At Cedar Walls Resort we decided to embrace the presence of the stand of Cedar trees that adjoins our resort rental property in Harbor Springs, Michigan. The trees here are beautiful and add to the relaxing Northern Michigan vibe our guests enjoy at our tiny home style, home away from home resort. We combined our last name, Walls, and Cedar to create the name for our resort: the Cedar Walls Resort.
Read more: Why Cedar?The Sacred Cedar Tree
The Cedar Tree has held spiritual significance for centuries. The Cedar is often referenced as the tree of life because in many cultures, including the indigenous people who settled in Northern Michigan, the cedar tree was important because every part of it could be used in daily life. The wood was used for building longhouses and canoes. Other parts of the cedar tree can be used for basket weaving, hats, clothing, rope making, utensils, medicines and totem poles. In traditional Native American ceremonies cedar is one of the four sacred plants along with sweet grass, sage and tobacco. The bows of the cedar tree are burned during ceremony so that prayers will be carried to the Creator. It is also burned like sage to purify. When cedar is added to a fire it crackles and to the First Nations People, including the descendants of Ojibwe Ancestors of the Mackinac Tribe of Chippewa Indians. This sends a message to the spiritual world that an offering is being made. Cedar is used as a form of protection in sweat lodge ceremonies. Cedar branches are placed on the floor of the sweat lodge, and a circle of cedar placed around the lodge. To learn more about the First Nations People in our area visit the Sault St. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians website at www.saulttribe.com
Cedar Trees or Cypress Trees?
It is interesting to note that some Cedar trees are actually part of the Cypress Tree Family. Mainly the Western Red Cedar and the Yellow Cedar. Here in Michigan the Northern White Cedar tree is Native to our state and is also known as arborvitae and is in the cypress family of Cupressaceae. The Northern White Cedars have flattened scale-like leaves that are arranged in tight rows along the branches and appear in a fan shape and have an average life span of 800 years. They grow to be 32’-50’ tall. We also have Eastern Red Cedar also known as the Juniperus Virginiana or Juniper here. This type of cedar grows from 16’-66’ tall with sharp needle like leaves as a juvenile tress and the more scale-like as an adult tree.
We hope you enjoyed our article about the Cedar Tree. We look forward to your visit to Cedar Walls Resort. To learn more about the amenities we offer – click here. For contact information – click here.
Cedar Walls Resort 