Cupressus sempervirens Swane's Gold

Cupressus sempervirens 'Swane's Gold' is a variety of Cypress tree that is exceptional for its golden foliage. With a naturally narrow habit, this evergreen conifer forms a bright and decorative column throughout the year. It grows rapidly during its early years and can live for 500 years, eventually developing the characteristic silhouette that marks the Mediterranean landscapes. This Cypress is perfect for framing an entrance, bordering a long pathway, or structuring a large flowerbed. It is a valuable tree for southern gardens as it can tolerate rocky and poor soils, drought, and strong winds.

Cupressus sempervirens is a species of the cypress family that is believed to be native to Asia but has been acclimatised to Mediterranean regions for a long time due to its excellent adaptation to drought, wind, and poor soils. In nature, it is found in dry and open forests, usually on limestone soil. It is similar to Chamaecyparis but differs in its rounded branchlets arranged in clusters around the main axis, and its larger cones with woody scales. Like many cypresses, it does not appreciate pruning, which promotes and spreads the diseases that can affect these conifers.

'Swane's Gold' is a seedling of the 'Stricta' form, discovered in the Swane brothers' nursery located in New South Wales, Australia. It was introduced to the market in 1956. 'Stricta' is found in the wild among populations of cypresses with a wider habit. It is a natural mutation that has upright branches and produces fruits. Interestingly, some of its offspring have a very horizontal habit, which is why they are called C.sempervirens var. horizontalis.

'Swane's Gold' is a tall and narrow form, reaching a height of 10m or more, with a spread of 2m. At the age of 10, under good conditions, it will reach about 3m high and 30cm wide. Its annual growth is estimated at 30cm. This variety produces fruits, which can weigh down and widen the branches, resulting in a slightly dishevelled, but still charming silhouette. This cypress has aromatic foliage, made up of small blunt leaves with resinous glands, overlapping on short branchlets that are themselves arranged on upright branches. Its young spring foliage is strongly yellow, gradually turning chartreuse green in summer, and sometimes bronze to orange hues in winter if temperatures are low enough. Like all common cypresses, its wood is highly fragrant and reveals resin under a thin and fissured brown-grey bark. It has a tap root, allowing it to anchor deeply in the soil to draw water and nutrients and withstand even strong winds. Its hardiness is quite good in well-drained soil, around -12°C/-14°C once mature. However, its tall shape does not tolerate the weight of snow, which can permanently deform it!

The 'Swane's Gold' Cypress is perfect for framing an entrance, planted in groups of three, as was once customary in Provence, as a sign to welcome visitors and a beacon for lost travellers indicating a human and welcoming presence, fresh water, or a warm fire in the hearth. It is a boon for gardens on limestone plateaus with rocky soil, where few trees thrive and its majestic habit uniquely structures a contemporary, Italian, or Mediterranean garden. It can also be used as a standalone specimen, surrounded by grey foliage (Artemisia, lavender, Perovskia atriplicifolia 'Blue Spire') or dwarf conifers with a rounded or prostrate habit, or even in a row along a grand pathway.

The Cypress of Provence symbolises immortality. Its fragrant wood, which was once present in all funeral rites, was also burned as incense.