Growing Atlantic White Cedars for Wetland Restoration Sites

Living Observatory"s Native Plant Nursery was established in 2011 in collaboration with Tidmarsh Farms. The nursery was established with the goal of providing native plant species including Atlantic white cedar trees (AWC) to wetland restoration projects at a reasonable cost. In 2016, the nursery provided ~30,000 native plants including 7,000+ AWC for the wetland restoration of Tidmarsh East, now the Mass Audubon Tidmarsh Wildlife Sanctuary. More recently, the nursery has supplied 3-4 year old AWC trees to the Foothills Preserve, the Coonamessett River Restoration and the Childs River Restoration projects.

Why AWC?

Native stands of AWC (Chamaecyparis thyoides) are a unique ecotype that grow in a narrow coastal belt 80 to 210 km (50 to 130 miles) wide from southern Maine to northern Florida and west to southern Mississippi. Typically found in small dense stands in fresh water swamps and bogs, AWC swamps have become increasingly rare due to over harvesting for commercial uses including construction of cranberry farms, as well as wood for boats and houses, and nitrogen pollution from golf courses and septic systems. Wetland restoration of cranberry farms provides an opportunity to try to jumpstart new stands of AWC. Planting specifications included in design plan for these restorations often include a few hundred to thousands of young AWC trees.



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-- Glorianna collects AWC seed in 2011 from trees planted in 2009. Photo credit: A. Hackman






Recent Updates

54 Young trees planted at UCB

By Adrian Wiegman on September 3, 2025 (updated September 5, 2025)
Glorianna and I installed 54 young trees at blocks 3 and 4 of the supplemental planting and monitoring project at upper Coonamessett yesterday (Sept 2, 2025). These trees represent the final plantings for this effort. From here out we will monitor tree growth, mortality, as well as soil moisture, and groundwater in the blocks. Tree guards and tree tags need to be added.

Sensor Deployment for Supplemental Planting at Upper Coonamessett

By Adrian Wiegman on August 28, 2025 (updated September 5, 2025)
On a bright late-August day, our team returned to the newly restored Upper Coonamessett River Wetland Complex to take another important step in supporting a test planting Atlantic white cedar (AWC) cedar trees. This effort is part of Living Observatory’s collaboration with the Massachusetts Department of Ecological Restoration (DER) monitoring efforts, focused on linking age at planting and hydrology with plant survival in restored wetlands.

Contributors

Glorianna Davenport
Researcher
Alex Hackman
Mass Audubon Restoration Program
Nick Nelson
Designer
Claire Esterman
Irene Caldwell
Researcher
Olivia Kurz
Christine Hatch
Adrian Wiegman
LO Learning Coordinator
William Giuliano
Director, Cranberry Bog Restoration Program

Institutions