June 25 — exactly six months until Christmas. While summer heat is in full swing, a recent site visit involving eastern red cedars brought that holiday connection to mind—but these trees were looking far less than festive.
Eastern red cedar (Juniperus virginiana) was once the Christmas tree of choice across the southern United States before plantation-grown trees became common. Despite its name, it is not a true cedar. True cedars belong to the genus Cedrus, none of which are native to North America. Eastern red cedar is a member of the Cypress family, valued for its aromatic, rot-resistant wood.
Eastern red cedar is easily recognized by its dense, evergreen foliage of overlapping, scale-like leaves arranged tightly against the stems, giving sprays a fine, textured appearance. Mature trees often produce small, blue, berry-like cones that are a key identifying feature and important wildlife food source. It is sometimes confused with other junipers used in landscapes, such as Chinese juniper (Juniperus chinensis), which tends to have a more open form and coarser branching, or with arborvitae (Thuja spp.), which have flatter, fan-like sprays of foliage. Unlike true cedars (Cedrus spp.), eastern red cedar has much tighter foliage and does not produce large, upright cones. In natural areas, younger eastern red cedars may also be mistaken for bald cypress seedlings, but bald cypress is deciduous and has soft, feather-like needles that shed in winter, while eastern red cedar remains evergreen year-round.
This native evergreen provides important wildlife benefits, offering both food and shelter. It ranges widely from Maine to Florida and west to Texas and the Dakotas. In Louisiana, it is especially valued for its adaptability. Eastern red cedar tolerates a wide range of soil conditions—from poorly drained sites to dry uplands—but performs best in full sun with good drainage. Trees typically reach 30–50 feet tall with an 8–20-foot spread, though older specimens may grow larger under ideal conditions.
Young trees have a dense, pyramidal form, which contributed to their historical use as Christmas trees. As they mature, their shape often becomes more open and irregular. Today, eastern red cedar and its cultivated varieties serve multiple landscape roles, including windbreaks, privacy screens, and specimen plantings. Available selections vary widely in form, from low-spreading types to narrow, columnar trees, with foliage colors ranging from deep green to blue-green and silvery tones.
Although generally hardy, eastern red cedar can experience occasional pest and disease issues—especially under the warm, humid conditions common in South Louisiana. During a recent site visit, I observed dieback on new growth, particularly on the ‘Glauca’ variety compared to nearby common forms.
Closer inspection with a hand lens revealed black pycnidia on affected stems, indicating Phomopsis twig blight, caused by Phomopsis juniperovora. This disease typically begins as yellowing of young needles, progressing into stems and resulting in dieback of tender new growth. Cankers may form where diseased and healthy tissue meet. The disease spreads rapidly during warm, wet conditions, with spores dispersed by rain splash.
Phomopsis twig blight is often confused with Kabatina twig blight, which appears earlier in spring and primarily affects older twigs. Other issues such as drought stress, spider mites, juniper scale, and bagworms can also cause browning. However, bagworms are easily distinguished by the protective cases they construct from plant material.
Management of Phomopsis twig blight focuses on prevention and sanitation. Selecting resistant cultivars and maintaining plant vigor significantly reduces infection risk. Prune and dispose of infected branches to limit disease spread. Fungicides containing copper, mancozeb, or propiconazole can be applied beginning in early spring and continued at 7–21-day intervals during favorable disease conditions. Generally healthy, mature specimens recover from the disease without issue.
Despite occasional challenges, eastern red cedar remains a valuable native evergreen for Louisiana landscapes. With proper siting and management, it provides year-round structure, wildlife habitat, and resilience under a wide range of growing conditions.
