Taxodium distichum 'Pevé Minaret' is an amazing bald cypress selection that grows like a miniature tree; even at 2 feet (0.6 m) tall, its branching mimics that of a mature wild specimen. It develops a main leader with dense side branches and grows with a very narrow habit and will stay much smaller and denser than the species. The terminal branch foliage becomes smaller and tighter toward the ends, creating the effect of tiny minarets. A grove of these would fit nicely in a small garden. After ten years of growth, a mature specimen will stand up to 6 feet (2 m) tall and 2.5 feet (0.8 m) wide. This is a tree that responds quite nicely to pruning. A common practice is to reduce all lateral branches down to 2 inches (5 cm) on a yearly basis. This practice will keep the plant tidy and increase the number of minarets throughout the plant.
This cultivar originated as a seedling selected in 1990 by Piet Vergeldt of Lottum, The Netherlands from chemically treated seeds to induce mutations. This a selection made from the results. This was one of three plants selected in 2010 for the ACS Collectors Conifer of the Year program.
