Montezuma Cypress

Taxodium mucronatum

Hills guide picknative · Central Texassold locally

Montezuma Cypress is a large tree native to Central Texas that grows 60–100 ft tall and 25–50 ft wide. It wants full sun or part shade and medium water, and handles clay soil. Blooms brown in Feb–Mar. Good for birds.

Will it grow in your yard?

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From our guide

Village of the Hills

Nearly evergreen cypress with a massive spreading trunk and finer, more pendulous foliage than bald cypress.

Why it works here

Faster than bald cypress and holds foliage far longer through a mild winter. Handles alkaline water better.

Watch out

Needs room — this is a heritage-scale tree, not a courtyard specimen. Still wants consistent moisture.

The facts

8 sources

Type: Large tree
Sun: Full sun to part shade (3+ hrs)
Water: Medium
Height: 60–100 ft
Spread: 25–50 ft
Bloom: Feb–Mar · brown
Foliage: Deciduous
Soil: Takes clay · recorded on clay, loam, moist, sand
Deer: Moderate — deer may browse it, especially new growth. As bald cypress — foliage safe, young trunk is not.
Wildlife: Supports birds

Size, sun, water and foliage from the Village of the Hills guide; the rest resolved across sources.

Where it grows

No Level IV record in the launch area yet. Recorded in these Texas ecoregions:

Gulf Coast Prairies and Marshes

21 occurrence records in Central Texas (GBIF).

Can you buy it?

Sold at local nurseries. Confirmed in stock at a Central Texas grower in these sizes:

2.5–4.5 inch pots1, 5, 15, 30, 45, 65, 95, 200 gallon

From the growers we read so far — a short list, not the whole trade. Call ahead.