Taxodiaceae

Abstract

Resinous, monoecious trees. Leaves evergreen or annually deciduous and long-persistent, mostly spirally arranged, petiolate or adnate, ± flattened, thin or thick, spreading, linear, awl-shaped, sickle-shaped, or appressed and scale-like, arranged all around leading shoots and often on other strong-growing shoots, branchlet tips and reproductive shoots, but often weakly or strongly orientated into ± pectinate ranks on lateral branches and branchlets, and often variable in form with the age of the tree. Male and female cones arise on the same tree, the female often mainly later in the life of the tree and mostly on higher branches. Male (pollen) cones catkin-like, usually in clustered groups, each of a few to several, spirally-arranged microsporophylls bearing usually 2 pollen sacs. Pollen lacking air-bladders. Female (ovuliferous) cones solitary or in groups, ellipsoid, ovoid or globose, irregularly arranged or subpendant, short or long-stalked, usually globose, their cone scales wedge-shaped or peltate, usually closely imbricated, often soft and fleshy at first, becoming more leathery and stiff with age, seldom highly resinous, each with a few to several oppositely or spirally arranged scales, with or without distinct bracts or cone scales and bract scales fused when mature, the scales each with 2–9 ovules, usually maturing in their first season. Seed winged or unwinged, or irregularly shaped with narrow wing-like borders. Cotyledons 2–15.