bald cypress
A deciduous softwood tree with light brown to reddish-brown, soft, straight-grained wood with a high tannic acid content; grows in wetlands in coastal southeastern and southern U.S., especially Florida and the Mississippi valley; very decay resistant and therefore often used in contact with soil and for exposed elements such as shingles; also used for lumber, flooring, and trim; peak lumbering was in the period 1870-1915; Taxodium distichum or Taxodium ascendens. See also cypress. (Bucher, 1996)