Widespread throughout the Pacific Northwest, the western red cedar is a large, coniferous tree in the cypress family. Thuja plicata thrives in old-growth forests and along streambanks. Historically, the tree played an important role amongst Native American tribes providing a means of shelter, boat making, basket making, crafts, and medicine. Cedar leaf is aromatic and can be used topically, employed as incense, infused, and extracted. Cedar is native to North America and was once used by the Native Americans to create canoes, earning it the title "Canoewood". It was later affectionately nicknamed 'Arbor Vitae', a French term for Tree of Life, after supposedly curing one of Jacques Cartier's men of scurvy during a 16th century expedition. As a result, Thuja occidentalis was imported to Europe for its beneficial properties, but now is primarily viewed as an ornamental tree. The leaves have an aromatic flavor and scent and may be used with caution as a tea.