Japanese cedar - Cryptomeria

In Eastern Asia, the Japanese cedar (Cryptomeria japonica), known as Sugi in Japan, plays a central role in Japanese culture as a sacred temple tree. Here it is also used for the production of essential oils as well as for timber and veneers. Populating some 50% of Japanese forests, it is the most important tree for the country’s forestry sector. In Europe, this decorative tree is planted in its many cultivated forms and varieties in gardens and parks. It reaches heights of up to 50 metres in Japanese mountain forests.