Harsh Site Tree
Incense Cedar is gaining popularity as forest owners struggle with Douglas-fir survival in increasingly hot and dry Pacific Northwest summers. In addition to its drought tolerance, it has also proven to be the “go-to” species for those particularly rocky pockets of property that Douglas-fir dies out on.
Six years ago, on my most recent planting, the unit varied significantly between places with nice topsoil and a couple spots with a lot of rock. To avoid inevitably having to re-plant dying Doug-fir in these rocky spots, I planted Incense Cedar instead. I had to move and rearrange to find pockets of soil amidst the rocks and planted Incense seedlings we grew in the nursery. I made sure to plant these in the Fall and early Winter to ensure enough time to root down through the rocks before summer arrived. This is what I call “micro-managing” your stand, and is necessary when you have a lot of variance within a unit.
Before Incense Cedar was a blip on the radar, my father planted an extremely steep and rocky area with Doug-fir. To this day, I don’t know how he got the trees to survive as long as they did. However, once they outgrew what the shallow topsoil could support, they began to die off gradually. Poison Oak took over the area, but after a couple years’ battle I was finally able to plant some Incense Cedar there. I had to do this in a unique way, finding pockets of soil at the base of each cliff shelf. These were just big enough to establish a seedling. It’s been a number of years, but they are looking pretty good. It may take a bit longer to harvest, but it beats growing poison oak or brush there instead. It took a lot of work, but I’m quite satisfied with my accomplishment and am happy knowing my grandchildren will get to enjoy them.
Historically, nurseries have experienced difficulty finding Incense seed as it is costly to collect and not very often a natural cone crop is produced. When cones are produced, there is a very short window to collect it; too soon and the germination will be poor, too late and the cone will open, releasing seeds into the wind. The cones are about the size of a cherry and only hold four seeds in comparison to Doug-fir which has a larger cone and can hold upwards of 50 seeds. It takes a long time to fill a 5 gallon bucket with Incense cones. Of the four seeds in an Incense cone, not all of them will be viable and you may only get 2-3. In addition, cones are normally produced in the largest trees and are nearly impossible to climb, requiring expensive lift equipment. Aside from the short window, costly and timely collection, and low yields, there can be genetic flaws within collections that produce albinos, or seedlings without chlorophyll. These die within a week or two of germinating.
One interesting thing about Incense Cedar is the pollen, or male flowers, which develop a full year ahead of the female flowers. They take much longer to grow. Sometimes you can see the yellow pollen tips on branches in the fall. If cones are produced the following Spring, which is rare, you will get a cone crop. Incense Cedar seed is large and you don’t get many per pound. It is also a winged seed which you have to be careful to keep intact. The wing allows the seed to be carried further on the wind in the wild, but it is also where the root tip grows from. Sowing seed with a wing requires extra work and a bit more attentiveness.
Though not as durable as Western Redcedar, Incense Cedar produces a desirable, pinkish color wood. When grown in a stand, it can make a nice log without heavy limbs. If grown in the open it will get very limb-y. I remember limbing Incense Cedar for my dad using the little green chainsaw he bought just for me. It took me half a day to do one tree, but I was quite proud afterwards. The forestry industry is just now starting to look at establishing seed orchards which would help with the seed deficit. My opinion is that Incense Cedar could become an important part of the forestry industry with access to reliable seed and improved genetic selections.
Dan Kintigh
from left to right:
Dying Douglas-fir in patch of rocky ground surrounded by thriving Incense Cedar.
Incense Cedar in really rocky patch of ground.
Incense Cedar on steep rocky slope
Incense doing well in front of dead Douglas-fir.
Click on the image for an enlarged view.
