Stephen Middleton from the Friends of Alexandra Park introduces us to his selection for the final tree of the month in 2024…

A tree popular in Japan for making coffins is our December Tree of the Month. The Lawson Cypress (Chamaecyparis lawsoniana) can be found by the Boating Lake on the side nearest to the car park. The tree is the one which still has its leaves. It is an evergreen conifer which comes from a mountainous area on the border of the U.S. states of California and Oregon.

While fruitlessly searching for a lost fellow botanist, William Murray found the Lawson cypress by the Sacramento River. He sent the seed to Messrs Lawson of an Edinburgh seed firm and the name has stuck.

In its native land, though, it is called the Port Orford Cedar. It is not a true cedar, but often trees were called cedars if they were evergreen and had a strong aroma.

This tree is probably Britain’s most popular garden conifer with over 200 cultivars (types) of different sizes and colours.

In early spring it can put on quite a display of small bright red male flowers. The female flowers are a more discrete colour and it is they that will evolve into the small roundish cones which are still visible at this time of year. The bark is red and spongy and the leaves are scaly and give off a parsley-like smell.

In the wild this tree can grow for over 500 years and up to 60 metres tall although in this country 30 metres is a more likely maximum height.

The Lawson cypress is sturdy and hardy and can be clipped however it can suffer from drought. It is also susceptible to a type of water mold called Phytophthora lateralis which especially attacks trees in damper areas.

In North America the wood is used for fencing and in the past for shipbuilding as it is resistant to dampness. Other uses include arrow shafts and making musical instruments. 

You can find another Port Orford cedar just down and to the right of the Palm Court by some weeping birch trees.

Also at this time of year, see if you can find the Grand Fir tree down the steep path on the western side of the South Slope which has been decorated with some festive baubles.