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Northern White Cedar

Thuja occidentalis

Found in glades, barrens and outcrops on limestone; cliffs, ledges and rocky summits; swamps; ponds, lakes and their shores; mountain bogs and fens. Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Northern Tier edition What its natural habitat tells you

56
Strong

Native to West Virginia. How scores work Is it native here?

Profile 94%

Height
40–60 feet
Spread
10–15 feet
Light
Full sun, Partial shade
Soil moisture
Somewhat dry to moist

Space about 12.5 ft apart from its recorded spread. Enter your bed size for a count

Will it fit your yard?

Rare or protected plant. Specialist conservation planting; excluded from routine garden suggestions. Plant caution source

Hidden from default planting suggestions. Wildlife value and native status remain unchanged.

At a glance

Life cycle
Woody perennial
Leaves
Evergreen
Bloom
March to April
Fruiting season
Summer to fall

Recorded in 7 West Virginia counties.

Natural habitats

Places it grows wild. Not a planting requirement. Each habitat page lists the plants and wildlife also found there.

1 of 5

Swamps

The Chickahominy Swamp LCCN2004661405
William McIlvaine, The Chickahominy Swamp (1862): wind-tossed swamp trees standing in dark water under a storm. Shown: Chickahominy Swamp, Virginia, a neighboring state.The Chickahominy Swamp LCCN2004661405, William McIlvaine (1813-1867), 1862. Public domain. Source record. scaled to 1280 x 909 by the Wikimedia thumbnailer from 6171 x 4382; no crop or other change

Glades, barrens and outcrops on limestone

Open, thin-soil openings and rock on limestone, dolomite or other lime-rich rock, including cedar glades.

Cliffs, ledges and rocky summits

Cliffs, ledges, rock outcrops, talus and rocky summits where the source does not name the rock. A named rock files the place under its own glade or outcrop type instead.

Ponds, lakes and their shores

Still water and its edges: ponds, lakes, millponds and reservoirs.

Mountain bogs and fens

Wet, open, peaty mountain wetlands fed by seepage, often with sphagnum moss.

All habitats

Also found with this plant

Wildlife whose habitat models include habitats this plant grows in, in West Virginia. Shared habitat, not food. 73 animals.

Widespread birds also seen here (49)

Found in many habitats here, so not listed above.

All wildlife of West Virginia

Ecological relationships

Who uses this plant?

What these records mean

36CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including WV

Genus host records with ranges including WV · Thuja

  • Amorbia humerosanaWhite-Lined Leafroller Moth
  • Anavitrinella pampinariaCommon Gray, Cranberry Spanworm
  • Argyresthia thuiellaArborvitae Leafminer
  • Argyrotaenia pinatubanaPine Tube Moth
  • Automeris ioIo Moth
  • Callophrys gryneusOlive Hairstreak, Juniper Hairstreak, Nelson's Hairstreak
  • Campaea perlataPale Beauty, Fringed Looper
  • Caripeta divisataGray Spruce Looper Moth
  • Choristoneura fumiferanaSpruce Budworm Moth
  • Cladara limitariaMottled Gray Carpet, Yellow-Lined Conifer Looper, Yellow-Lined Forest Looper, Black-Angled Wave
Show all 36
  • Dichomeris setosellaHairy Dichomeris
  • Digrammia continuataCurve-Lined Angle
  • Ectropis crepusculariaThe Small Engrailed, Saddleback Looper
  • Elaphria versicolorVariegated Midget
  • Eupithecia palpataSmall Pine Looper, Palpata Pug
  • Feralia jocosaJocose Sallow, The Joker
  • Hydriomena renunciataRenounced Hydriomena
  • Idia aemulaCommon Idia
  • Lambdina fiscellariaHemlock Looper, Western Oak Looper
  • Lithophane lemmeriLemmer's Pinion
  • Nematocampa resistariaFilament Bearer, Horned Spanworm Moth
  • Nepytia canosariaFalse Hemlock Looper Moth, Evergreen Span Worm
  • Orthosia hibisciSpeckled Green Fruitworm Moth, Speckled Green Quaker
  • Palthis angulalisDark-Spotted Palthis
  • Patalene olyzonariaJuniper Geometer
  • Pero morrisonariaMorrison's Pero
  • Phlogophora periculosaBrown Angle Shades
  • Prochoerodes lineolaLarge Maple Spanworm Moth
  • Protoboarmia porcelariaPorcelain Gray, Dashedlined Looper
  • Sparganothis sulfureanaSparganothis Fruitworm Moth, Sulfur Leafroller, False Yellow-Head
  • Spiramater lutraDarling Mamestra, Splashed Arches, Otter Spiramater, Otter Arches
  • Syngrapha aliasSpruce Looper, Hooked Silver Y
  • Tetracis cachexiataWhite Slant-Line
  • Thyridopteryx ephemeraeformisEvergreen Bagworm Moth
  • Xestia elimataSouthern Variable Dart, Southern Pine Dart
  • Zanclognatha cruralisEarly Zanclognatha, Early Fan-Foot
Shropshire & Tallamy 2025, Lepidoptera of North America north of Mexico, ZooKeys 1261 (ODbL)
0BeesSoutheastern regional records
0Specialist beesPollen specialists
2BirdsRecorded eating Thuja in West Virginia

Diet records by plant genus, from studies across North America. Not a record from this state. Birds whose range includes West Virginia, most records first.

Avian Diet Database (Hurlbert Lab)

Direct food only. Caterpillars on host plants also feed nesting birds. NC Native Plant Society: butterfly gardening

No records yet · Ants · Beetles · Flies · Adult butterflies / moths · Other wasps · Other insects

Birds that eat Thuja 2

Diet records by plant genus, from studies across North America. Not a record from this state. Avian Diet Database (Hurlbert Lab), CC0 1.0.

Growing and identification

Plant details

Family
Cupressaceae
Hardiness
Zones 3a–7b
Soil pH
Neutral to alkaline
Growth rate
Slow
Growth habit
Single stem
Foliage color
Green
Fruit begins
Summer
Fruit ends
Fall
Growing sources and scope
Also known as

American Arbor Vitae; White Cedar

Conservation status

West Virginia rankS2
Global rankG5
WV statusNot verified
Federal statusNot verified

Conservation source Global and federal source

In your garden

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Sources