HISTORY OF THE LEYLAND CYPRESS

The Leyland Cypress is not found in the wild. It is a hybrid between the pollen of the Monterey Cypress and the cones of the Alaskan Cedar. This occurred accidentally on a Welch estate in 1892. These two species from the North American West Coast, that would otherwise never have met, were growing close together. They interbred and produced this hardy hybrid.

The hybrid, the “Leyland Cypress”, was named after Christopher John Naylor (1849-1926) a sea captain who had changed his surname to Leyland in 1891 when he inherited the Leyland Estates.

The second accidental crossing occurred in 1911; this time it happened when the cones of the Moneterey Cypress were fertilized with pollen from the Nootka. This hybrid was named the “Leighton Green.”

In 1926, specimens were collected and officially recognized as botanically unique and given a name.

All of the 20 clones of the Leyland cypress now grown originated from one of these accidental couplings of these two species. Because these are sterile hybrids producing neither pollen nor seeds, they are propagated by cuttings from side growths.

Leyland Cypress cuttings were brought to California in 1941. In 1965, a forester for Clemson University, Dr. Roland Schoeniker, became interested in growing them as a Christmas tree for the southeast.

After 1980 when the Leyland Cypress was introduced into the Wayside Gardens mail order catalog, it became popular as a fast growing privacy screen.