Thuja plicata
Western red cedar, giant cedar, giant thuja, Lobb's thuja: this tree is the “tree of life” of the peoples of the North American Pacific coast, who made absolutely everything from it—dugout canoes, longhouses, totem poles, ropes, and clothing woven from bark. Its rot-resistant wood explains this central role.
Characteristics:
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Fast growth: 30 to 60 cm per year in temperate climates, reaching up to 50 meters under favorable conditions.
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Evergreen foliage: very dense, bright green scales that release a balsamic fragrance when crushed.
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Rot-resistant wood: naturally resistant to rot without treatment and highly prized for exterior carpentry.
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Very hardy: it tolerates temperatures down to -25 °C.
Precautions:
- Its foliage is not edible and may cause irritation with prolonged contact: wear gloves when carrying out major hedge trimming.
- Take its mature size and growth rate into account: as a hedge, it requires regular annual pruning to remain manageable.
Sowing advice:
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Exposure: full sun to partial shade.
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Soil: light, well-drained, preferably acidic to neutral, and above all kept moist—it comes from the rainy forests of the Pacific and appreciates atmospheric humidity. It tolerates drought well once established, but suffers during very dry summers in its first few years.
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Method: cold stratification for 30 to 60 days is necessary. Then sow on the surface or barely covered, in spring or autumn, in a pot or nursery bed.
Planting advice:
- Transplant in full sun or partial shade. For a hedge, space plants 80 cm to 1 m apart; as a standalone specimen, allow plenty of room.
Care advice:
- Water regularly during the first year; afterward, it becomes highly drought-resistant.
- Prune once or twice a year to keep the hedge dense. Never cut into bare old wood: unlike yew, it will not regrow from it.
Beneficial companions:
- At its base, it welcomes woodland plants that appreciate light shade and cool conditions: ferns, heather, or foxglove.
Benefits for biodiversity:
- Its very dense, evergreen foliage provides winter shelter and nesting sites appreciated by birds, when deciduous hedges are bare.
- As a windbreak, it creates a sheltered microclimate that benefits the entire garden behind it.
Uses:
- Evergreen hedges, plant screens, windbreaks, or standalone specimens. Its rot-resistant, lightweight, fragrant wood is sought after for cladding, decking, and outdoor furniture.
Symbolism:
A sacred tree of the Indigenous peoples of the American Northwest, who literally call it the “tree of life,” it symbolizes protection, purification, and resilience.
Harvesting your own seeds:
Harvest the small upright cones as soon as they turn brown in autumn, before they open, then let them dry in a warm place: their scales will separate on their own and release the winged seeds. See storing your seeds.
Commitment to Quality: at SemiSauvage - Permaculture, we grow and select our seeds with respect for all living things as our guiding principle. Based near the Auvergne Volcanoes, we choose reproducible, non-hybrid varieties, tested for their germination rate, carefully sorted and packaged, without any chemical treatment. Our conviction: to give gardeners back the ability to resow, year after year, seeds that truly belong to them.
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