Color tends to be a light, yellowish brown. Sapwood is nearly white. Some pieces can have scattered dark pockets and voids where the wood has been attacked by fungi—called pecky cypress. Also, pieces of old growth cypress salvaged from riverbeds (called sinker cypress) tend to have slightly warmer, darker heartwood colors. Straight grain and medium to coarse texture. Raw, unfinished wood surfaces have a greasy feel. Cypress has a distinct, somewhat sour odor while being worked.
