The bald cypress is a southern tree of ancient origin, the
well-known cypress of Montezuma in the gardens of Chepultepec having
been a species of Taxodium. The tree is now confined to the swamps
and river banks of the South Atlantic and Gulf States, where it
often forms extensive forests to the exclusion of all other trees.
In those regions along the river swamps, the trees are often
submerged for several months of the year.

How to tell them from each other: In summer the larch may be told from
the cypress by its leaves (compare Figs. 14 and 16). In winter the
two can be distinguished by their characteristic forms. The larch is
a broader tree as compared with the cypress and its form is more
conical. The cypress is more slender and it is taller. The two have
been grouped together in this study because they are both coniferous
trees and, unlike the other Conifers, are both deciduous, their
leaves falling in October.

[Illustration: FIG. 14.--Twig of the Larch in Summer.]


THE EUROPEAN LARCH (_Larix europaea_)

Distinguishing characters: Its leaves, which are needle-shaped and about
an inch long, are borne in *clusters* close to the twig, Fig. 14.
There are many leaves to each cluster. This characteristic together
with the *spire-like* form of the crown will distinguish the tree at
a glance.

Leaf: The leaves are of a light-green color but become darker in the