Early settlers to the Leelanau county region were drawn by the abundance of natural resources. Thick forests greeted those brave pioneers, consisting of many species including oak, maple, birch, pine, and cedar. The trees were harvested for both fire wood and building materials. Cedar is naturally decay resistant wood and in housing applications, it is used for roofing and siding. In the middle of the nineteenth century, a sawmill was constructed in “Cedar city” (called Cedar today), named for the tree abundant in the area. The sawmill made shingles until 1895 when it was destroyed by fire.

Description

A member of the cypress family, white cedar is a native shrub or tree growing to about 45 feet tall. In dense stands its crown is narrowly conic. In more open areas, the crown becomes more broadly pyramidal, with spreading, densely crowded branches. The bark is gray to reddish-brown, 6-9 mm thick, fibrous, separated into flat, connected ridges. Leaves are evergreen, scale-like and abruptly pointed, 2 mm long, opposite in alternating pairs (in 4 rows), bright green above and pale green below, sometimes becoming yellow-brown in winter, with a spicy fragrance when crushed. Seed cones are ellipsoid, (6-)9-14 mm long, brown; seeds ca. 8 per cone, 4-7 mm long, with lateral wings about as wide as the body. The common name pertains to its northern distribution, cedar-like appearance, and white wood.

Northern white cedar differs from western red-cedar (Thuja plicata) in leaf color (dull yellowish-green on both surfaces), minutely mucronate scales of the seed cones, and geography.

The primary range of northern white-cedar is in eastern-southeastern Canada (west to Manitoba) and adjacent states of New England and the Great Lakes region (west to Minnesota); south of the main range, it occurs in scattered stands and southward along the Appalachians into North Carolina and Tennessee, where it is generally rare or extirpated

It is common in Leelanau County because it grows in cool, moist, nutrient-rich sites, on mostly calcareous soils that are neutral or nearly so, lakes and river shores, uplands, and cliffs. They even grow on the face of bluffs in the erosion prone environment, although it grows best on well-drained sites, it may be dominant in swamps. In cultivation, it grows in a wide variety of soils.

Establishment

Cones may be produced by northern white cedars as young as 6 years old, but seed production in large quantities begins when the trees are about 30 years old and is best after 75 years. Good seed crops are produced at intervals of 2 to 5 years, or more frequently in local areas.

Seedbeds of moss-covered, decaying logs and stumps account for more than 70 percent of the northern white-cedar seedlings in undisturbed areas. Seedlings can be established on burns, if the burn was severe enough to expose favorable, mineral soil seedbeds on uplands or to improve moss seedbeds in swamps. Best root and shoot development occur in full light, but drought-caused mortality of northern white cedar seedlings may be extremely high under any light condition.

Layering may account for a significant portion of northern white-cedar reproduction in swamps, because adventitious roots can be produced from any branch or stem. It is most common in young stands and those with leaning trees, where the lower branches become covered by moss. New trees also develop vegetatively from uprooted trees where roots are formed from vertical branches.

Northern white cedar grows relatively slowly in swamps or on other saturated lowland sites, but it can reach ages of 400 years and greater in these habitats. An individual from Ontario has been dated at more than 1650 years old. Our cedar trees in Leelanau rarely get this old. Most are prone to “hollow” interiors when they reach a diameter of 14” or more. Many suggest the high water table where they thrive is responsible for this.

Northern white-cedar forests are stable without major disturbance such as fire, because the trees are long-lived and balsam fir is the only important associate sufficiently shade tolerant to grow in competition. In stands that have been opened by timber harvesting or severely browsed by white-tailed deer, succession is often to balsam fir or swamp hardwoods, especially black ash. Northern white cedar responds well to thinning-release after successful establishment, although it is shade tolerant and can withstand severe suppression for several years.

Even-aged management, through shelter woodcutting or clear cutting is recommended for maximum benefit to deer. Satisfactory reestablishment after clear cutting often requires some kind of site preparation, particularly broadcast burning of slash. In some areas, however, heavy winter browsing of seedlings and saplings by deer greatly reduces reproductive success.

Uses

Stands of northern white cedar are valuable for wildlife habitat, particularly in severe winters for white-tailed deer, which use it for both shelter and browse. These trees also provide habitats for many species of birds. To understand why cedar stands are important, visit a cedar swamp in the winter. The only wind you hear is rustling above. The forest floor is calm and warmer than surrounding areas.

There are practical reasons to get reacquainted with cedar as a building material. In January 2004, the regulations governing treated lumber were changed because the toxins used to preserve the wood were found to be accumulating in the environment. The “new” treated lumber products still contain toxins but they are less effective (resisting decay), than the old product. A better alternative is to use cedar, a natural decay resistant wood. Available in either eastern white or western red cedar, it is a soft and beautiful wood to work with. A natural and renewable material for siding, fencing, landscaping applications, and more.

The principal commercial uses of northern white cedar are for rustic fencing and posts; other important products include cabin logs, lumber, poles, and shingles. Smaller amounts are used for paneling, piling, lagging, pails, potato barrels, tubs, ties, boats (especially canoes), tanks, novelties, and woodenware. The timbers were used to make the ribs in birch bark canoes. "Cedar leaf oil" is distilled from boughs and used in medicines and perfumes. Boughs are also used in floral arrangements.

References

Chambers, K.L. 1993. Thuja. Pp. 410-411, IN: Flora of North America, north of Mexico. Vol. 2, Pteridophytes and Gymnosperms. Oxford Univ. Press, New York.

Johnston, W.F. 1990. Thuja occidentalis. Pp. 580-589, IN: R.M. Burns and B.H. Honkala. Silvics of North America. Volume 1. Conifers. USDA Forest Service Agric. Handbook 654, Washington, D.C.