Cupressus lusitanica
Common name: 
Mexican Cypress
Pronunciation: 
ku-PRES-us lu-si-TAN-i-ka
Family: 
Cupressaceae
Genus: 
Cupressus
Synonyms: 
Hesperocyparis lusitanica
Type: 
Conifer
Native to (or naturalized in) Oregon: 
No
  • Native to Mexico, Guatemala and Honduras, not from Portugal as the name lusitanica ("of Portugal") suggests.  The term lusitanica refers to the very early cultivation of the species in Portugal.  Plants were imported from Mexico to a monastery near Coimbra, Portugal in about 1634. 
  • Taxonomy:  The trees of this species growing in Portugal were not described botanically until over 130 years later in 1768 by Phillip Miller, who named the species Cupressus lusitanica. In 2009 a paper was published moving this species and most of the Cupressus of western North America to the new genus, Hesperocyparis.  As of 2024 this is listed as the accepted species name with no subspecies or varieties by Plants of the World Online, World Flora Online, and the Gymnosperm Database.(Wikipedia). For details, click on the Genus Hesperocyparis in the link below.

See Hesperocyparis lusitanica

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