Is pine needle tea safe?
- Thread starter R3XXY
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It's OK in moderation.
The real problem is that it tastes bloody disgusting - like stringent perfume.
My advice is have nothing to do with it and enjoy the loveliness that is nettle tea...
The real problem is that it tastes bloody disgusting - like stringent perfume.
My advice is have nothing to do with it and enjoy the loveliness that is nettle tea...
I really like it. Some species taste better than others though. Nettle tea is superb mind. Have it every morning.
It depends on your pine I reckon.
Some are almost sort of piney minty, but some are truly like turpentine.
I think it's one of those that's worth trying, just as the notion takes and you're passing a sort of likely looking tree.
It's just part of the seasonal round, tbh.
Some are almost sort of piney minty, but some are truly like turpentine.
I think it's one of those that's worth trying, just as the notion takes and you're passing a sort of likely looking tree.
It's just part of the seasonal round, tbh.
There are plenty of wild teas you can forage and make out on your travels. Pine needle tea is always the one that our mentors always recommend because it is available year round, especially in arctic winter scenarios.
However, in our warmer, maritime climate, there are plenty of plants that make an exceptional tea.
My current favourites (seasonal), are Meadowsweet flowers and Russian chai (Rosebay Willow herb leaves, lightly fermented and dried). But fruit plant leaves (raspberry, blackcurrent etc) work well and are much tastier than the insipid and expensive fruit teas you can buy.
We only drink wild, foraged teas these days and every month brings a new flavor.
But do your research and, as has already been said, only drink in moderation. Gen up on your plant ID and be sure before you consume (there is a huge bank of knowledge on here).
However, in our warmer, maritime climate, there are plenty of plants that make an exceptional tea.
My current favourites (seasonal), are Meadowsweet flowers and Russian chai (Rosebay Willow herb leaves, lightly fermented and dried). But fruit plant leaves (raspberry, blackcurrent etc) work well and are much tastier than the insipid and expensive fruit teas you can buy.
We only drink wild, foraged teas these days and every month brings a new flavor.
But do your research and, as has already been said, only drink in moderation. Gen up on your plant ID and be sure before you consume (there is a huge bank of knowledge on here).
i'm not a botanist (so don't blame me for getting sick and do your own research 
), but it seems that part of this 'story' comes from the fact that there's a hemlock pine (tsuga canadiensis) -which seems fine for tea- and a herb called hemlock (conium maculatum) - which is poisonous; furthermore there trees called a pine but belonging to a different genus which can add to the confusion...
), but it seems that part of this 'story' comes from the fact that there's a hemlock pine (tsuga canadiensis) -which seems fine for tea- and a herb called hemlock (conium maculatum) - which is poisonous; furthermore there trees called a pine but belonging to a different genus which can add to the confusion...Some of the Am. pines are apparently toxic to cattle and I guess it is somewhat reasonable to assume they might not be heathy to humans. Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris) is used often for tea, atleast I am not dead yet but I do not use anything but Ps.
The ones mentioned for toxicity were P. ponderosa and P. contorta if memory serves.
The ones mentioned for toxicity were P. ponderosa and P. contorta if memory serves.
Y'know ? I never gave it a thought about the difference between the native pines and the NA ones and toxicity.
It's all Scot's pine around us here, and I know that they've been used for millennia.
Folks used to add them to ale. Not as resinous as the Greek's do to their wine, but still it was added.
I was just taught that pine needles came in pairs and they were fine to use.
Kaupech is the Austrian (? I think) word for the gum from pine trees, but chewing it has a long provenance.
We know of birch (https://www.nytimes.com/2019/12/17/science/ancient-gum-dna.html) gum being used the same way.
It's all Scot's pine around us here, and I know that they've been used for millennia.
Folks used to add them to ale. Not as resinous as the Greek's do to their wine, but still it was added.
I was just taught that pine needles came in pairs and they were fine to use.
Kaupech is the Austrian (? I think) word for the gum from pine trees, but chewing it has a long provenance.
We know of birch (https://www.nytimes.com/2019/12/17/science/ancient-gum-dna.html) gum being used the same way.
Isn't it interesting the way a conversation rambles, and other bits and pieces of knowledge surface ?
I went looking for the Kaupech, and I found an Austrian chewing gum site They make it from pine resin and honey. In their description of their produce there are links to how the raw materials are sourced, and one whole part is devoted to the pecherei, the tapping of pine trees for resin.
