Having fallen to rest beneath the murky swamp water, these trees, called sinker cypress, are highly prized and valuable.

En route to the lake, logs sometimes strayed from the tow and sank to the bottom, abandoned however, the wood is so rot-resistant that these logs can still be found intact.

In the heyday of cypress harvesting, the felled logs were floated out of the shallow swamps into deeper lakes or canals. In the early twentieth century, timber and lumber companies harvested hundreds of thousands of acres of cypress trees, which resulted in the depletion of the old-growth “virgin” cypress. Also termite resistant, the old wood was ideal for building homes and Acadian-style homes still standing today are proof of the lumber’s durability. The oil renders the wood rot-resistant, making it an ideal boat-building material in the past, it was used to build pirogues as well as larger bateaus and skiffs. Heartwood of old-growth cypress contains cypressene oil, giving the wood valuable characteristics that enable it to thrive in the South Louisiana climate. They also grow on the fringes of freshwater lakes and ponds, and can now be seen as landscape features on dry ground.Ĭypress trees were once an historical construction mainstay for Louisiana natives and settlers. Unlike other conifers, the bald cypress’ needles turn a dark, burnt-orange in the fall before dropping off the branches during winter, leaving the tree “bald.”Īble to thrive in standing freshwater, bald cypress grow wild in Louisiana’s swamps. The term “bald,” an apt descriptor, comes from a unique winter event that sets this cypress apart from other conifers, which are evergreen. As such, this stately tree was recommended as Louisiana’s official tree by a Baton Rouge fourth-grade class in 1962, with an official act of proclamation following in May 1963. The statuesque trees are a staple of Louisiana wetlands and have deep utilitarian value to humans, wildlife, and the environment. I was very, very excited!!!ĭeep in the swamp, the darkness of alluvial mud creates a reflective canvas on the surface of the still water, mirroring the images of bald cypress that tower above picturesque waterways throughout Louisiana. This article received a Excellence in Craft 1st Place award in Magazine Regular Feature from the Louisiana Outdoor Writers Association in 2014.

Under The Cypress Tree by Ashleigh Z.