Species › Plants › Northern White Cedar

Northern White Cedar

Thuja occidentalis

CommonPlant
Illustration of Northern White Cedar (Thuja occidentalis)

Northern White Cedar is an aromatic evergreen tree of wet, rocky, and limestone-influenced soils across the Great Lakes and northeastern North America. It is one of the most important winter habitat trees in the region; white-tailed deer yard in cedar swamps during severe winters, and many birds roost in its dense foliage. It is extremely long-lived, with some trees exceeding 1,000 years.

Habitat
Limestone outcrops, rocky shores, and swamp edges of the northeastern US and Great Lakes
Diet
Dense foliage provides critical winter deer yard; seeds eaten by many small birds
How common
Common

Best time to see a Northern White Cedar

The best time to see a Northern White Cedar is March–August, when about 63% of U.S. sightings happen, based on 17,002 research-grade iNaturalist observations.

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