Tree · Meliaceae

Spanish cedar

Cedrela odorata

In this build, Spanish cedar is not on any county’s main native list.

Recorded native ranges can include long-established populations that spread from gardens; check your state’s native plant society list for local guidance. How native status is decided.

Key facts · USDA PLANTS

Spanish cedar at a glance

Native in
0 counties, across 0 states and territories
Estimated cold hardiness
Zone 10a PLANTS minimum temperature 27°F
Mature height
90 ft PLANTS mature height
Light and water
Full sun (shade-intolerant) Medium water use

Estimated cold hardiness: zone 10a. PLANTS gives a minimum temperature of 27°F; zone 10a winters bottom out at 30°F, the coldest half-zone that stays within that limit.

In this build, Spanish cedar is not on any county’s main native list.

Growing traits

Values from the PLANTS characteristics record. “Not recorded” means PLANTS has no value; nothing here is estimated except the zone.

Growth

Growth habit
Tree
Duration
Perennial
Mature height
90 ft
Growth rate
Rapid
Growth form
Single Stem
Shape
Erect
Lifespan
Moderate
Active growth period
Spring, Summer, Fall

Light and water

Shade tolerance
Intolerant (full sun (shade-intolerant))
Moisture use
Medium water use
Drought tolerance
High
Tolerance of waterlogged soil
None
Precipitation range
47 to 120 in per year

Soil

Soil textures
Medium and fine
pH range
5 to 7.5
Lime (CaCO₃) tolerance
High
Salinity tolerance
None
Fertility requirement
Medium
Minimum root depth
24 in

Climate

Minimum temperature
27°F
Estimated cold hardiness
Zone 10a and warmer
Minimum frost-free days
310
Fire tolerance
None

Flowers, leaves and fruit

Flower color
Green
Showy flowers
Yes
Bloom period
Indeterminate
Foliage color
Green
Showy in fall
No
Keeps leaves
No
Fruit color
Brown

Other

Toxicity
None
Nitrogen fixation
None
Nursery availability
No Known Source
Family
Meliaceae
PLANTS symbol
CEOD

Is it native where you live?

Matches your ZIP to the county it mostly lies in, then lists the plants recorded as native to your state (Kew’s World Checklist and USDA PLANTS) and recorded in that county by USDA PLANTS.

Source & data date

Source
USDA NRCS PLANTS Database: county distribution records, native status and plant characteristics. CC0 (public domain dedication, per the data.gov catalog record).
Kew’s World Checklist of Vascular Plants (WCVP): native or introduced status by state. CC BY 3.0.
USGS US-RIIS (ver. 2.0): species listed as introduced are excluded. CC0.
Citation
USDA, NRCS. 2026. The PLANTS Database (https://plants.usda.gov, 11/04/2026). National Plant Data Team, Greensboro, NC USA.
Govaerts R. (ed.) (2026). WCVP: World Checklist of Vascular Plants. Facilitated by the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Data file dated 2026-06-04, http://sftp.kew.org/pub/data-repositories/WCVP/ (retrieved 2026-11-04). Paper: Govaerts R. et al. (2021) The World Checklist of Vascular Plants, a continuously updated resource for exploring global plant diversity. Scientific Data 8, 215.
Data date
Retrieved from PLANTS on November 4, 2026; WCVP data file dated June 4, 2026.
Scope
Cedrela odorata (PLANTS symbol CEOD).
Method
A species is listed when it is recorded as native to the state in Kew’s World Checklist of Vascular Plants and USDA PLANTS, and recorded in the county by USDA PLANTS. Species PLANTS labels both native and introduced are listed separately. Full method · All sources

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