Cypress
Cypress, Cupressus sempervirens. Rocky mountainous
areas, usually near the coast, in S. Europe.
An evergreen tree growing to 30m by 5m at a medium rate. This
species is somewhat tender in Britain especially when young and at least in
the north of the country, it grows best in the south and the west. The seed
takes two summers to mature. Mature cones can remain unopened on the tree
for a number of years. They open after the heat of a forest fire to scatter
their seeds which then germinate and grow away quickly in the ashes of the
fire. An essential oil is distilled from the shoots. It is used in perfumery
and soap making.
From
http://www.ibiblio.org/pfaf/cgi-bin/arr_html?Cupressus+sempervirens&CAN=LATIND
"...and
cedar
and cypress, and
other kinds unknown in the
Shire, with wide glades among them; and everywhere there was a wealth of
sweet-smelling herbs and shrubs . . . fronds pierced moss and mould,
larches were green-fingered,..." [Back to
Herblore]
