Image © WP Gibson

The CSSB, in conjunction with the BCSSA, has produced a cedar information video titled "Cedar - The Authentic Choice", please click here to either download or view this video, it is approx. 7.5 mb in size so we suggest you download it to your desktop before opening it if you have a slower connection. (You will need Microsofts Windows Media Player installed to view this video, you may download this free program from Microsoft here if needed).

WESTERN RED CEDAR
(Thuja plicata)
Size at 250 years: 100-160 feet tall, 2-8 feet in diameter
Life Span: 1,000+ years
Leaves: Small, overlapping, scale-like leaves that form sprays that are a shiny-dark green in color, 1/16 to 1/8" long.
Cones: 3/4" long and brown

The bark of the Western Red Cedar is cinnamon-red on young stems and gray on old trunks. It is also fibrous and shredding.
This tree can be found on moist hillsides beside streams and is often found with Western Hemlock. Western Red Cedar is very resistant to rot, and as such it is the chief wood used for roofing shakes or shingles .

Native Indians used Western Red Cedar for totem poles and canoes and it's bark was often woven into baskets, nets, and fabric for clothing.

Please click the links below to read various articles on Cedar Shakes and the use of wood products, these articles may help you make the "green choice".
These articles will appear in a seperate window.

Article 1