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(Pinus
strobus)
GREAT
TREE OF PEACE
c.
1990, Susun S. Weed
The
warming air of this verdant May morning touches my senses with pine. In the
sweet-scented shade of a towering white pine much like the one I now sit under,
the Peaceful Nations buried their weapons. I breathe deeply, asking their
ancient wisdom to flow into me with the refreshing pine smell.
The
nations of the Adirondacks (a word which means "tree eaters") ate the
inner bark of White Pines as one of their primary winter foods.
I
slice a strip from the underside of a small limb, thanking the tree for its
gifts of nourishment. The antiseptic sensation in my throat as I chew brings to
mind "Pine Brothers' Cough Drops." I feel my lungs open, my throat
open, my sinuses open, warmed and stimulated by White Pine, lofty yet generous
tree.
Europeans
didn't eat White Pine (at least, not at first). They cut the straight, tall
trees (150 feet was not an uncommon height and there are records of 200 and 250
foot trees) and sent them to the shipyards, where they masted huge sailing
ships.
But
eat Pine they did. Old records reveal numerous English settlements where
virtually all of the colonists died of scurvy (lack of vitamin C) during their
first winters in the "New World." Compassionate Native Americans
suggested a daily tea of Pine needles, one of Nature's richest sources of
vitamin C, and saved the colonists' lives. Pine needle tea has become one of my
winter favorites, as well, staving off not only scurvy, but colds, congestion,
and the flu.
The
sticky sap I pry loose from the pine cone near me was chewed, no doubt, by
Indian youth. It contains an (FDA approved) substance nearly 2000 times sweeter
than sugar. I savor its surprising intensity, remembering winter sore throats
soothed and sore gums strengthened. (Myrrh is a distant relative.) Mixed with
grease, the sap is a superb sealant for canoes and water vessels.
As
I close my eyes and savor the sweet, pungent taste and smell of Pine, I remember
a story I heard from a woman who guides canoe trips. One of the participants ran
his aluminum canoe into a rock, splitting the canoe and gashing his thigh deeply
from knee to hip. Emergency care was 4-5 days away. They bound his thigh with
limber strips of fresh White Pine bark and continued on. "I still
marvel," she told me, "at the speed and ease with which that very
nasty cut healed."
"Pine
Tar Salve" reads the label. Looks black, like my hands when I handle fresh
cut pine, or my clothes when I sit on the wrong stump. "Works like
heck," says my neighbor. "Put it on dog sores, cat fight wounds,
boils, ulcers, blisters. Draws out splinters, stys, and pimples. Soothes burns,
hemorrhoids, and itchy bites. Even cures you of poison ivy. Give it a try."
I'll
be in good company if I do. The Native people of North American valued no single
healing/nourishing plant more highly than Pine. They used not only the sap, but
also the boiled mashed inner bark, to heal the inevitable injuries of an outdoor
life.
Icelanders
of the fifteenth century took the sap mixed with honey to ease lung troubles.
Oriental
herbalists use knots from their pines as medicine, especially praising the
decoction (with Tang Gui) as a remedy for arthritis.
Is
there a Pine growing by you? It's very likely. Take a moment; to the Pine, great
tree of peace, tree of healing. Joyously feel the blessing of the trees. Breathe
in the calming yet exhilarating scent of Pine. Truly, the trees shall heal us.
Pine
is Astringent, Antiseptic, Analgesic, Anodyne, Expectorant
Susun
Weed - PO Box 64, Woodstock, NY 12498 (fax) 1-845-246-8081
Visit Susun Weed at: www.susunweed.com
and www.ashtreepublishing.com
For
permission to reprint this article, contact us at: susunweed@hvc.rr.com
Susun
Weed’s books include:
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