Taxodium mucronatum

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Taxodium mucronatum, commonly known as Montezuma bald cypress,[1] Montezuma cypress,[2] Script error: No such module "Lang".,[3] or Script error: No such module "Lang".,[2] is a tree in the family Cupressaceae. It is primarily native to Mexico and Guatemala, with a few populations in the southwestern United States.[4] Script error: No such module "Lang". is derived from the Nahuatl name for the tree, Script error: No such module "Lang"., which means 'upright drum in water'[5] or 'old man of the water'.[6]

Description

It is a large evergreen or semi-evergreen tree growing to Script error: No such module "convert". tall and with a trunk of Script error: No such module "convert". diameter (occasionally much more; see below). The leaves are spirally arranged but twisted at the base to lie in two horizontal ranks, Script error: No such module "convert". long and Script error: No such module "convert". broad. The cones are ovoid, Script error: No such module "convert". long and Script error: No such module "convert". broad. Unlike bald cypress and pond cypress, Montezuma cypress rarely produces cypress knees from the roots.[6] Trees from the Mexican highlands achieve a notable stoutness.

One specimen, the Árbol del Tule in Santa María del Tule, Oaxaca, Mexico, is the stoutest tree in the world with a diameter of Script error: No such module "convert".. Several other specimens from Script error: No such module "convert". diameter are known. The second stoutest tree in the world is the Big Baobab, an African baobab.

Distribution and habitat

File:Montezuma Bald Cypress (Taxodium mucronatum), Rio Pilón near Villagrán, Municipality of Villagrán, Tamaulipas, Mexico (9 August 2005).jpg
Montezuma bald cypress (Taxodium mucronatum), growing on the Rio Pilón near Villagrán, Municipality of Villagrán, Tamaulipas, Mexico (9 August 2005)

Montezuma cypress is primarily a riparian tree, growing along upland riversides, but can also be found next to springs and marshes. It occurs from Script error: No such module "convert"., in Mexico mainly in highlands at Script error: No such module "convert". in altitude. T. mucronatum is very drought-tolerant and fast-growing[7] and favors climates that are rainy throughout the year or at least with high summer rainfall.

Taxodium mucronatum is native to much of Mexico as far south as the highlands of southern Mexico.[6] Two disjunct populations exist in the United States. One is in the Rio Grande Valley of southernmost Texas, while the other is in southern New Mexico, near Las Cruces.[8][9] Within Guatemala, the tree is restricted to Huehuetenango Department.[4]

Culture

File:Árbol-del-Tule-Oaxaca-Mexico.jpg
"Árbol del Tule", in Santa María del Tule, Oaxaca, Mexico

The Script error: No such module "Lang". became the national tree of Mexico in 1910.[10] The tree is sacred to the native peoples of Mexico, and is featured in the Zapotec creation myth.[11] To the Aztecs, the combined shade of an Script error: No such module "Lang". and a Script error: No such module "Lang". (Ceiba pentandra) metaphorically represented a ruler's authority.[12] According to legend,[13] Hernán Cortés wept under an ahuehuete in Popotla[14] after suffering defeat during the Battle of La Noche Triste.[15]

This plant is mentioned in the 2015 short story "Rivers" by John Keene, which reimagines the story of Mark Twain's Adventures of Huckleberry Finn.[16]

Uses

File:Ahuehuetes en Chapultepec.jpg
An 1875 painting, Ahuehuetes en Chapultepec, by José María Velasco Gómez depicting the cypress by the lake in Chapultepec.

Montezuma cypresses have been used as ornamental trees since Pre-Columbian times. The Aztecs planted Script error: No such module "Lang". along processional paths in the gardens of Chapultepec because of its association with government.[17] Artificial islands called Script error: No such module "Lang". were formed in the shallow lakes of the Valley of Mexico by adding soil to rectangular areas enclosed by trees such as Script error: No such module "Lang".;[6] they also lined the region's canals prior to Spanish conquest.[10]

Ahuehuetes are frequently cultivated in Mexican parks and gardens. The wood is used to make house beams and furniture,.[15] The Aztecs used its resin to treat gout, ulcers, skin diseases, wounds, and toothaches. A decoction made from the bark was used as a diuretic and an emmenagogue. Pitch derived from the wood was used as a cure for bronchitis The leaves acted as a relaxant and could help reduce itching.[18] In some parts of Mexico the foliage is used to decorate church altars during religious ceremonies.[19]

John Naka, a bonsai master, donated his very first bonsai, a Montezuma cypress, to the National Bonsai and Penjing Museum of the United States. Script error: No such module "Unsubst".

A linear grove is located in the main courtyard of the Getty Center Art Museum, thriving since 1995.[20]

Hybrids

  • Taxodium × 'LaNana' (T. distichum × T. mucronatum)[21]
  • Taxodium 'Zhongshansa' (T. distichum × T. mucronatum)[22]

References

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  7. ↑ Script error: No such module "Citation/CS1".
  8. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  9. ↑ Script error: No such module "Citation/CS1".
  10. ↑ a b Script error: No such module "Citation/CS1".
  11. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  12. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  13. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  14. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  15. ↑ a b Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  16. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  17. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  18. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  19. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  20. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  21. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  22. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".

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General references

  • Eguiluz T. 1982. Clima y Distribución del género pinus en México. Distrito Federal. Mexico.
  • Rzedowski J. 1983. Vegetación de México. Distrito Federal, Mexico.
  • Martínez, Maximinio. 1978. Catálogo de nombres vulgares y científicos de plantas mexicanas.

External links

Template:Sister project

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Template:Cupressaceae Template:Taxonbar

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