CYPRESS
Gorka, Oihane and Ane Miren
Tarjet group number: 8
Genus: Cupressus
Kingdom: Plantae
Vulgar name
Spanish: ciprés
Basque: nekosta
Italian: cipresso
Greek: κυπαρίσσι
Morphological description
Uses, threats and singularity
The tree of cypress was famous in the ancient cultures for his multiple medicinal uses. The cypress contains a substance called "tannin" which has the property of treating effectively the haemorrhoids, the varicose veins, infected blackheads, tumors of the skin, cutaneous sores, hernias and other types of abultamiento of the skin.
Threats:
To medicinal level, the virtues of the cypress are outlined particularly on the circulatory system, treating varicose veins, capillary weakness and menstrual disorders (already it is a question of excessively abundant rules or of vaginal hemorrhages not related to the menstruation), in the masculine case, it is probadamente effective against the varicocele. It is also beneficial to attenuate and to cure the alterations of the renal system (cystitis or urinary infections, problems with the prostate), of the respiratory system (bronchitis, asthma, sinusitis, spasmodic coughs) and of the digestive system (haemorrhoids, diarrheas, sores, etc.). Also, between other many functions, he relieves inflammations, edemas and rheumatic pains in general.
Singularity:
Many of the species are adapted to forest fires, holding their seeds for many years in closed cones until the parent trees are killed by a fire; the seeds are then released to colonise the bare, burnt ground. In other species, the cones open at maturity to release the seeds.
Many species are grown as decorative trees in parks and, in Asia, around temples; in some areas, the native distribution is hard to discern due to extensive cultivation. A few species are grown for their timber, which can be very durable.
Symbolism
Cyparissus
In Greek mythology, Cyparissus or Kyparissos (Greek: Κυπάρισσος, "cypress") was a boy beloved by Apollo, or in some versions by other deities. In the best-known version of the story, the favorite companion of Cyparissus was a tamed stag, which he accidentally killed with his hunting javelin as it lay sleeping in the woods. The boy's grief was such that it transformed him into a cypress tree, a classical symbol of mourning. The myth is thus aetiological in explaining the relation of the tree to its cultural significance.