Scots Pine needle tea

[Paul_B]

Quick question. Scots pine needles are good fro making a tea style infusion right?? Is it a case of pouring on boiling water and letting brew for a few minutes?? I got a few needles on a walk to try it and just thought I would ask here just to check I'm right here.

BTW it is scots pine as it has the needles in pairs and they look about the right colour and length and the bark was kind of reddish like scots pine is. I grew up wit a small one in our garden so I know what they look like (well I believe I do as it is a long time ago).

 

[Shewie]

I chop mine up with the knife first, then strained through grass to catch the bits

 

[JonathanD]

Same as Shewie, but I'm too lazy to strain. Also use loads. It's amazing the different tastes pine can have. Spruce is my fave.

 

[Paul_B]

So you can use other trees needles too? They had some sitka, would that be good too??

I was thinking of using it like a green tea or matte (south american grass based tea infusion) where you leave the leaves / needles in there while drinking. Might get myself a bombilla (bad spelling) which is used to drink matte (yerba matte). It is a metal straw with a filter in it. I got about 3 or 4 tips of branches. About 2-3 inches long each one. Is that enough for a brew or two??

 

[JonathanD]

You can use most needles. Obviously not Cypress or Yew though, them be badness.

I always leave the needles in when drinking. Never had a problem.

 

[cbr6fs]

Unless your very confident with your tree identification a good rule of the thumb is to avoid flat needles and only use round ones.
As it could be possible to mistake Cedar or even Hemlock needles for pine needles.

 

[the interceptor boy]

also put in a,few nettle leaves as well and mix in a little bit of honey for taste, nice refreshing tea after a long walk in camp, also good for hayfeaver sufferes. cheers the interceptor boy.

 

[whats wrong with you all]

You can use most needles. Obviously not conifer or Yew though, them be badness.

what do you mean by conifer in this sense? Isn't Scots Pine a conifer?

 

[Harvestman]

Let's keep it simple and liat the species to avoid, since they are all conifers under discussion in this thread.

Yew is the only one I know to avoid

 

[Nagual]

Unless your very confident with your tree identification a good rule of the thumb is to avoid flat pine needles and only use round ones.
As it could be possible to mistake Cedar or even Hemlock needles for pine needles.

Whats up with Cedar or Hemlock?

 

[JonathanD]

what do you mean by conifer in this sense? Isn't Scots Pine a conifer?

Sorry, I meant Cypress, not conifer. I'll edit my post to avoid confusion.

 

[whats wrong with you all]

ahh i see All understood now cheers.

 

[cbr6fs]

Whats up with Cedar or Hemlock?

Certain varieties of Hemlock are extremely poisonous, different parts of the tree are more toxic than others, but as little as a dozen leaves can be fatal.

Cedar leaves produce a very toxic oil, that will at best make you feel very ill at worst it will induce anything from severe illness to death depending on the quantities consumed.


Both have been used for medicinal purposes over the years in various quantities and dilutions, but unless you know exactly what your doing it's best to avoid both.
As both produce flat needles it's fairly easy to avoid them.

 

[Paul_B]

Well I made some and think I didn't have enough needles although it was a big handful when I picked it. Some needles were less than bright green so that thinned it a bit but not by much.

I read something online about chopping and simmering (but not boiling) for 20 minutes. This I did and unfortunately I messed up on the amount of water so we only had a small cupful. It looked like it had a bit of an oil on the surface and was slightly cloudy I thought. Anyway I thought it had no flavour at first but the second sip it came through. BTW I filered it out but missed a few finer pieces as only used a metal drainer not a filter proper. I thought it has a kind of subtle taste as I didn't add any lemon juice or honey as the website suggested but drank it neat. I struggled to compare it with anything I had tasted before but I really liked it, really really liked it. I think all the scots pine trees within travelling distance of me will now be stripped clean of needles within my reach!! A new addiction I think.

How would you describe the taste?? I thought it had an aromatic taste. My friend thought it was perfumy taste whatever that means. I thought it almost had a slight nutty or seedy taste. Kind of like those sunflower seeds you can get. Almost but not quite that is. Nicer anyway. Never been stumped at describing a taste before.

Totally recommend Scots Pine needle tea!!

