Sugi / Japanese cedar

Kauaʻi evidence

Taxonomic identity, tree form, diagnostic morphology and island occurrence use the linked reviewed sources. Historical planting, cultivation, naturalization and invasive status are separate. Generated imagery is not occurrence evidence. The 1918–1959 Kauaʻi reforestation working register records 30,304 plants under Cryptomeria japonica across 10 entries dated 1927–1958. These are recorded planting quantities, not counts of surviving trees, and they do not by themselves establish current persistence, naturalization, or ecological impact. Source: Kauaʻi Reforestation Plantings 1918–1959 working register (user-supplied; reconciled 6 October 2026).

Names and classification

Scientific name

Cryptomeria japonica

Common names

sugi · Japanese cedar · Japanese red-cedar · sugi pine (historical Hawaiʻi forestry usage) · Sugi / Japanese cedar

Other names

Cryptomeria japonica · Sugi / Japanese cedar · sugi · Japanese cedar · Japanese red-cedar · sugi pine (historical Hawaiʻi forestry usage) · Cupressus japonica Thunb. ex L.

Record type

Species

Kauaʻi occurrence and status

Kauaʻi occurrence

Recorded on Kauaʻi

Origin

Introduced

Conservation status

Not yet assessed

Evidence date

2026-10-05

Evidence limits

Later DLNR publications place the species in representative Kauaʻi timber-planting lists, but this plate project did not independently verify a living individual in 2026.

Habitat and ecology

Habitats

Not yet assessed

Food and resource needs

Not yet assessed

Reproduction

Not yet assessed

Shelter

Not yet assessed

Growth form

Evergreen conifer tree

Threats and conservation

Monitoring

Not yet assessed

Data gaps

Current population extent and trajectory · Additional species-specific ecological and conservation sources

Process and seasonal context

Seasonal timing

Not yet assessed

Seasonal description

Sugi / Japanese cedar (Cryptomeria japonica) is an introduced tree documented on Kauaʻi through cultivation records. Native to warm, moist forest in East Asia and widely planted for timber. Kauaʻi evidence concerns intentional forestry planting; it does not establish naturalization or invasiveness.

Sources and further reading

• https://www.worldfloraonline.org/taxon/wfo-0000628423
• https://efloras.org/florataxon.aspx?flora_id=2&taxon_id=200005392
• https://dlnr.hawaii.gov/forestry/files/2013/02/NPK_FINAL_small-file.pdf
• https://files.hawaii.gov/dbedt/erp/EA_EIS_Library/2016-01-23-KA-DEA-Kokee-Timber-Mgt-Area-Forest-Mgt-Plan-Implementation.pdf
• https://research.fs.usda.gov/download/treesearch/47617.pdf