How to Identify Cedar of Lebanon
Identify Cedar of Lebanon by its light tan to warm brown color, distinct even growth rings, soft light weight, and sweet resinous true-cedar scent.
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Start with scent — it is the single most useful clue. Cedar of Lebanon, like all true cedars, carries a sweet, warm, resinous fragrance that is strongest on a fresh cut or a light sanding and persists in the wood for years. A light, soft conifer board that smells distinctly of cedar is already pointing you toward a Cedrus; a piece with no aroma is almost certainly not it.
Read the color and grain. The heartwood runs light tan to warm medium brown, sometimes with a golden or faintly reddish cast, over a paler creamy sapwood, and the concentric growth rings are distinct and fairly even — the ring pattern on our sample is typical. The texture is fine and even and the grain generally straight, with a soft natural luster. Knots are common because the timber comes from broad, spreading conifer crowns, so expect frequent knotting rather than long clear runs.
Use weight and hardness to narrow it down. This is a genuinely light, soft wood (Janka ~500 lbf) that dents under a fingernail and feels noticeably lighter in the hand than any temperate hardwood. On the end grain you will see the resinous conifer structure — no true vessels or pores, just distinct earlywood-to-latewood ring transitions — confirming a softwood rather than a ring- or diffuse-porous hardwood.
The main confusion is with the many unrelated woods that share the 'cedar' name. Western red cedar (Thuja plicata) is softer, more brittle and stringy, tends redder-brown to pinkish, and has a sharper, more pungent scent. Eastern red cedar / aromatic red cedar (Juniperus virginiana) is actually a juniper — reddish with cream sapwood streaks, knotty, and even more strongly aromatic. Spanish cedar (Cedrela odorata) is a hardwood mahogany relative, pinker and coarser with visible pores. Against the other true cedars — Atlas cedar (Cedrus atlantica) and Deodar (Cedrus deodara) — the wood is nearly indistinguishable, so those are separated by tree origin and form rather than by the timber; all three are legitimately sold under the cedar label.
Frequently asked questions
How do I tell Cedar of Lebanon from Western red cedar?
Both are aromatic softwoods, but Western red cedar is softer, more brittle and stringy, redder to pinkish-brown, and has a sharper, more pungent scent. Cedar of Lebanon is a bit denser, runs light tan to warm brown, and carries a sweeter, warmer fragrance. Weight and the milder aroma are the giveaways.
Is it the same as aromatic red cedar from closet liners?
No. Most aromatic cedar closet lining is Eastern red cedar (Juniperus virginiana), a juniper, not a true cedar. It is reddish with cream streaks, very knotty, and more sharply scented, whereas Cedar of Lebanon is browner, more even-grained, and sweeter-smelling.
Can I distinguish it from Atlas cedar or Deodar by the wood?
Not reliably. Cedar of Lebanon, Atlas cedar, and Deodar are all true Cedrus species with very similar light-brown, aromatic, even-ringed timber. They are told apart by tree, cone, and geographic origin rather than by the wood, and are often sold interchangeably as 'cedar.'
Does the scent ever fade, and does that affect identification?
Surface scent weakens over time and under film finishes, but a fresh cut or a light sanding usually revives it. If an old piece seems odorless, sand a hidden spot — a returning sweet cedar aroma, together with the soft weight and even rings, still points to a true cedar.