TREE MEDICINE

Alder: Is a small tree that thrives in damp areas such as wetlands and
river
banks. It usually has several grayish trunks, and its female catkins
develop
into what look like tiny brown pine cones. Alder bark is simmered in water
to make a healing wash for deep wounds. It is astringent and will help to
pull
the edges of a wound together. The leaves and bark can be made into a tea
that will benefit tonsillitis and fever. The leaves are also used in
poultices
to dry up breast milk. Alder bark tea can be used as a douche or for
hemorrhoids. Fresh alder sap can be applied to any area to relieve itching.

Apple: The bark of the root of apple trees is used for fevers. Apples are
rich in magnesium, iron, potassium, and Vitamins C, B and B2. When peeled,
they relieve diarrhea. Stewed unpeeled apples are a laxative. Eating
apples
regularly promotes restful sleep. Baked apples can be applied warm as a
poultice
for sore throats and fevers. Apple cider is important in this time of
antibotics, which destroy the intestinal flora. Raw, unpasteurized apple
cider will
restore the correct bacteria to the bowels after a course of antibotics.
Apples reduce acidity in the stomach and help to clean the liver. Add
garlic and
horseradish to apple cider to clear the skin. Use the mixture as a wash
externally and take it internally as a drink.

Ash: Ash is a tall tree whose compound leaves are composed of five to nine,

or seven to eleven leaflets. Its bark is very tightly and regularly
furrowed,
and its winged, canoe-paddle-shaped seeds, called keys, hang in clusters
until they are brown and drop off in the fall. The tender new spring growth
of
the twig tips and leaves can be simmered to make a laxative tea that will
benefit gout, jaundice, and rheumatism.

Beech: Beech trees have a distinctive, smooth gray bark that resembles the
skin of an elephant. The bark is used as a tea for lung problems, including

tuberculosis. It is also cleansing to the blood, through pregnant women
should
avoid it. Beech bark tea make a good wash for poison ivy. Beech leaves are

used in poultices for burns and for frostbite.

Birch: Birch trees have thin papery bark that peels easily -- so easily
that
birds actually use it to build their nests. It can range in color from
chalky white and reddish brown to golden gray and yellow. The sweet birch
{black
birch} and yellow birch both have a nice wintergreen flavor in their twigs
and
bark. Birch leaf or twig tea is a laxative, and healing to mouth sores,
kidney and bladder sediments, and gout. The tea also help rheumatic pains.
Make a
strong decoction of the twigs, bark and leaves and add it to the bath for
relief of eczema, psoriasis, and other moist skin eruptions. Modern
medicine has
recently confirmed that betulinic acid, formed in birch sap, has anti-tumor
properties that help fight cancer.

Cedar: The northern white cedar is an evergreen with a branched trunk,
conical shape, and flat scalelike leaves. It has reddish brown bark that
hangs in
hairy shreds. Another name for the tree is Arborvitae, or "tree of life," a

name given to it by the French explorer Jacques Cartier after it saved his
crew
from scurvy. A tea is made from the leaves and twigs, and is very high in
Vitamin C. Among the Algonquin it is considered a sacred tree, and they
will
not perform a ceremony without it. Its branches are used on the floor of
sweat
lodges, and it is dried and burned as an incense because it harmonizes the
emotions and put one in the proper state of mind for prayer. The tea of the

twigs and branches is simmered until the water in the pot begins to turn
brown.
It is then used for fevers, rheumatic complaints, chest colds and flu.

Elder: Elder trees are quite small. They have clusters of white flowers in

spring and black or deep purple berries in fall. They thrive in damp, moist

areas. Elderberries are used to make preserves, pies, and wine. Taken as a

tea, either fresh or dried, the berries benefit the lungs and nourish the
blook. The young leaves of elder are used in salves and poultices for skin
healing. A root bark tea clears conjestion, eases headaches, and is used in
poultices
for mastitis. A tinture of the flowers lowers fever by promoting
perspiration. Elderflowers water is a traditional remedy for skin blemishes
and
sunburn. Cold elderflower tea is placed on the eyes as a soothing compress
for
inflammation. Elderflower oil makes a soothing balm for sore nipples of
nursing
mothers.

