The cypress knees function not unlike the barb on a fish hook. When fierce winds push on the tree's trunk, there is exerted a distinct pull on the tree's support roots.

PEBBLE BEACH, CALIF.—You’ve seen the Lone Cypress. It stands along famously scenic 17-Mile Drive, raked by wind, swaddled in fog, clinging to its wave-lashed granite pedestal like God’s own ...

Late last week, the Lone Cypress was doused by the powerful surf kicked up by a winter storm. The National Weather Service warned that waves between 28 and 33 feet were forecast along the coast ...