Common Names

SHUI SONG [water pine] (Cheng and Fu 1978), Chinese deciduous cypress, Canton water pine (Dallimore et al. 1967), Vietnamese: Thông nuóc, Thuy tùng, H'ral (FIPI 1996).

Taxonomic notes

The sole species in Glyptostrobus Endlicher 1847.

Syn: G. lineatus (Poiret) Druce; G. heterophyllus Endlicher; G. sinensis Loder; Taxodium heterophyllum Brongniart (Vidakovic 1991), T. sinense Forbes, Thuja lineata Poiret, T. pensilis Staunton (Dallimore et al. 1967).

Description

Tree 20-30 m tall and 60-70(-120) cm dbh. Crown conical, lower branches spreading, upper ones more erect. Air roots grow from lateral roots, and spread up to 6-7 m around the base of tree. Bark thick, greyish-brown, longitudinally fissured. Shoots of two kinds, long and short. Leaves delicate green when young, rich brown in autumn; those on the long shoots (representing fruiting branchlets and mature persistent vegetative branchlets) overlapping and scale-like; those on the short shoots (representing terminal barren branchlets) needle-like, sickle-shaped, enlarged at the base, quadrangular in cross section, 8-12 mm long, on one-year shoots and young trees 2-ranked. Pollen cones terminal on short shoots. Ovulate cones terminal on lateral shoots, pear-shaped or ovate, 12-18 mm long, stalked, disintegrating. Cone scales obovate, thin, bearing wart-like, sub-apical teeth and a small, triangular mucro above their centre. Seeds ovate or oblong, 5-6 mm long, thin-coated and terminated by a hatchet-shaped wing about 3 mm long. Cotyledons 4-5 (Dallimore et al. 1967, Vidakovic 1991, FIPI 1996).

Similar to Taxodium, from which it differs in having pear-shaped, long-stalked cones, obovate scales, and small-winged seeds (Dallimore et al. 1967).

Range

China: Guangzhou, usually in low, damp, riparian areas (Dallimore et al. 1967, Vidakovic 1991); Vietnam. Formerly, it was common in many provinces of Vietnam, now only found in some places of Dac Lac province (Ea H' Leo and Krong Buk districts). Grows as a dominant tree in permanently inundated swampy forest, sometimes in pure stands (FIPI 1996).

Big Tree

The largest measurement I have seen reported is 19.8 m tall and 44.7 cm dbh (65 ft by 55.25 in girth), for a tree in the Arboretum at the University of California, Davis (Arthur L. Jacobson email 2007.08.24).

Oldest

Dendrochronology

Ethnobotany

The timber is highly valued, aromatic with fine texture, resistant to termites and insects, easy to work. Used for cabinet work, fine art articles, musical instruments, office furniture, and turnery. The root is soft and spongy and can be used for making corks and life buoys FIPI 1996.

Observations

They are not uncommon in warm-temperate or subtropical botanical gardens and arboreta, but I have no information on finding them in habitat.

Remarks

Has "breathing roots" as in Taxodium (Vidakovic 1991).

Listed as threatened in Viet Nam by the World Conservation Monitoring Centre. Fewer than 100 individuals still exist and they must be effectively protected in Krong Buk Nature Reserve and developed by vegetative production FIPI 1996.

See Also

Farjon (2005).

Luu and Thomas (2004) provide a recent description, range map, conservation status, drawings and photos, and a wealth of additional information.

Wu and Raven (1999).