Elm: Slippery elm is a medium-sized tree with grayish bark, usually found
near streams. Unlike the American elm its crown does not droop. It leaves
are
also larger than the American elm's with coarsely toothed margins. The
inner
bark of the slippery elm, which is sticky and fragrant when fresh, is used
medicinally. Slippery Elm bark is available in dried and powdered forms
from
herbalists. It is made into paste with water and then applied as a poultice
to
injuries of flesh and bone, on gunshot wounds, ulcers, tumors, swellings,
chilblains, and on the adomen to draw fever out. Slippery elm is very high
in
calcium, and a pudding or tea of the bark can be ingested to help speed bone

healing. The powdered bark in water makes a jelly that soothes bowel and
urinary
problems, sore throats, and diarrhea. It makes a perfect substitute milk
for
babies who are allergic to cow's milk. Try adding a little lemon and honey
for
flavor.

Hawthorn: Hawthorne is a small, broad, round, and dense tree with thorns
and
edible red fruits. The fall berries and spring new leaves and flowers make
a
cardiac tonic that benefits virtually all heart conditions. Be aware,
however: Prolonged used does cause the blood pressure to drop. Use it for
a few
weeks and then take a week off to prevent a precipitious decrease in blood
pressure. Use caution when combining this herb with other heart medications
to
prevent a sudden drop in blood pressure. For maxiumum benefit eat fresh raw

garlic as you undergo a hawthorn regime. {Garlic provides extra cleansing
of
plaque in the blood vessels}.

Hazel: Is a small tree with small rounded nuts that grow tow to four in a
cluster. Hazel twigs are traditionally used by dowers to find hidden
sources of
water. Hazel nuts are said to benefit the kidneys. Huron herbalists used
the bark in poultices for tumors and ulcers. The Iroquois mixed the nut oil

with bear's grease to make mosquito repellent. The Chippewa used a
decoction of
hazel root, white oak root, chokecherry bark, and the heartwood of ironwood
for bleeding from the lungs.

Holly: Mountain Holly is a small tree with ovarte, fine saw-toothed leaves
and large orange berrie. The buds were twigs that were used by Native
Amercian
herbalists in decoctions and as an external wash for ulcers, herpetic
eruptions, jaundice, fever and diarrhea. The leaves alone were used as
beverage
tea. English holly of European holly is a familiar evergreen usually seen
as
decoration at Yuletide. It has spiny, elliptical leaves and shiny red
berries.
The leaves can be used as a tea substitute and in infusions for coughs,
colds
and flu. Be aware: The berries of all holly varieties are strongly
purgative.

Linden and Basswood: Linden is a large tree found in moist, rich soils near

other hardwoods. It has a heart-shaped leaves with toothed margins. The
bark
is dark gray, and its fruit is nutlike, downy, and peasized. It has
clusters
of yellowish-white fragrant flowers in the spring. Basswood, or American
linden, is a close relative. Linden flower tea is a popular beverage in
Europe
for nervous headaches and upset digestion, hysteria, nervous vomiting, and
heart pappitations. Linden flower tea can also be added to baths to calm
the
nerves. Linden flower honey is prized for medicinal use. Native Amercian
herbalists used the roots and bark of basswood for burns and the flower tea
for
epilepsy, headache, spasm, spasmodic cough, and general pain. The buds were
eaten
as famine food, and the bark was pounded and added to soups.

Maple: Maples are large trees with deeply lobed, toothed leaves. The bark
of the younger tress is gray and smooth, on older trees it breaks into
ridges
and fissures. Maples have winged seeds that hang in cluster of two. The
Ojibwa and the Cherokee made a decoration of the inner bark or red maple to
use as
a wash for sore eyes. The leaves of striped maple, or moosehead, were used
to
poultice sour breasts. A decoration of inner bark of sugar maple was used
for diarrhea. The Penobscot used striped maple bark in poultices for
swollen
limbs, and as a tea for kidney infections, coughs, colds, and bronchitis.
Young
maple leaves can be made into massage oil that will be soothing to sore
muscles.

