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Cedar Leaves

Q: Is Cedar Leaves natural or synthetic?

. Extraction: Steam distillation of fresh foliage and young twigs of Thuja occidentalis (eastern white cedar). Trees must be at least 15 years old. Leafy branches are cut, dried briefly, then loaded into a distillation tank. Extraction proceeds under high-pressure steam; vapors are condensed in an indirect-contact heat exchanger, then separated in a Florentine vase. Yield: 0.6–1.0% by weight. The crude oil contains 60–70% total ketones (alpha-thujone + fenchone). Some commercial grades undergo redistillation to reduce thujone content for IFRA compliance, which modifies the olfactory character. Major production: Quebec, Canada, with approximately 80% exported to the United States..

GREENS, HERBS AND FOUGERES / woody · fresh · green

Cedar Leaves

Category	GREENS, HERBS AND FOUGERES
Subcategory	woody · fresh · green
Origin
Volatility	Heart Note
Botanical	Thuja occidentalis L.
Appearance	Pale yellow to amber liquid
Odor Strength	Medium
Producing Countries	Canada, United States
Pyramid	Heart

Sharp, camphoraceous green — the smell of crushing arborvitae foliage between damp fingers. Not cedar heartwood at all: brighter, more terpenic, with an almost medicinal bite from thujone.

Scent
Terroir & Origins
The Full Story
Fun Fact
Extraction & Chemistry
In Perfumery

Scent

Green, sharp, and immediately camphoraceous — nothing like the dry warmth of cedarwood. The opening is terpenic and bright, close to juniper or cypress but with a particular medicinal edge from thujone. Drier than fir needle, less resinous than pine, more herbaceous than either. A cool brightness sits underneath, like crushed sage mixed with turpentine. On paper, the thujone ketone note persists longest.

Evolution over time

Immediately

Sharp green-camphoraceous burst, terpenic, thujone brightness, almost medicinal

After a few hours

Warmer, herbal-woody core emerges. Fenchone and bornyl acetate lend a balsamic undertone. Camphor softens.

After a few days

Faint green-woody residue, a ghost of coniferous sharpness. Low persistence — the volatile ketones dissipate within hours on skin.

Terroir & Transformation

Indicative 2025 wholesale prices.

The Full Story

Cedar leaf oil comes from Thuja occidentalis — the eastern white cedar or arborvitae — not from true cedars (Cedrus). The distinction matters. Where cedarwood smells dry, pencil-shaving warm, cedar leaf is green, coniferous, sharp. The volatile profile is dominated by alpha-thujone (38–65% depending on cultivar and provenance), fenchone (9–13%), sabinene (2–6%), and bornyl acetate. The overall impression: camphoraceous brightness threaded with an herbal-medicinal edge.

The oil is distilled from the foliage and young twigs of trees at least fifteen years old, primarily in Quebec. Small family operations account for most production; roughly 80% is exported to the United States. Yield runs 0.6–1.0% by steam distillation. The ketone content — thujone plus fenchone — typically exceeds 60% of total composition, which accounts for the sharp character and also the toxicity that limits dosage in fragrance formulas.

In compositi on, cedar leaf provides a green-coniferous accent in the top-to-heart transiti on. It is not a standalone note but a modifier: it lifts woody bases, sharpens lavender-fougere accords, and gives specificity to generic ‘forest’ constructions. Used sparingly — a few tenths of a percent — it adds documentary realism to aromatic-woody compositions. Higher concentrations risk a medicinal harshness. The oil may be redistilled to reduce thujone content, which changes the olfactory profile toward something softer and less particular.

This note in Première Peau. Simili Mirage · Gravitas Capitale. Sample all seven extraits in the Discovery Set.

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Related: Alpha Pinene · Angelica · Angelica Root · Angelica Root Oil · Artemisia · Barrenwort · Beachheather · Behini Tree

Did You Know?

Did you know?

Thuja occidentalis was the first North American tree introduced to Europe. Twenty-five of his 110 men had already died. The tree was named ‘arbre de vie’ — tree of life — and planted in the royal gardens in Paris. Its anti-scorbutic effect came from the vitamin C in the foliage.

Extraction & Chemistry

Extraction method: Steam distillation of fresh foliage and young twigs of Thuja occidentalis (eastern white cedar). Trees must be at least 15 years old. Leafy branches are cut, dried briefly, then loaded into a distillation tank. Extraction proceeds under high-pressure steam; vapors are condensed in an indirect-contact heat exchanger, then separated in a Florentine vase. Yield: 0.6–1.0% by weight. The crude oil contains 60–70% total ketones (alpha-thujone + fenchone). Some commercial grades undergo redistillation to reduce thujone content for IFRA compliance, which modifies the olfactory character. Major production: Quebec, Canada, with approximately 80% exported to the United States.

↑ See Terroir & Origins for origin-specific methods.

Molecular Formula	Complex — key component: alpha-Thujone (C₁₀H₁₆O, up to 65%), Fenchone (C₁₀H₁₆O)
CAS Number	8007-20-3 (Thuja occidentalis leaf oil)
Botanical Name	Thuja occidentalis L.
IFRA Status	Restricted — thujone content subject to IFRA Amendment 49 (Standard 102). Maximum thujone levels per product category apply. Used in small quantities due to neurotoxicity.
Synonyms	Cedar needles, Cedar foliage
Physical Properties
Odor Strength	Medium
Appearance	Pale yellow to amber liquid
Flash Point	~50°C
Specific Gravity	0.910–0.930 @ 25°C
Refractive Index	1.456–1.460 @ 20°C

In Perfumery

Top-to-heart modifier providing green-coniferous specificity. The high thujone and fenchone content gives cedar leaf a character distinct from any cedarwood material — sharper, greener, more volatile. Functions primarily as a lifting agent and naturalizer in aromatic and fougere compositions, where it bridges lavender and coumar in with woody hearts. At low dosages (0.1–0.5%), it adds textural realism to forest and outdo or accords without drawing attenti on to itself. At higher levels, the medicinal-camphoraceous quality dominates. Cedar leaf partners well with juniper berry, lavender, geranium, pine needle, and clary sage. In woody-aromatic masculine structures, it sharpens cedarwood or vetiver bases. IFRA restricts thujone-containing materials — cedar leaf oil must be dosed with attenti on to total thujone exposure across the formul a.