Eastern Red Cedar

A host plant for the larvae of both the Juniper hairstreak (Callophrys gryneus) and the Imperial moth (Eacles imperialis) moths.

Eastern redcedar is an evergreen, coniferous tree in the cypress family (Cupressaceae). This conifer is native to North America and grows from Maine south to Florida and west to South Dakota and Texas. The epithet is Latin for "of Virginia." Eastern red cedar has blue-green, overlapping, scale-like leaves at maturity, but young shoots may have spreading, needle-like leaves. The bark is red-brown in color and peels off in long, narrow, fibrous strips, often leaving ashy gray areas exposed. Light blue-green clusters of cones mature in late winter or early spring. Female (or predominantly female) trees produce small, round blue cones ("juniper berries") that mature in the fall and are beloved by cedar waxwings. Male trees make small pollen-producing cones. Pollen is wind-borne and released in large quantities. (From North Carolina Extension)