Cupressus bakeri

Jepson 1909

Common Names

Modoc, Baker or Siskiyou cypress (Peattie 1950).

Taxonomic Notes

Synonymy (Farjon 1998):

Cupressus bakeri Jeps. subsp. matthewsii Wolf 1948;
C. macnabiana A. Murray bis var. bakeri (Jeps.) Jepson 1923;
Cupressus bakeri Jeps. subsp. typica Wolf 1948.

Little (2006) has proposed, with strong support from molecular/genetic data, that Cupressus be divided into new world and old world genera. The new world species, which are more closely related to Juniperus than to the old world species, he assigns to Callitropsis Oersted; while the old world species remain in Cupressus L. This species would then become Callitropsis bakeri (Jeps.) D.P. Little.

Description

"Trees to 30 m; crown broadly columnar, sparse. Bark smooth at first, later building up in layers. Branchlets decussate, 0.5-1.3 mm diam. Leaves with conspicuous, pitlike, abaxial gland that produces drop of resin, slightly glaucous. Pollen cones 2-3 × 2-2.5 mm; pollen sacs 3-5. Seed cones globose, mostly 1-2 cm, silvery, not glaucous; scales 3-4 pairs, usually covered with resin blisters, umbos often prominent, those of distal scales erect, to 4 mm. Seeds mostly 3-4 mm, light tan to medium brown, not glaucous to slightly glaucous" (Eckenwalder 1993).

Range

USA: Oregon and California at 1100-2000 m elevation in mixed evergreen forests of the Siskiyou Mountains; of conservation concern (Peattie 1950, Eckenwalder 1993). See also Thompson et al. (1999).

Big Tree

Height 39 m, dbh 104 cm, crown spread 9 m, in Rogue River National Forest, OR (American Forests 2000).

Oldest

Dendrochronology

Ethnobotany

Observations

Little (1970) reports an accessible grove at Miller Lake, near Steve Peak in southeastern Josephine County, Oregon. Wolf (1948) adds that the grove is on the NE slope of Miller Pk., 0.5 mile E of Miller Lake, T.40N, R.5W, S.28, about 0.3 mile by 600 feet at an elevation of 5000-6000 feet. HERE is a Google Maps image of the area; there appears to be a logging road running to Miller Lake. Wolf assigns these trees to his subsp. matthewsi. He also suggest a good site to see his subsp. typica: the "timbered crater" site in Siskiyou County immediately adjoining the NE corner of Shasta Co., California, at T.38N, R.4E, S.2. These trees occur on lava beds in "a remarkably thrifty looking forest of Pinus ponderosa, P. attenuata, Juniperus occidentalis and Libocedrus decurrens."

Remarks

"The northernmost grove of cypress in the New World is a nearly pure stand of 2 acres [0.8 ha] of Modoc cypress, Cupressus bakeri Jeps., on the Rogue River National Forest 4 1/2 miles [7.2 km] west of Prospect and about 30 miles [48 km] northeast of Medford, Jackson County, Oregon. This isolated station was first reported in 1953 by Oliver V. Matthews, of Salem. An authority on Oregon Trees, he collected herbarium specimens (Matthews s.n., Sept. 30, 1953; UC, US), took photographs of the trees, and gave publicity in newapaper articles. "Flounce Rock Grove" had been known since 1926 but was considered to be a juniper. The trees reached a height of 75 feet [23 m] and trunk diameter of 22 inches [56 cm]. The exact locality is SE 1/4, SW 1/4. Sec. 33, T. 32 S., R. 2 E., the latitude 42°45' N., and the altitude, 4,000 feet [1220 m]. The highway between Medford and Crater Lake National Park passes within 3 miles [5 km] of this grove. However, the site is not readily accessible because of rough mountainous topography and absence of a trail. This locality represents a range extension of about 60 miles [96 km] northeast from the Steve Peak area in the Siskiyou Mountains of southeastern Josephine County. ... The name Cupressus bakeri ssp. matthewsii C. B. Wolf (Aliso 1:83, figs. 3 C, 7 B, 22. 1948), Siskiyou cypress, was given to the northern populations. However, the characters in the key (p. 72-73) seem scarcely sufficient for division of the species into 2 varieties" (Little 1970).

"Reports of Cupressus from the State of Washington represent introductions. The Forest Service Herbarium has a specimen of Cupressus macrocarpa Hartw. from near Ilwaco, Pacific Co., about 10 miles [16 km] N. of Columbia River, recorded by the collector Everett Miller as 24 in. [60 cm] D.B.H. and "apparently native." My inquiry some years ago led to information about a plantation there. The coastal strip has a mild, subtropical climate" (Little 1970).

Citations

Jepson, W.L. 1909. A Flora of California, Vol. I, p. 61. http://www.cupressus.net/CUbakeriJepson.html, courtesy of the Cupressus Conservation Project website.