Is Eastern Red Cedar good for outdoor use?

Its heartwood is very durable and one of the best decay-resistant softwoods east of the Rockies, standing up to fungus and to insects such as moths and termites, which makes it suitable for uses like fence posts. The reference Janka hardness of 900 lbf and durability figures are USDA Forest Products Laboratory values at 12% moisture content.

What color is Eastern Red Cedar?

Fresh off the saw the heartwood is a vibrant reddish purple to violet-brown, mellowing with light to a warmer reddish brown. The narrow sapwood is a pale yellow-white that contrasts sharply, and small tight knots are common since most of what comes in is small-diameter.

How does Eastern Red Cedar work on the bench?

It is easy under both hand and machine tools but is soft and a little brittle, so it can chip on routed edges and against the grain. It glues and finishes well, though its natural oils sometimes fight a film finish; Raw Heartwood kiln-dries its lumber to 6-8% moisture content, and the wood is very stable once dry.

DomesticJuniperus virginiana

Eastern Red Cedar

Stability, durability, and the smell. No other softwood has all three.

Eastern Red Cedar (Juniperus virginiana) is a domestic softwood — technically a juniper, not a true cedar — with a Janka hardness of 900 lbf. Its heartwood is a vibrant reddish purple to violet-brown that mellows to reddish brown, and it carries a strong, lasting cedar smell.

Category: Domestic
Janka: 900 lbf
Botanical: Juniperus virginiana
Shipped at: 6–8% MC

Juniperus virginiana The most widely distributed conifer of tree size in the eastern United States; native from Nova Scotia west to Ontario and the Dakotas

The most widely distributed conifer of tree size in the eastern United States; native from Nova Scotia west to Ontario and the Dakotas.

A juniper, technically. Heartwood is a vibrant reddish purple to violet-brown fresh off the saw.

Detail of Eastern Red Cedar grain — figured wood texture, photographed at Raw Heartwood — A close read on the grain. Detail of this specimen

What you see.

Heartwood is a vibrant reddish purple to violet-brown fresh off the saw. Mellows with light to a warmer reddish brown. Narrow pale yellow-white sapwood, sharp contrast. Tight knots are common — most of what comes in is small-diameter.

Heartwood color detail of Eastern Red Cedar (Juniperus virginiana)

Heartwood, this specimen

How the grain runs.

Straight. Very fine, even texture. Lots of small knots. Part of the look, not a defect.

Closer detail of Eastern Red Cedar grain figure

Closer in

On the bench.

Heartwood very durable. Stands up to fungus and to bugs — moths and termites both. One of the best decay-resistant softwoods east of the Rockies. Easy under hand and machine. Chips on routed edges and against the grain. Soft, a little brittle, but very stable once dry. Glues and finishes well — though the natural oils sometimes fight a film finish. Strong cedar smell. Lasts for years. That is why it lines closets and chests. Reported skin and respiratory irritation. Pollen drives cedar fever in the southeast and south-central states.

The numbers, looked at directly.

Janka Hardness

0lbf

4,000 N. Side-hardness — force to embed a half-inch steel ball halfway into the wood.

Average Dried Weight

0lbs/ft³

530 kg/m³. At 12% MC.

Specific Gravity

0.44/ 0.47 at 12% MC

Basic over green volume; second number at 12% moisture content.

Hardness, in context

A side-hardness measurement. Higher number, harder wood.

Shrinkage — radial / tangential / volumetric

3.1%radial

4.7%tangential

7.8%volumetric

On sourcing

Where this wood comes from matters.

Not on CITES. IUCN Least Concern. In much of the central plains it is treated as an invasive pest — harvest is unrestricted and often welcome. No supply problem.

What it's for.

Cedar chests
Closet linings
Fence posts
Turned items
Carvings
Bows
Recorder mouthpieces

Worth knowing.

A juniper, technically. Not a true cedar. The name stuck. Stability, durability, and the smell — no other domestic softwood has all three.

Sources & references.

Wood Handbook — Wood as an Engineering Material (FPL-GTR-282) — USDA Forest Service, Forest Products Laboratory (2021)
Eastern Redcedar (Juniperus virginiana) — FPL Tech Sheet — USDA Forest Service, Forest Products Laboratory
Silvics of North America: Juniperus virginiana L. — Eastern Redcedar — Lawson, Edwin R. (USDA Forest Service) (1990)
Juniperus virginiana — IUCN Red List of Threatened Species — Adams, R.P. (2013)
Juniperus virginiana — Wikipedia contributors
Eastern Redcedar (Juniperus virginiana) — The Wood Database

Common questions.

Is Eastern Red Cedar good for outdoor use?: Its heartwood is very durable and one of the best decay-resistant softwoods east of the Rockies, standing up to fungus and to insects such as moths and termites, which makes it suitable for uses like fence posts. The reference Janka hardness of 900 lbf and durability figures are USDA Forest Products Laboratory values at 12% moisture content.
What color is Eastern Red Cedar?: Fresh off the saw the heartwood is a vibrant reddish purple to violet-brown, mellowing with light to a warmer reddish brown. The narrow sapwood is a pale yellow-white that contrasts sharply, and small tight knots are common since most of what comes in is small-diameter.
How does Eastern Red Cedar work on the bench?: It is easy under both hand and machine tools but is soft and a little brittle, so it can chip on routed edges and against the grain. It glues and finishes well, though its natural oils sometimes fight a film finish; Raw Heartwood kiln-dries its lumber to 6-8% moisture content, and the wood is very stable once dry.

From the library to your bench