Mt. Tam Places: Thanks for this great question today from Jessica, who came in to interview the Visitor Center for a class project. "What is the Pygmy Cypress Forest?" A completely stumper, at the time, but a little internet searching reveals the secret: "A Forest of Dwarf Cypress" On the slopes of Mount Tam grows a forest of small cypress trees (Cupressus pigmaea). Lack of nutrients in the mountain’s serpentine soil stunts the growth of these trees, causing them to mature when only a few feet tall. To visit this pygmy cypress forest, take either the Ben Stein Trail north from Rock Springs or the Old Stage Road half a mile northeast of the Bootjack Picnic Area." parksconservancy.org/visit/park-sites/mount-tamalpais.html It looks like there is another forest in the foothills of Mt. Tam, by Kent Lake, at the Gary Giacomini Open Space Preserve: marincountyparks.org/depts/pk/divisions/open-space/gary-giacomini Jessica: you can let your teacher know that because of your question, information about the pygmy cypress forest has now been added to the Wikipedia page for Pygmy Forests. Thanks for helping make the world a little smarter, today! https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pygmy_forest
Posted on: Mon, 23 Sep 2013 04:27:49 +0000
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