Yellow-Cedar (Chamaecyparis nootkatensis)

Yellow-Cedar is a domestic softwood

Location

Yellow-cedar (Chamaecyparis nootkatensis) grows in the Pacific Coast region of North America from southeastern Alaska southward through Washington to southern Oregon.

Characteristics

The heartwood of yellow-cedar is bright, clear yellow. The sapwood is narrow, white to yellowish, and hardly distinguishable from the heartwood. The wood is fine textured and generally straight grained. It is moderately heavy, moderately strong and stiff, moderately hard, and moderately high in shock resistance. Yellow-cedar shrinks little in drying and is stable after drying, and the heartwood is very resistant to decay. The wood has a mild, distinctive odor.

Primary Uses

Yellow-cedar is used for interior woodwork, furniture, small boats, cabinetwork, and novelties.

*Much of the base wood information presented here is made available by the USDA FPL FS. If you are interested in a much more technical description of wood properties, I encourage you to visit the source.