Hesperocyparis goveniana is an
evergreen tree with a conic to ovoid-conic crown, very variable in size, with mature trees of under on some sites, to tall in ideal conditions. The
foliage grows in dense sprays, dark green to somewhat yellow-green in color. The
leaves are scale-like, long, and produced on rounded (not flattened) shoots. The seed
cones are globose to oblong, long, with 6 to 10 scales, green at first, maturing brown or gray-brown about 20–24 months after pollination. The cones remain closed for many years, only opening after the parent tree is killed in a
wildfire, thereby allowing the
seeds to colonize the bare ground exposed by the fire. The male cones are long, and release pollen in February/March. Typically cones of
H. goveniana are smaller than those of
H. macrocarpa.
Taxonomy Hesperocyparis goveniana was first described and given the scientific name
Cupressus goveniana by
George Gordon in 1849. In 2009 genetic research into the relationships of
Cupressus and
Juniperus lead to the reclassification of almost all the new world species into a new genus,
Hesperocyparis by Jim A. Bartel. but as of 2024
Plants of the World Online (POWO), and the USDA
Natural Resources Conservation Service PLANTS database (PLANTS) all list
Hesperocyparis goveniana as the correct name. The
varieties or
subspecies, formerly included under
Cupressus goveniana include: •
Cupressus goveniana var.
goveniana — reclassified as
Hesperocyparis goveniana. :
Monterey County, strictly coastal, within of the coast and below altitude. Foliage dark green, not rough, with leaf tips not spreading; cones globose. •
Cupressus goveniana var.
pigmaea, reclassified as
Hesperocyparis pygmaea — Mendocino cypress (vulnerable species). :
Mendocino and
Sonoma counties, coastal, within of the coast and below altitude. •
Cupressus goveniana var.
abramsiana, reclassified as
Hesperocyparis abramsiana — Santa Cruz cypress (endangered species). :
Santa Cruz and
San Mateo counties, in the
Santa Cruz Mountains inland and at altitude. With yellow–green foliage slightly rough-textured from the acute and slightly spreading leaf tips; cones often oval. ==References==