Home/Species/ Northern White-cedar

Thuja occidentalis

Northern White-cedar

G5Secure Found in 29 roadless areas NatureServe Explorer →

G5SecureGlobal Rank

Least concernIUCN

Identity

Unique IDELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.145680

Element CodePGCUP06010

Record TypeSPECIES

ClassificationSpecies

Classification StatusStandard

Name CategoryVascular Plant

IUCNLeast concern

Endemicoccurs (regularly, as a native taxon) in multiple nations

KingdomPlantae

PhylumConiferophyta

ClassPinopsida

OrderPinales

FamilyCupressaceae

GenusThuja

Other Common Names

arborvitae (EN) Eastern White-cedar (EN) Thuya occidental (FR)

Concept Reference

Kartesz, J.T. 1994. A synonymized checklist of the vascular flora of the United States, Canada, and Greenland. 2nd edition. 2 vols. Timber Press, Portland, OR.

Conservation Status

Rank MethodExpertise without calculation

Review Date2016-02-04

Change Date1983-09-06

Threat Impact Comments

Of moderate risk to land-use conversion and habitat fragmentation; generally in inaccessible areas but affected by surrounding land use (Southern Appalachian Species Viability Project 2002).

Ecology & Habitat

Other Nations (2)

United StatesN5

Province	Rank	Native
West Virginia	S2	Yes
Ohio	S3	Yes
Vermont	S5	Yes
Wisconsin	SNR	Yes
Virginia	S4	Yes
Iowa	SNA	No
Maine	S5	Yes
New Jersey	S1	Yes
Rhode Island	SNR	Yes
Tennessee	S3	Yes
North Carolina	SU	Yes
New Hampshire	SNR	Yes
Connecticut	S2	Yes
New York	S5	Yes
Massachusetts	S1	Yes
Illinois	S3	Yes
Minnesota	SNR	Yes
Maryland	S1	Yes
Kentucky	S2	Yes
Michigan	SNR	Yes
Indiana	S1	Yes

CanadaN5

Province	Rank	Native
Quebec	S5	Yes
Alberta	SNA	No
Manitoba	S4	Yes
Nova Scotia	S2	Yes
Ontario	S5	Yes
Prince Edward Island	S3	Yes
New Brunswick	S5	Yes

Plant Characteristics

Economic Value (Genus)No

Roadless Areas (29)

Maine (1)

Area	Forest	Acres
Caribou - Speckled Ext	White Mountain National Forest	5,988

Michigan (2)

Area	Forest	Acres
Delirium	Hiawatha National Forest	190
Government Island	Hiawatha National Forest	225

Minnesota (6)

Area	Forest	Acres
Baker - Homer - Brule Lakes	Superior National Forest	6,712
Brule Lake - Eagle Mountain	Superior National Forest	12,380
Cabin Creek	Superior National Forest	6,071
Kawishiwi Lake To Sawbill	Superior National Forest	15,305
Phantom Lake	Superior National Forest	6,521
Wood Lake	Superior National Forest	596

New Hampshire (5)

Area	Forest	Acres
Dartmouth Range	White Mountain National Forest	9,233
Kilkenny	White Mountain National Forest	28,766
Pemigewasset	White Mountain National Forest	32,255
Pemigewasset Ext	White Mountain National Forest	15,840
Sandwich Range	White Mountain National Forest	16,797

North Carolina (1)

Area	Forest	Acres
Bearwallow	Pisgah National Forest	4,113

Vermont (2)

Area	Forest	Acres
Bread Loaf	Green Mountain and Finger Lakes National Forests	1,768
Griffith Lake 09084	Green Mountain and Finger Lakes National Forests	1,833

Virginia (5)

Area	Forest	Acres
Bear Creek	Jefferson National Forest	18,274
Little Walker Mountain	Jefferson National Forest	9,818
New London Bridge Branch	Jefferson National Forest	844
Oliver Mountain	George Washington National Forest	13,090
Seng Mountain	Jefferson National Forest	6,428

West Virginia (1)

Area	Forest	Acres
North Mountain Hopeville	Monongahela National Forest	6,525

Wisconsin (6)

Area	Forest	Acres
09012 - Round Lake Study Area	Chequamegon-Nicolet National Forest	3,707
09154 - St. Peters Dome	Chequamegon-Nicolet National Forest	4,002
09161 - Gates Lake	Chequamegon-Nicolet National Forest	5,255
09162 - Moose	Chequamegon-Nicolet National Forest	6,161
09182 - Pentoga Road	Chequamegon-Nicolet National Forest	5,008
09186 - Shelp Lake	Chequamegon-Nicolet National Forest	285

References (6)

Dodds, J.S. 2025. <i>Thuja occidentalis</i> Rare Plant Profile. New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection, State Parks, Forests & Historic Sites, Forests & Natural Lands, Office of Natural Lands Management, New Jersey Natural Heritage Program, Trenton, NJ. 20 pp. [https://dep.nj.gov/wp-content/uploads/parksandforests/thuja-occidentalis-arborvitae.pdf]
Flora of North America Editorial Committee (FNA). 1993a. Flora of North America north of Mexico. Vol. 2. Pteridophytes and gymnosperms. Oxford Univ. Press, New York. xvi + 475 pp.
Kartesz, J.T. 1994. A synonymized checklist of the vascular flora of the United States, Canada, and Greenland. 2nd edition. 2 vols. Timber Press, Portland, OR.
Little, E.L., Jr. 1979. Checklist of United States trees (native and naturalized). Agriculture Handbook No. 541. U.S. Forest Service, Washington, D.C. 375 pp.
Morse, L. E. 1983. Three Maryland stations for the Northern White Cedar, <i>Thuja occidentalis.</i> Castanea 48: 159-161.
Southern Appalachian Species Viability Project. 2002. A partnership between the U.S. Forest Service-Region 8, Natural Heritage Programs in the Southeast, NatureServe, and independent scientists to develop and review data on 1300+ regionally and locally rare species in the Southern Appalachian and Alabama region. Database (Access 97) provided to the U.S. Forest Service by NatureServe, Durham, North Carolina.