[6] The foliage grows in sparse, very fragrant, usually pendulous sprays, varying from dull gray-green to glaucous blue-green in color.

[7] The seed cones are globose to oblong, covered in warty resin glands, 10–25 mm (3⁄8–1 in) long, with 6 or 8 (rarely 4 or 10) scales, green to brown at first, maturing gray or gray-brown about 20–24 months after pollination.

Jepson changed his mind about this classification in 1923, publishing a description of it as a subspecies named Cupressus macnabiana var.

This includes locales in the Modoc Plateau, southern Cascade Range, Klamath Mountains, and northern Sierra Nevada.

[5] The tree's thin bark makes it susceptible to wildfire, exposure to which is required to release the seeds; these then colonize the scorched earth left behind.