I remember a hundred lovely lakes, and recall the fragrant breath of pine and fir and cedar and poplar trees. The trail has strung upon it, as upon a thread of silk, opalescent dawns and saffron sunsets. ~ Hamlin Garland
Nice sentiment. But when I think of cedars, I primarily recall my bad behavior from long ago. I remember spending some time at my teenage babysitter’s home–technically her mother’s home–when I was about ten years old. Brenda and I were outside, walking by a cedar tree, and I reached over to grab a handful of berries. She was not happy when I turned and threw them at her. In full transparency, I probably didn’t hit my target. That wasn’t the only thing that was off that day, though I didn’t realize it for another six-plus decades.
What Kind of Cedar Was It?
Based on what I’ve read, that tree was likely called an Eastern Red Cedar. From a botanical perspective, it was not any type of cedar. It was instead a juniper, Juniperus virginiana, but like other trees of its ilk, we call it a cedar. The only true cedars in the U.S. were introduced and are largely used for ornamental landscape features. Those are not what you see growing out of impossibly craggy hillsides.
If I’d known then what I know now, I would have realized that true cedars grow in the Mediterranean and western Himalayas, not here. Britannica gives us more. These trees are massive with huge trunks and spreading branches. The “leaves” are tufts that remind me of a cluster of pine needles, but short. Further, true cedars trees produce “barrel-shaped” cones.
What Else is Up for Debate about Our Cedars?
Rather a lot is speculative, since lore follows cedars like fog follows the hollers of the Smokies. We do know, however, that cedar has been used in a variety of ways. Here are a few courtesy of Marble Tree Blog:
- Indigenous tribes used cedars to create incense and a purifying herb.
- Native Indians also hollowed out the trunks to make canoes, used the branches as water filters, and made baskets from the roots.
- In this country and in others, cedar smoke has had widespread usage. We know the Scottish fumigated their homes with it to prevent illness. Well, they did it with juniper, but …
The Bible also mentions cedars; examples are:
- Psalm 92:12 compares the righteous to thriving cedars.
- Isaiah 41:19 speaks of creating an orchard, including cedars and junipers.
- Ezekiel 17 uses the cedar as a metaphor for restoration.
Then there’s this from a member of the National Gardening Association; note there are other resources that say much the same.
- The cedar is known as the graveyard tree. If a cedar is planted when you’re born, it will be big enough to shade your grave when it’s time for you to die. Or so the story goes.
- Baton Rouge was named after the Eastern Red Cedar. Native Americans in that area marked their territory with red cedars, crowning the trees with “blood, fish heads, and animal skulls.” When French Canadian explorers arrived, the cedar poles looked like red sticks.
- The Cherokee believed cedar trees held the spirits of their ancestors and had protective qualities.
- Cedar byproducts are used to create a variety of household and personal care products.
- Egyptians used cedars as an insect repellent and for the embalming process. Wait. How does that fit in with the personal care schtick?
Is There a Downside to Cedar?
Of course. Some people are highly allergic to the pollen that male cedars emit during the winter months when it wafts through the air like the nitrogen dioxide-saturated air over Bakersfield, California. That kind of physical reaction naturally engenders an aversion to an otherwise popular tree. No. That isn’t true. It isn’t universally popular.
Cedars have other issues. According to the Tennessee Nursery site, the needles that Eastern Red Cedars shed can change the soil’s pH, which will affect nearby plantings. Also, cedars located adjacent to apple trees can spoil the whole crop. Galls that overwinter on cedars spread to apple trees on the wind or rain to complete their life cycle. The resulting apple-rust fungus discolors leaves and reduces the yield. So you say you neither have a garden nor suffer from allergies?
Cedars can still be a problem. Red Dirt Ramblings covers the topic well. Cedars are gluttons when it comes to consuming water that would otherwise go to hardwoods – up to 30 gallons a day. Since they sprout under the hardwood canopy, they choke out other growth and create a monoculture. Oh, and they reduce grazing land, because they can outpace grasses and small shrubs.
A Rose by Any Other Name, and All That
Folklore and negative aspects aside, cedars have been valued for centuries, with good reason. They’re used to make storage chests for linens, as their scent (or odor, depending on your inclination) repels unwanted moths and other destructive insects. Same for fence posts, in that cedar resists decay, and that meant a lot to those who had to create them out of whole trees a few hundred years ago. Cedars have a plethora of practical uses and carry spiritual and sentimental value. It is no wonder that we see them in graveyards and homestead sites. People from hundreds of years ago–both indigenous and settlers–used them from the inside out, for all kinds of purposes.
But back to the name thing. In 2012, the state of Tennessee named the Eastern Red Cedar as the state’s official evergreen tree. Beyond that, everybody in my family calls those tree cedars. So while I realize that they are technically junipers, they remain cedars to me, and that reminds me of the daffodil issue. Suck it up, buttercup.
When my parents got married in 1948, my dad bought a cedar chest sized perfectly for the trunk of Uncle Joye’s 1945 Ford. My dad borrowed that car to move their worldly belongings from rural Humboldt Tennessee to Memphis the day after they got married. That chest is still in perfect condition and resides in our guest bedroom. Cedar is also the tree of choice for sling shot handles. Combined with worn out inner tube and a leather shoe tongue, one can make a killer sling shot.
I’m curious about the inner tube and shoe tongue sourcing, and will look for that in one of your stories. I do recall you and a friend with pea shooters in the hospital when you had appendicitis or something. I’m sure you were the nurses’ favorite patients.