Platycladus orientalis (L.) Franco

Oriental Arborvitae; Tree of Life

Tree

Perennial

Vascular

Oriental Arborvitae is an introduced evergreen shrub or small tree in the Cypress family (Cupressaceae). It is native to northeastern China, eastern Russia, and Korea. It is widely planted in Alabama and persists or escapes locally throughout the state. Oriental Arborvitae is an evergreen shrub or small tree reaching 18-60 feet in height. The bark is thin, red-brown in color, and peels in long strips. The branches are flattened and are held vertically. The scale-like leaves are 4-ranked with decurrent bases. The leaves are bluntly pointed with a terminal resin gland. The leaves are dimorphic. The lateral leaves are boat-shaped with a median groove but without conspicuous white bands of stomates on the lower surface. The facial leaves are rhomboid with a conspicuous white band of stomates on the lower surface. Oriental Arborvitae is monoecious, producing pollen and seed cones on the same tree. The pollen cones are small, ovoid, and yellowish-brown in color. The seed cones are ovoid with 6-12 thick flattened scales, each with an apical horn-like hook. The seed are wingless. An alternate common name for this species is “Tree of Life”, and it is often planted in cemeteries. Oriental Arborvitae is widely cultivated and many forms are available from nurseries including dwarf and globular growth forms, and cultivars with yellowish foliage.—A. Diamond

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Not Native

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