Western Redcedar - Thuja plicata, February 2011

Western redcedar (Thuja plicata) is the provincial tree of British Columbia and the most significant tree in the history of Coastal First Peoples.  It is found in abundance along the west coast of North America, from Southern Alaska to Northern California, and east into the Rockies, thriving in wet, nutrient-rich soils.

Western redcedar, giant arborvitae and canoe cedar are among the many common names that refer to Thuja plicata.  However, the species is only distantly related to the true cedars (Cedrus species) which are native to the Mediterranean and Himalayas.  Coastal First Peoples knew Thuja plicata as the ‘tree of life,’ revered for its healing and spiritual powers.

You can easily recognize the tree by its distinctive furrowed reddish-brown bark and tiny scale-like leaves that branch out in a lace-like pattern.  The branches form flat sprays dotted with small female cones in spring.  It is a tall species – with enough water, nutrients and time, individual trees can reach a height of 70 meters (230 feet) with a diameter of 4.3 meters (14 feet).  Though most of the old-growth forests in British Columbia have been logged, if left to grow, redcedar can live for well over 1000 years.  Some of the largest and oldest trees still survive in remnants of old growth forest on the west coast of Vancouver Island and Haida Gwaii (formerly the Queen Charlotte Islands) in British Columbia.
   
Western redcedar’s aromatic, reddish-brown wood contains fungicides that keep it from rotting.  This means that fallen trees can last a long time before decaying.  Giant stumps can still be found in forests around the Lower Mainland with springboard scars from logging in the 19th and early 20th centuries.  This resistance to rot makes the wood a popular choice for shingles, decking, siding and fencing, especially in the Pacific Northwest’s damp climate.  Aromatic oils in the wood are believed to deter insects and, as a natural moth repellent, the wood is often used for closets and blanket chests.

While Western redcedar is a valuable and beloved tree in B.C. today, nothing can compare to the vital role it played in the lives of the First Peoples on the northwest coast of North America, who used western redcedar for nearly everything.  They made rope, lines and fish traps from the skinny branches.  They harvested the bark in long strips from live trees and beat it soft to make clothing, bedding and bandaging.  The bark and roots were woven into baskets, hats, mats and nets. 

The light, fragrant, reddish wood of western redcedar is soft enough to be worked with tools made of stone and bone.  From the wood First Peoples made totem poles, canoes, boxes, houses, cradles, coffins, tools, dishes, weapons and fishing hooks.  When steamed, the wood becomes flexible and was bent into boxes and drum frames.  Coastal First Peoples learned to harvest bark and planks of redcedar wood without killing the trees, and you can still find old trees with healed scars from wood and bark harvesting – these are called ‘culturally modified trees.’

Some groups believed that you could gain strength from the redcedar by standing with your back against the trunk, and the Haida people of Haida Gwaii believed that those who killed the tree by harvesting all of its bark would be cursed.   

Cedar carving is still an important part of the ceremonial culture of the First Peoples.  Expert carvers create masks, canoes, totem poles and other items for their people, and teach their skills to their young apprentices.  One of these carvers was Bill Reid, who carved wood, stone and metal, in the style of the Haida.  He sums up his attitude toward Thuja plicata nicely in this quote:       
  
“If we will only treat it with the respect in which [the First Peoples] held it, the great west coast cedar will always be with us, to serve with the same regal philanthropy it always has, as a powerfully beautiful asset to our coastal vistas when alive, and as a source of some of the finest materials for making objects of use and beauty.”  - Bill Reid, in his forward to Hilary Stewart’s book, Cedar (Douglas & McIntyre, Vancouver, 1984).

At VanDusen you can see mature Western redcedar trees west of the Ornamental Grasses, on the Great Lawn and in the Southern Hemisphere Garden.