Cupressus vietnamensis

The species was described in 2002 and, together with the close North American species Chamaecyparis nootkatensis , is placed as a type species in the new genus Xanthocyparis ^[1] . Later, on the basis of molecular genetic data, the genus Xanthocyparis began to be considered at the rank of a subgenus of the genus Cypress ^[2] .

Most of the known populations are located in the north of Vietnam in the provinces of Hazyang , Tuenkuang and Kaobang . The only specimen of this conifer was found in the Mulun Biosphere Reserve in the Guangxi Zhuang region of southern China . There is no other data about the species in China ^[3] .

It grows in the mountains on limestone rocks at altitudes of 1000 - 1200 m. in mixed coniferous and deciduous forests. Amentotaxus argotaenia , Nageia wallichiana , Pseudotsuga sinensis , Podocarpus pilgeri , Taxus chinensis , deciduous species are represented by species of maple , oak , lithocarpus , hornbeam , elm and others ^[4] .

The tree is 10–15 m high, the trunk diameter is up to 50 cm. The bark is reddish-brown, exfoliated by thin flakes and stripes. The branches are long, extending more or less horizontally. The crown in young trees is pyramid, in the old it loses this shape.

Male cones up to 3.5 mm long, oval-cylindrical. Female - up to 12 mm long, almost spherical. Arranged singly or 2-3 on mature leafy sprigs. Shoots in nature not detected ^[4] .

The wood is dense, fragrant, yellow.

In places of natural growth it suffers from logging, but because of the difficulty of transportation, wood is sold only locally. Vietnamese scientists proposed to create a protected zone in the habitats of the species ^[4] .

Vietnamese cypress grows well in culture. Propagated by green cuttings ^[5] .