Virginia Tech Dendrology

Atlantic white-cedar Cupressaceae Chamaecyparis thyoides (L.) Britton, Sterns & Poggenb. symbol: CHTH2
Leaf: Evergreen and scaly, 1/16 to 1/8 inch long, blue-green with white margins. Glandular on the back. Lateral pairs have pointed, spreading tips. Facial pairs are closely pressed. Very aromatic when crushed.
Flower: Species is monoecious; male flowers are red to yellow and very small; female flowers are small and green; appearing in spring.
Fruit: Cones are 1/4 inch in diameter, blue or purple and glaucous, usually with 4 or 5 scales, maturing in fall.
Twig: Covered in tight green scales, turning brown.
Bark: Thin and fibrous, somewhat peeling, ashy gray to red-brown.
Form: When young, grows as a slender column, eventually spire-like. Branchlets are slender and irregularly arranged (not as flattened sprays).
Looks like: Sawara-cedar - Hinoki falsecypress - northern white-cedar - Leyland cypress

Additional Range Information: Chamaecyparis thyoides is native to North America. Range may be expanded by planting. Download the full-size PDF map.
More Information: Wood - Landowner Factsheet
External Links: USDAFS Silvics of North America - USDAFS FEIS Silvics - USDA Plants Database - USDAFS Forest Products Lab
All material 2021 Virginia Tech Dept. of Forest Resources and Environmental Conservation; Photos and text by: John Seiler, Edward Jensen, Alex Niemiera, and John Peterson; Silvics reprinted from Ag Handbook 654; range map source information