Hesperocyparis goveniana

Gowen cypress

Family: Cupressaceae · Type: tree · Native

Conservation status: CNPS 1B.2 · Threatened

Gowen cypress is a rare (CNPS 1B.2) California native tree found in central Coast Range counties, specifically on the Monterey Peninsula in closed-cone pine/cypress forests, maritime chaparral, and coastal terraces at elevations of 50 to 160 meters. A compact conifer with distinctive bark that peels in linear strips or irregular plates, this tree typically grows 5 to 7 meters tall with smooth brown to gray bark that becomes increasingly rough with age. Its branches are slender, cylindrical, and approximately one millimeter in diameter, supporting bright to yellow-green foliage. The tree produces small, nearly spherical seed cones 14 to 20 millimeters long, ranging from brown to gray-brown with 6 to 10 scales. Dark brown to nearly black seeds, measuring 2 to 4.5 millimeters long, are nestled within these distinctive compact cones.

Habitat: Closed-cone-pine/cypress forests, mixed-evergreen forest, maritime chaparral, coastal terraces

Elevation: 50-160 m

Bioregions: c CCo (Monterey Peninsula).

Data from The California Species Project — 14,000+ California species with verified data from CNPS, CDFW, USFWS, Jepson eFlora, Cal-IPC, and more.