Sinker Cypress: Treasures Of A Lost Landscape
Beautiful Sinker Cypress from Albany Woodworks makes for a warm and welcoming interior installed in our customer’s home. To find out more about adding Antique Sinker Cypress to your home, visit our website here
Ever wondered why some cypress are considered bald and why they are so popular in the deep south? In an article from the Country Roads Magazine called Bald Cypress, the author answers these questions and more.
The term “bald” comes from the fact that, unlike other conifers, the bald cypress’ needles change color in the fall before falling off completely, leaving the tree “bald”. They are incredibly hardy trees, able to live in fresh water, brackish water (mix of salt and fresh) and even on dry land. Their prevalence in the Louisiana swamps and beauty caused a 4th grade class to recommend it as Louisiana’s state tree. It was decreed the state tree in 1962.
Cypress trees have always been an important tree in Louisiana history. Due to the cypressene oil that the trees contain, the wood is rot-resistant, making it an ideal material to build boats, pirogues, and skiffs. Cypress wood is also termite resistant (a prevalent issue in Louisiana) making it perfect for homes! The virgin-growth Cypress forests were harvested in the early twentieth century as Louisiana became more settled. Some of the trees fell into the swamps, lakes and rivers they were being harvested from, never recovered and sat submerged for hundreds of years.
Sinker Cypress logs that are over 100 years old, waiting to be milled at Albany Woodworks.
However, these logs are being pulled by today’s craftsman like Albany Woodworks and are prized for their enduring beauty. The most coveted type of cypress is called pecky cypress. It gets its name from the pecks and elongated burrows in the wood caused by a fungus that attacks the heartwood. These imperfections give the wood a unique depth of character not found in any other native wood.
To find out more about Cypress Trees and their unique features, read the full story here.