Western redcedar
Thuja plicata
A large conifer with flattened branchlets, scale-like leaves, and fibrous bark. This Washington starter account introduces a tree listed in Olympic National Park’s coastal forest.
- Family
- Cupressaceae
- Regional status
- Native in Washington
- Habitat
- Moist forests & swampy ground
- Safety
- Not evaluated
- Regional map
- Pending
A closer look.
The Washington herbarium describes slender, drooping leaders and spreading branches ending in flattened sprays. Its small leaves resemble overlapping scales. Reddish-brown bark peels in long fibrous strips; older trees may have strongly fluted bases. Compare several features with a botanical reference rather than identifying a tree from its common name alone.
University of Washington Herbarium · Don Knoke & David Giblin ↗ · National Park Service ↗
Compared with linked references on October 27, 2026. This is source verification, not independent expert review or an identification guarantee. Seasonal tags are approximate. A regional specimen map has not been assembled.
Through the seasons
Foliage and bark can be observed across seasons. Seasonal tags are observation prompts, not predictions of cone maturity or guidance for collecting. Local timing and conditions need regional review.
Knowledge has a context.
Historical accounts are presented as attributed records, not endorsed practices, medical advice, or permission to harvest.
A historical-use account has not yet been prepared for this profile. A future account requires a named community, traceable attribution, and appropriate cultural review. No cultural practice or medicinal preparation is endorsed here.
Read the regional account.
Recorded on both sides of the Cascades in Washington, in moist or swampy places from sea level to middle mountain elevations. The herbarium gives a wider range from Alaska to northern California and east to Alberta, Idaho, and Montana. A regional specimen map is still pending.
Moist forests & swampy ground
This Washington-focused account uses the linked botanical references. Broader range statements do not mean every jurisdiction has a completed profile, mapped records, or local review. No specimen map is supplied for this record.
University of Washington Herbarium · Don Knoke & David Giblin ↗ · National Park Service ↗
A written range.
A map still to come.
This profile has a source-linked distribution account. A regional specimen snapshot has not yet been assembled. Unmapped areas do not imply absence, and this account does not establish a collecting location.
Trace the record.
References are attached to specific parts of this record. A citation is a route to evidence; it is not a claim that every field has completed review.
- 01Thuja plicata — Burke Herbarium ↗
University of Washington Herbarium · Don Knoke & David Giblin
Supports: Western redcedar foliage, bark, growth and regional habitat. Not a diagnostic key or a cultural-use account.
- 02Coastal Forest — Olympic National Park ↗
National Park Service
Supports: Olympic coastal-forest context and its listed plants; not a complete Pacific Northwest distribution account.