Bald cypress "knees"

[armetisius]

In Illinois, the natural reproduction limit . . . @armetisius doesn't mention bald cypress, but I could speculate the knees would make it difficult . . . but that is shear speculation on my part. . . . So who knows why they make knees?

That was the point of my entire conjecture; it is ALL speculation on any of our parts
on this topic or some others. There are/were times that we could not possibly have any real
comprehension of that went into play forming these plants make up. And just like in the movie,
"The Core" , ". . . yes, yes; that's all science really is, best guess."
We can speculate--that is all.

 

[M. Frary]

What's the best way to determine who is the head nurse at the hospital?

 

[sorce]

What's the best way to determine who is the head nurse at the hospital?

Drumroll.....

Sorce

 

[M. Frary]

She will be the one with dirty knees!

 

[sorce]

Lol not fair.....

I already had a shot bubble...
And it almost popped in my screen!

Sorce

 

[Mellow Mullet]

Knees, the article posted by @armetisius doesn't mention bald cypress, but I could speculate the knees would make it difficult for mastodons and mammoths or even herbivorous dinosaurs to walk around the tree and eat foliage. - but that is shear speculation on my part. AND if this were the "purpose" of knees, why is it that knees don't appear normally until trees are over 25 or more years old. One reference I read said knees don't develop until tree is over 70 years old, but then I drove past a hedgerow of BC that was clearly man planted, and the house they were near was no more than 40 years old, trees looked 40 years old, and yet they had well developed knees. So obviously they can make knees younger than 70 years old. But if the knees were to prevent predation by large herbivores, the knees should appear sooner, not later in the BC life cycle. They definitely are a trait of only fully mature trees. So who knows why they make knees?

I think that they will make them sooner that 7 years, my dad has one, in a pot, that is 20-30 years old that has knees. It started forming them around 15, I think. Grown from seed. I have a clump that is around the same age that has a knee forming.

John

 

[rockm]

There is speculation that BC doesn't grow as far north as it could because seedlings are girdled by ice and snow. Don't know if that theory holds up well though.

 

[Mellow Mullet]

I think that they will make them sooner that 7 years, my dad has one, in a pot, that is 20-30 years old that has knees. It started forming them around 15, I think. Grown from seed. I have a clump that is around the same age that has a knee forming.

John

That was supposed to say "sooner than 70 years...", stupid brain!

John

 

[GrimLore]

There is speculation that BC doesn't grow as far north as it could because seedlings are girdled by ice and snow. Don't know if that theory holds up well though.

We have them growing on some of the local preserves and Longwood Gardens has some spectacular old ones with a lot of knees. We have also grown them at the old house and yesterday potted up three replacements here. I am certain they grow in the Northern most part of New York as well - My Sister has a few there. The three we potted yesterday were from Tennessee and strangely enough that area is the same USDA Zone as here being 6b. They do grow differently for certain then the swamp grown - here if left alone they look like very soft Christmas trees.

Grimmy

 

[rockm]

We have them growing on some of the local preserves and Longwood Gardens has some spectacular old ones with a lot of knees. We have also grown them at the old house and yesterday potted up three replacements here. I am certain they grow in the Northern most part of New York as well - My Sister has a few there. The three we potted yesterday were from Tennessee and strangely enough that area is the same USDA Zone as here being 6b. They do grow differently for certain then the swamp grown - here if left alone they look like very soft Christmas trees.

Grimmy

Their native range is no further north that southern Ill. There are no Bald Cypress domes in swamps in the north. Those are very common in the South. Trap Pond Park in Delaware has the northernmost natural stand of old growth bald cypress on the East Coast. There are also some northerly stands along the Chesapeake Bay up into Maryland. They have been introduced further north of course, but they're not naturally present in any numbers nor are there any old growth trees in the North.

They're not really growing "differently." They're not old enough to have developed the flat topped image. That can take a while. BC are extremely apically dominant trees. They tend to die from the ground up, losing lower branches, until the final apex branching is all that's left. They then start to try to push branches back down their trunks at the ends of their long lives.

 

[coh]

I don't know if it can reproduce here, but I've had a bald cypress in my growing bed for the past 3 years. Our winters don't seem to phase it.

 

[markatulio]

I think that they will make them sooner that 7 years, my dad has one, in a pot, that is 20-30 years old that has knees. It started forming them around 15, I think. Grown from seed. I have a clump that is around the same age that has a knee forming.

John

Mellow Mullet, a question if I may. Do you and your Dad grow your Bald Cypress in a containers with no drainage holes to keep it constantly in water or a more wet a bonsai soil mix? Do you transplant every 3-5 years or much longer? I knew a man that had grown one from the size of a pencil all the way to almost a foot across and had two knees. I asked him how he grew it and he always seemed to change his story just a little bit but in a nutshell he said that he never transplanted it and always kept it in a container with no drainage holes. Could this actually be true?

 

[Mellow Mullet]

In this thread, http://www.bonsainut.com/threads/progression-of-one-of-my-bald-cypress.17185/, it shows how we grow them. The pot is submerged in a cement mixing tub, spring through fall. It is removed for winter and gets regular watering. I repot mine every couple of years, they will actually fill the pot with roots in one season and will grow out of the drainage holes several feet at times (see pictures in the thread). I would think that it would have to be repotted regularly as I have had them start pushing themselves out of the pot, actually breaking the wires that were holding it in. My dad had one break a pot with pressure from the roots. So, I don't see how, but I guess it might be possible.

John

 

[markatulio]

In this thread, http://www.bonsainut.com/threads/progression-of-one-of-my-bald-cypress.17185/, it shows how we grow them. The pot is submerged in a cement mixing tub, spring through fall. It is removed for winter and gets regular watering. I repot mine every couple of years, they will actually fill the pot with roots in one season and will grow out of the drainage holes several feet at times (see pictures in the thread). I would think that it would have to be repotted regularly as I have had them start pushing themselves out of the pot, actually breaking the wires that were holding it in. My dad had one break a pot with pressure from the roots. So, I don't see how, but I guess it might be possible.

John

Great information! I love this site. Thanks for pointing me in the right direction John!

Mark

 

[Underdog]

I may just set mine in the pond for the summer.

 

[Underdog]

Hoping he likes it.

 

[sorce]

I love this site.

Not the knees thread!

Crazy ain't it...
You can't hide!

Welcome to it!

Sorce