Holistic Winter: Pine Needle Tea - Nature's Cold and Flu Cure
(photo courtesy of gaiahealthblog.com)
Pine Needle Tea is Vitamin C rich, 4-5 times as much as a lemon. It actually tastes like lemon too, with a touch of pine, of course. It's rich in Vitamin A, which is good for eye, hair & skin health. It's also a wrinkle remedy. At our house we add other teas, oils or herbs to enhance our pine needle tea. Some favorites are lemon, honey, peppermint, vanilla, cinnamon, Rooibos, Yerba, coconut milk, even in a soup broth. I'm so impressed at how many types of Pines are around the world and all their uses. They are a survival go-to for medicine, building, food, fire, first aid, shelter and more. People around the world have survived on the tree's many edible parts, especially pine needle tea, for centuries. Native Americans passed this ancient natural remedy down to the early European settlers. There are only a few types of
Pines that are poisonous - the Ponderosa, Yew and Norfolk Island. Be sure to know how to identify which types of Pine Trees you forage and that they grow away from pollution. I have found many great resources about foraging and identifying tips on Pinterest and on YouTube. If you'd rather buy Pine Needle Tea we love the Douglas Fir Spring Tips by Juniper Ridge, a fabulous wild harvesting company. Their pine needle tea is sold for around $10-$13 at natural food stores and online at https://juniperridge.com/shop/douglas-fir-spring-tip-tea/
Article about Pine Needle Tea's ability to heal cancer (and some amazing photos): http://www.gaiahealthblog.com/2014/01/17/another-cancer-killer-pine-needles/
Very informative article on the many benefits and uses:
http://davesgarden.com/guides/articles/view/3126/
I have done a Korean pine needle extract and it was amazing. Aside from tasting how I though Pine Sol would if I'd ever put it in my mouth I was able to feel the benefits. Great idea on the tea!
Update: We tried to drink some pine tea last night, but we had soup for dinner so that would have been too many liquids! We really need to find a way to sneak this mega vitamin C boost in daily....and I think I found it! As an experiment I added 1 Juniper Ridge Pine tea bag to our morning coffee via French press. I only left it in about 5 min just in case. I am very pleased with the results! I've been adding half a stick of ceylon cinnamon already & now with the hint of pine taste..... its a total Christmas-in-a-cup coffee. (Glad I didn't leave the tea bag any longer.) Hubby is loving it too! Merry Christmas Steemit family!
I like your tea idea!! I love to pick pine spring tips in april/may and make a syrup out of it. It is the best remedy for coughs :D