

The interesting pattern which gives Lacebark Elms their name.

The Chinese Elm, also known as Ulmus parvifolia or Lacebark Elm, is a deciduous tree species native to China, Korea and Japan. The name Lacebark Elm refers to the interesting pattern created as parts of the tree’s bark flake off with age. This elm is a very hardy species that can grow in moist or dry soils – these trees can survive in USDA Hardiness Zones 4 through 9 – and thrive in hot urban environments. 

The elms typically have an upright trunk with a wide round canopy, and the average height is about 70 feet. This species is also resistant to diseases and pests, like Dutch elm disease and Japanese bark beetle. Three different Ulmus parvifolia are located at the National Bonsai & Penjing Museum.

This Chinese Elm, a penjing donated by Dr. Yee-sun Wu in 1986, resides in the Chinese Collection. The elm has been in training as a penjing since 1956 and was planted in the “rock-clinging” style. In this composition, a beautiful piece of Ying Tak Stone was placed vertically and two Chinese Elms were set in the natural contours of the stone. 

The trunk line of the tree on the left moves leftward up the rock to a wide, rounded canopy. The smaller tree on the right provides foliage mass and adds directionality to the overall composition. The beautiful blue antique container contrasts with the orange-red fall foliage, which can be seen in the late fall months at the Museum. 

Our second Chinese elm, also from the Chinese Collection, was donated by D.C. Metro native Stanley Chinn in 2002. The training age of this tree is unknown, but based on the trunk diameter the tree appears to have grown in the ground for decades before being put into a container. 

The style of this tree is “windswept” or “wind blowing”. The elongated branches on the left and the short branches on the right create the illusion of a powerful wind blowing on the tree from the right side. The interesting and exciting windswept style simultaneously depicts gracefulness and denotes strong environmental conditions.

The last Chinese Elm composition is a wonderful landscape planting, which is part of the Chinese Collection. Penjing Master Yunhua Hu donated the composition in 2004 after he created it earlier that year at the U.S. National Arboretum’s Penjing Symposium. This is an excellent example of penjing in which not just a single tree is displayed, but a combination of trees, understory plants, stones and figurines. The intricate design demonstrates how using multiple smaller trees can create a large and pleasing display. 

The movement of the whimsical trees guides the viewer to settle their gaze on a small stream with a gentleman fishing. The stream pulls the viewer in and provides a nice break between the larger and smaller groupings of trees, adding to the overall directionality of the whole composition. 

Ask to see the outstanding examples of Chinese Elms in our collection on your next visit to the Museum!

Species Spotlight: Japanese Black Pines (Pinus thunbergii)

Enjoy this new blog column, Species Spotlight, from our First Curator’s Assistant, Andy Bello. Be sure to check out more from Andy on our blog with his Historical Tree Spotlights.

Japanese Black Pines growing on rocks in a coastal environment (https://www.chushikokuandtokyo.org/spot_52/)

Japanese black pines (P. thunbergii) are native to the coastal areas of Japan and South Korea, from sea level to about 3,000 feet of elevation. The trees prefer warm moist climates, where they rarely suffer frost. In Japan, the pine has been highly valued for centuries as an ornamental feature in Japanese-style gardens and for bonsai. Japanese black pines are hardy to U.S. Department of Agriculture Zone 6, but the trees can be kept in colder conditions if proper winter protection is provided.

The National Bonsai and Penjing Museum is a wonderful location to experience Japanese black pines as bonsai and penjing. This species is widely used across the world as artistically-trained potted trees, and the many different shapes these trees take are influenced by cultural and personal experiences. Here we will examine and discuss three Japanese black pines that are on display in the Japanese, North American and Chinese collections.

This first Japanese black pine, displayed in the Japanese Pavilion, was part of the original Bicentennial gift to the American people in 1976.  Donated by Goro Ito and in training since 1906, this tree was collected from the wild on the Atsumi Peninsula, located in the Aichi Prefecture. The pine is a beautiful representation of the coastal environment of its origin, mixed with the traditional Japanese bonsai form. Coastal trees tend to flaunt wider upper canopies than trees growing in alpine environments where snow accumulation on branches creates a more narrow, conical form.  

This bonsai’s curved trunk suggests an aged tree that has survived strong coastal winds and typhoons. The asymmetrical triangular form of the foliage mass demonstrates the traditional Japanese bonsai style.

The next Japanese black pine is located in the North American Collection and was donated by George Yamaguchi in 1990. Yamaguchi grew this tree from a seed and has been training the pine since 1955. It is styled as a formal upright bonsai and is known by the name “Shinsei,” meaning “Voice of the Gods.” To me, this tree represents a lone pine growing in a meadow at higher elevation. The strong and numerous branches lower on the trunk indicates that the tree had little to no competition from other trees, in contrast to a pine growing in a forest where lower branches are lost due to lack of light. The overall conical shape of the branches suggests a tree subjected to snowfall at higher elevations.  

This particular tree is a great example of the influence of Japanese bonsai style in North America. The lower right branch establishes the tree’s asymmetrical form, and the foliage pads on each branch are distinctly separated. North American bonsai, very similar to North American culture, are extremely diverse. Thanks to this diversity, there is no right or wrong way to represent the form of a tree in miniature. 

Dr. Yee-sun Wu donated this Japanese black pine, now part of the Chinese Collection, in 1986. The pine has been in training since 1936, but the tree’s origin is unknown. This tree’s style differs greatly from our previously discussed trees. The dramatic movement in the trunk line guides the viewer's eyes up into the foliage mass. The long primary branch, a feature of the “Lingnan” style of penjing common in Southern China, extends dramatically to the right, presenting a strong sense of movement. Penjing, especially in the case of this tree, tend to be more whimsical in their form than Japanese bonsai. The foliage pads are still present but typically are not as “clean cut” as foliage pads on Japanese bonsai. 

Penjing can take many forms other than simply a miniature tree – the trees can be shaped into animal forms, cylygrophy, landscapes and more. For more on penjing, read our interview with bonsai master Qingquan Zhao.