Really interesting I thought, so here's the link
www.alpengummi.at
I went looking for the Kaupech, and I found an Austrian chewing gum site
They make it from pine resin and honey. In their description of their produce there are links to how the raw materials are sourced, and one whole part is devoted to the pecherei, the tapping of pine trees for resin.Really interesting I thought, so here's the link
The handcraft of resin extraction - The "Pecherei"
This article explains the craft of resin extraction
www.alpengummi.at
Thanks for all the replies! I was thinking about using it as an alternative source of vitamin C in the event of a supply chain disruption that meant I couldn't buy fruit. "In moderation is a somewhat vague term, maybe I could drink a cup every other day. I hear conflicting reports of the flavour, are nettles also high in vitamin C? I've heard they're very nutritious.
Mushrooms. They're high in Vitamin C.
I read that on the label last week. I didn't know they were high in VitC, I did know they contributed to my B vitamins though.
Nettles are nutritious, but aim to take new ones rather than old. The old ones end up with crystals that aren't good for your kidneys....well if used often enough to accumulate, apparently.
That said, if you chop nettles down, they'll just send up new growth. I live in central Scotland and I can find fresh nettles growing at least eight months of the year, and if the Winter is mild and bright, I can often find them pretty much year long.
I read that on the label last week. I didn't know they were high in VitC, I did know they contributed to my B vitamins though.
Nettles are nutritious, but aim to take new ones rather than old. The old ones end up with crystals that aren't good for your kidneys....well if used often enough to accumulate, apparently.
That said, if you chop nettles down, they'll just send up new growth. I live in central Scotland and I can find fresh nettles growing at least eight months of the year, and if the Winter is mild and bright, I can often find them pretty much year long.
That is Pinus halapensis, Aleppo pine, small trees do not look too different from scots pine except the cones, large ones can be fairly easily recognized. It belongs to a different subsection though.
Wifey does not like Retsina but I kind of like it. It is thought that the resin was originally used only for covering seams (and insides) of leather and small wooden vessels. Only slightly later did it become apparent that it also acted as a preservative to wine and people started using the resin as such. It might be be that in northern Greece the resin of Macedonian pine, Pinus peuce, was used similarly, I can't remember at all where I got that.
I am fond of Macedonian pine, it is a five needle pine with slightly blueish hue to the needles, it looks and smells nice and it surprisingly grows very well even in the Finnish cold climate.
Nettles are high in Vitamin C (feel free to fact check me on this - because I'm not 100% and don't have the time to check myself - but gram-for-gram nettles have more vitamin C than an orange).
They are also high in iron, have good levels of calcium and B vitamins.
Nettles are your friend.
They are also high in iron, have good levels of calcium and B vitamins.
Nettles are your friend.
If your aim is to supplement your diet in these uncertain times, my advice would be to go on a learning adventure and start getting to know about the properties of local flora found around where you live. Aim to learn 1 plant a week, some will have health benefits, some are just tasty and some are obviously toxic. (don't even get me started of fungi, lol)
We've been on this journey for a while now and forage every weekend. Not large amounts, but whatever is in season and we've found some remarkably tasty and nutritious food (from elderberry to nettle, wild garlic to hogweed seeds).
I can't recommend Paul Kirtleys online plant ID course highly enough (there is a review on here somewhere if you do a search).
We've been on this journey for a while now and forage every weekend. Not large amounts, but whatever is in season and we've found some remarkably tasty and nutritious food (from elderberry to nettle, wild garlic to hogweed seeds).
I can't recommend Paul Kirtleys online plant ID course highly enough (there is a review on here somewhere if you do a search).
Attention!
There is one relatively common conifer that is very toxic!
en.m.wikipedia.org
There is one relatively common conifer that is very toxic!
Taxus baccata - Wikipedia
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But we’re talking about pine trees here. Conifer is very different from pine. And Yew is very distinct from pine.Attention!
There is one relatively common conifer that is very toxic!
Taxus baccata - Wikipedia
And Yew berries are really nice.
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i remember reading somewhere that the word "toxic" actually comes from the latin word for yew (taxus) --haven't tried them myself (but met folks who did and lived without any i'll effects) but the fleshy red "berries" of the yew are edible. !!!the seed inside is NOT edible but poisonous like the rest of the plant!!!
Indeed. I eat the berries and chicken of the woods from yew, I even have spoons made of yew. But the green stuff and seeds, no way. And I’m not about to eat the wood anytime soon either
Heard tell it’s a bit chewy.Similar threads