Going to bring my honey stove to Scotland when I next go there. That way I can simmer for a while without having to carry loads of meths or gas. Going to try some other needles too.

I know what Yew is like and that it is not good. Also I know what firs, pines and the like look like even if I don't recognise the exact species. So I reckon I'll be safe enough picking needles. Thanks for your comments, much appreciated and gave me the confidence to try my first foraged food. Other than field mushrooms, shaggy ink cap, puffballs, various fruits from elderberry (wine ) to damsons to blackberry, rasberry and wild strawberry (so much nicer than shop bought or even home grown real strawberries). Apart from all that this is my first uncommon forage I've tried. Next stop is nettles in spring!! ALso nettle soup, I reckon I could come up with a good recipe for soup with nettles in it!!

 

[wildranger]

Certain varieties of Hemlock are extremely poisonous, different parts of the tree are more toxic than others, but as little as a dozen leaves can be fatal.

Cedar leaves produce a very toxic oil, that will at best make you feel very ill at worst it will induce anything from severe illness to death depending on the quantities consumed.


Both have been used for medicinal purposes over the years in various quantities and dilutions, but unless you know exactly what your doing it's best to avoid both.
As both produce flat needles it's fairly easy to avoid them.

What varieties of hemlock are poisonous? The western hemlock (tsuga heterophylla), that supposedly can be used for a tea of the needles and also has an edible cambium layer. It's a highly recommended tree for its tea. You're probably right about cedar, cedrus sp. you mean of course? Thanks for the info!

 

[Shewie]

Well I made some and think I didn't have enough needles although it was a big handful when I picked it. Some needles were less than bright green so that thinned it a bit but not by much.

I read something online about chopping and simmering (but not boiling) for 20 minutes. This I did and unfortunately I messed up on the amount of water so we only had a small cupful. It looked like it had a bit of an oil on the surface and was slightly cloudy I thought. Anyway I thought it had no flavour at first but the second sip it came through. BTW I filered it out but missed a few finer pieces as only used a metal drainer not a filter proper. I thought it has a kind of subtle taste as I didn't add any lemon juice or honey as the website suggested but drank it neat. I struggled to compare it with anything I had tasted before but I really liked it, really really liked it. I think all the scots pine trees within travelling distance of me will now be stripped clean of needles within my reach!! A new addiction I think.

How would you describe the taste?? I thought it had an aromatic taste. My friend thought it was perfumy taste whatever that means. I thought it almost had a slight nutty or seedy taste. Kind of like those sunflower seeds you can get. Almost but not quite that is. Nicer anyway. Never been stumped at describing a taste before.

Totally recommend Scots Pine needle tea!!

Going to bring my honey stove to Scotland when I next go there. That way I can simmer for a while without having to carry loads of meths or gas. Going to try some other needles too.

I know what Yew is like and that it is not good. Also I know what firs, pines and the like look like even if I don't recognise the exact species. So I reckon I'll be safe enough picking needles. Thanks for your comments, much appreciated and gave me the confidence to try my first foraged food. Other than field mushrooms, shaggy ink cap, puffballs, various fruits from elderberry (wine ) to damsons to blackberry, rasberry and wild strawberry (so much nicer than shop bought or even home grown real strawberries). Apart from all that this is my first uncommon forage I've tried. Next stop is nettles in spring!! ALso nettle soup, I reckon I could come up with a good recipe for soup with nettles in it!!

Good to hear you had a taste, I think it's quite refreshing, maybe not as much as a proper brew but nice for a change or when there's nowt else.

Pines - Pairs
Spruce - Single
Larch - Lots

That's how I play it
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[cbr6fs]

What varieties of hemlock are poisonous? The western hemlock (tsuga heterophylla), that supposedly can be used for a tea of the needles and also has an edible cambium layer. It's a highly recommended tree for its tea. You're probably right about cedar, cedrus sp. you mean of course? Thanks for the info!

Just carried out some searching and reading up, seems you are exactly right.

Both Conium and Cicuta are extremely toxic.
But neither resemble a pine tree or pine needles in any way shape or form.


As you say the Tsuga family of trees seem to be none toxic.


You learn something new every day, thanks for pointing me in the correct direction, i owe you a pint.




Cheers
Mark