Western Redcedar

Western redcedar is the giant of wet coastal forests, a tree you encounter draped in moss and epiphytes along stream corridors and in the deep shade of the rainforest understory. Its columnar form and horizontal branching are distinctive; the tiny, scale-like foliage is bright green and aromatic when crushed. The trunk swells at the base and develops a thick, fibrous, cinnamon-red bark in age, often peeling in long strips. In tighter spaces, the tree assumes a narrower profile, but in open sites it flares into a billowing crown of soft, feathery branchlets. This is the tree your eye finds in photographs of Pacific Northwest temperate rainforest.

In Western Washington lowlands, western redcedar demands moist to wet soils and fails in drought; it is fundamentally a rainforest tree requiring both summer shade and winter moisture. It grows to 40-50 feet in managed landscapes within 20 years, performing best in part shade with high humidity. The tree is susceptible to Keithia leaf blight and yellow root rot in standing water, so excellent drainage matters even though it loves moisture. Its shallow, fibrous root system makes it valuable for streambank stabilization and rain gardens. Avoid overdrying the site; established trees are remarkably productive, but transplants suffer in hot, dry summers. The heartwood is extremely rot-resistant, making fallen logs persist for decades and supporting the epiphyte communities the tree itself harbors.