Oak: Oaks are large trees with lobed leaves and acorns topped by
bowl-shaped
caps. The best oak for internal use is white oak, though all oaks are
valuable as external washes. The tannins in oak bark and leaves are helpful
in
pulling the edges of a wound together and is antiseptic and antiviral.
White oak
bark tea is used for chronic diarrhea, cronic mucus discharges, and piles.
It
makes a nice gargle for sore throats and wash for skin problems such as
poison ivy, burn and wounds. The tea of the leaf of the bark may be used by
women
as a douche for vaginitis. Use caution: Prolonged ingestion of oak is
potentially harmful.

Pine: All pines are evergreens, with needles that grow in soft, flexable
clusters. Pine trees are revered worldwide as healing agents. Any pine, or

other evergreen such as spruce, larch, and ceder, will have antiseptic
properties
useful as a wound wash. The most palatable pine for internal use is the
white
pine. Its needles and twigs are simmered into a tea that is rich in Vitamin

C. The tea is used for sore throats, coughs, and colds. Chinese herbalists

boil the knot of the wood because of the concentrated resins found there.
Pine
baths aid kidney ailments, improve circulation, and are relaxing to sore
muscles. The aroma of pine is soothing to the nerves and lungs. Pine tea
make a
wonderful foot bath.

Poplar: Poplars are distinguished by their drooping catkins and rounded
leaves with pointed tips. Balsam poplar was used by Native American
herbalists
who scored the bark and applied the resinous gum to toothaches and
swellings.
The sticky spring buds were gathered in May and used in salves for skin
problems, sprains, sore muscles, wounds, headaches, tumores, eczemia,
bruises, gout,
and on the chest for lung ailments and coughs. The buds were decorated and
used internally for phlegm, kidney and bladder ailments, coughs, scurvy, and

rheumatic pains. The root was combined with the root of white poplar in a
decoction to stop premature bleeding in pregnancy. The warmed juice of
white poplar
was dropped into sore ears. Poplar barks are high in salicin, making them
useful in treating deep wounds, gangrene, eczema, cancer, burns, and strong
body
odor. The inner bark of a young poplar tree is edible in the spring and can

be simmered into a tea for liver and kidney ailments.

Rowan, or Mountain Ash: The American mountain ash and the European mountain

ash have identical uses. The former has bunches of orange berries that look

like tiny apples, and the latter one has red ones. Both are small, sturdy
trees with compound leaves of nine to seventeen leaflets. Their clusters of
white
flowers, composed of five petals each, appear in spring. Rowan berries are
bitter, astringent, and very high in Vitaman C. They should be picked just
after the first frost when their color has deepened . The fresh juice of
the
berries is added to sore throut gargles, and jelly is made from the berries
will
treat diarrhea in adults and children. Rowan berries are added to ales and
cordials. In ancient Scotland, a syrup for coughs and colds was made from
rowan
berries, apples, and honey.

Walnut: Walnut trees are tall and have compound, alternative leaflets.
Their spring flowers are drooping green catkins that mature into large,
round nuts
covered in green, spongy husks that stain the hands brown when cut open with

a knife. Walnut husks are medicinally active. They are antifungal and rich

in manganese, a skin-healing agent. Gather them when fresh, and rub
directly
onto ringworm. The tea of the hull may be used as a douche for vaginitis.
For
stubborn old ulcers apply the dried , powdered leaf, and then poultice with
fresh green leaves. Do this for about twenty days, daily. The leaf tea
increases circulation, digestion, and energy. The fresh bark may be applied
to the
temples for headache or to teeth to relieve pain. The dried and powdered
bark, or pounded fresh bark, can be applied to wounds to stop swelling and
to
hasten healing.

Willow: There are more than forty varieties of willow growing in the US.
They are water-loving trees, a good indicator species if your looking for a
regular water source, either above or below ground. Willows have slender
flexable
twigs and long, narrow, simple leaves. In early spring, willows bloom with
golden catkins that mature into small seed capsules in late summer. All
willow
barks have salicylic acid, which is a natural form of aspirin. Willow bark
tea treats muscle pain and inflammation, diarrhea, fever, arthritc pain, and

headache. Used externally it makes a wash for cuts, ulcers, and poison ivy.

Willow bark in teas and capsules is sedative and eases insomina. It reduces
the rise of heart disease and may delay cataract formation.


Source(s)
"Lyz"
Culpeper's Apprentice

Reference: 2002 Magickal Almanac


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