A tale of two cedars

Did you know that western red cedar is sometimes called  "nature's umbrella"? I've heard that in some native languages, the word for red cedar means the same as "dry underneath".  Besides keeping us dry on a wet, autumn walk, western red cedar, thuja plicata, remains the cornerstone of our northwest native culture. I was recently on  a wet mountain hike with northwest fiber artist and friend, Melinda West. She introduced me to a relative of our red cedar: Cupressus nootkatenses often called yellow cedar. She shared some similarities and some differences between the two "cedars".

western red cedar

Truth be known, neither species is a true cedar, but members of the cypress family. Yellow cedar is often called Nootka cypress. Our red cedar is generally found in our moist lowland forests. Yellow cedar, also a native of west coastal regions, occurs in wet sites in mountains often close to the tree line.

The two trees have similar sprays of flat foliage handing from drooping branches. They both are tall buttressing trees with relatively shallow roots. The bark of a red cedar can be described as fibrous or ridged - the yellow cedar can be easily called shaggy.

shaggy bark of yellow cedar

Historically both trees are life trees of the indigenous people of the northwest coast. The resilient and long lasting wood of the red cedar has traditionally been fashioned into poles, canoes, lodges and baskets. The wood of the yellow cedar is also prized by native peoples for its durability. While the red cedar is used for larger uses, yellow cedar historically was  used for clothing, smaller utensils and carvings. A Tlingit legend identifies the first Killer Whale being carved from Nootka cypress.

Melinda and I came across a fallen yellow cedar across our trail. The windfall was fresh enough for her to strip bark off of the tree.

Melinda West getting to the inner bark of a yellow cedar

 She then continued to strip the piece and get to the pliable inner bark. The yellow inner bark, she explained, is why this bark was so valued for early clothing. This inner bark is often easier to access than the inner bark of the red cedar. The inner bark was worked until it was felt-like. It offered a water tight material in which to fashion soft, comfortable, long lasting clothing and blankets. Even today we can see culturally modified trees, where bark has been stripped for age old uses. Melinda still uses materials from both trees to fashion contemporary works of art. Her gallery can be seen on her web page, www.melindawest.com.