The bark is orange-brown weathering greyish, smooth at first, becoming fissured and exfoliating in long strips on the lower trunk on old trees.

[2] The seed cones are 10–20 mm long, pale purple with a whitish wax coating, with four (rarely six) scales arranged in opposite decussate pairs; the outer pair of scales each bears two winged seeds, the inner pair(s) usually being sterile; the cones are borne on a 1–2 cm long peduncle covered in very small (1 mm) scale leaves.

The cones turn brown when mature about 8 months after pollination.

[2] It is closely related to Calocedrus formosana, with the latter often treated as a variety of C.

[2] The species is still fairly widespread and frequent in the wild, though threatened by over-harvesting for its valuable wood; it is also extensively planted within its native range for wood production.