Wild Tea - Pine
Pine under snow - Finland
It can be hard to find the plants needed to make fresh wild teas during winter, so one of my favourite methods is to head to a nearby stand of pine trees and gather some wind-fallen branches.
To identify pine, look for branches with multiple needles emerging from each bract. A good rule is that pine has two or more needles, whereas spruce needles are singular and square and those of fir are flat. Spruce and fir can also make wonderful teas, but to avoid any confusion with yew (a very toxic conifer), I’d suggest avoiding any conifer with flat needles.
Pine trees, standing tall and upright, are valuable sources of food and medicine wherever they grow. Their inner bark (the cambium) can be eaten, either flaked and boiled to soften or fried into chips, the highly resinous cones can be used to make a powerful cough medicine, it’s resin used as glue or burned to create a healing, clarifying incense, and its pollen has legendary potency as an aphrodisiac, particularly for men. What abundance!
All of this goodness is to come during the warmer months, so for now it’s the needles and small cones that we turn to as tea. As with all barks and woody herbs, these need to be decocted - that is, simmered - after which the tea in your pan will have a lovely oily sheen, and a soft, fragrant feel and taste. Rich in vitamin C and A, it is an immune system booster that is ideal for the winter months. It is also expectorant, helping to relieve a congested chest and persistent cough. There are many folk stories of pine being helpful in delaying ageing, which its anti-oxidant properties now attest to.
When working with the tea of a particular tree, I think it’s important to spend some time with it in its habitat, before taking any part away for our use. Notice the way the tree interacts with the world around it. Touch its bark, feel it’s texture. Lean against it, rest awhile. Walking over pine needles is soft and cushioned underfoot, the air around each tree touched with a fine, resinous tang. And my how they talk and move! Next time there’s a storm blowing, make your way to a pine tree and listen to the susurration as the wind moves through its branches.