Trees (rarely shrubs) evergreen, monoecious; branchlets ascending, rarely pendulous, often decussately arranged, terete or 4-angled in cross section. Leaves decussate, 4-ranked; juvenile leaves needlelike; adult leaves scalelike, with an abaxial resin gland, usually not dimorphic along branchlets. Pollen cones ovoid or oblong; microsporophylls 6-16, each with 2-6 pollen sacs. Seed cones terminal, solitary, globose or subglobose, dehiscent when mature in 2nd year; cone scales 8-16, decussate, peltate, woody, each fertile scale bearing 3-20 seeds; free bract apex a short mucro. Seeds slightly flattened, ridged, with lateral, narrow wings. Cotyledons 2-5.

About 17 species: N Africa, Asia, S Europe, SW North America; nine species (four endemic, four introduced) in China.

Cupressus cashmeriana Royle ex Carrière (Traité Gén. Conif., ed. 2, 1: 161. 1867) known with certainly only from Bhutan, might possibly extend into China, in SE Xizang. That is if Cupressus assamica Silba (J. Intern. Conifer Preserv. Soc. 1: 19. 1994) described from SE Xizang with Kingdon Ward 12449 (BM) as the holotype, is indeed a synonym of C. casmeriana, as was given by A. Farjon (World Checkl. Bibliogr. Conif. 45. 1998).