Pine Resin

[redflex]

Anyone know how best to collect pine resin?

I would like to collect about a mug full.

 

[bambodoggy]

I'm presuming you have plenty of pine trees near you? If so then just wonder through them looking for dried powdery resin than has leaked from the tree (most often from an injury to the tree) and carefully so as not to cause the tree anymore damage just pick it off with your fingers orr the tip of a knife.

If you don't have that many trees near you then pm me your details and I'll go and collect you some from my local woods.

Once you've got it just heatit gently to turn it back into it's liquid form.

Hope that helps,

Bam.

 

[andyn]

I would imagine for that quantity you'd need to drill into the tree slightly and make a small drip tap for the resin to trickle out of. But im only guessing.

For small quantities you can pop the small resin filled blisters on the trunks, but would take a long time to get a cup full. I did this when playing around trying to make some pitch and was able to harvest enough in just a few pops.

Either way you'll probably end up making a mess all over your skin and hair, just like i did when one of the blisters poped the wrong way...so heres a little tip for you. Pine resin is oil-soluable not water-soluable so comes out really easy if you use olive oil on a tissue and use it like a wet wipe.

Have fun.


**EDIT** Just read Bam's reply and that seems far more sensible that drilling into the tree causing unneccesary damage.

 

[jdlenton]

Andy your not the only on the getting very sticky Ive found that you can use an alcohol based hand cleanser to devolve it especially out of hair


James

 

[bambodoggy]

I think you're getting confused with your blister popping Andy....that's what spruces have. I've not seen blisters on pines.
There really isn't any need to drill into them (like you would to tap birches), just look about and there's plenty of dried powdery stuff about and as it's dry it doesn't stick to everything (until you heat it to melt it). I'm sure you could collect about a mug full in well under an hour if you've got enough pines about to pick it off.

James you're right about cleaning off the sticky stuff, as I tree surgeon I get coated with the stuff quite often....and use alcohol based fluids to clean it off.

Cheers,

Bam.

 

[Ketchup]

Try this, it's the traditional way of collecting pine resin in the Landes, South of Bordeaux in France. The origin of the turpentine trade. The text may be in French, but the pictures are quite clear.

http://www.littoral33.com/gemmage.htm

 

[andyn]

I think you're getting confused with your blister popping Andy....that's what spruces have.

Thinking about it, yeah I think your probably right...although I think they were firs I was playing with. It was a very aromatic resin that came out of it and looking at my tree book, I think it was probably a grad fir. Ho hum.

 

[Biddlesby]

Would drilling into the tree collect sap rather than resin? Is there actually a fundamental difference between the two?

 

[laurens ch]

I have collected a cup sized amount in under half an hour without drilling into the tree.I just used a knife and a pointed stick ,I don't know if that’s the most efficient method about 30% fell on the floor.

 

[Ralph]

The best thing to do would be to collect up the hardened balls of resin leaking naturally out of the tree. It would take patience but it saves damaging the trees unneccessarily.

 

[Ogri the trog]

The best thing to do would be to collect up the hardened balls of resin leaking naturally out of the tree.

Yup,
Makes good chewing gum too

ATB

Ogri the trog

 

[Ralph]

really?
I didnt know that. I only knew about reed sap for sweets. I'll have to try that. Ican imagine my breath smelling "piney fresh"

 

[bambodoggy]

Yup,
Makes good chewing gum too

ATB

Ogri the trog

Ogri, I like your discription of "good chewing gum", rather than "nice chewing gum".....

Aparently the taste gets better the more you chew it but I didn't get past the initial YUCKY lol

Cheers,

Bam.

 

[British Red]

As I tree surgeon I get coated with the stuff quite often....and use alcohol based fluids to clean it off.

Cheers,

Bam.

Just happened to have some alcohol around huh Bam

Thinking about it though - Scotch and Stihl is probably the type of mistake you only ever get to make once

Red

 

[bambodoggy]

Just happened to have some alcohol around huh Bam

Thinking about it though - Scotch and Stihl is probably the type of mistake you only ever get to make once

Red

Lol....I bleeding needed some yesterday after dismantling a 60foot birch in those winds and that rain!

I was just topping it at about 45feet to give me room to fell the trunk and the wind had been blowing steady all morning and the moment I've put the gob in and started the back cut the wind swings round and blows the other way!!!! Still, it came down safely in the end

 

[wingstoo]

Redflex,

If you still want some let me know, will (hopefully) be going to my site over the weekend, and as it is close to a pine forest and I have harvested some last year, I am pretty sure that I can get you some.

LS

 

[davedd]

when heating it to turn it back into liquid or make it less viscus be very careful
if you heat it too much it will spit and burst into flames. I know from experience the resin i collected was highly flammable.


dave

 

[twelveboar]

If you scar the bark, (run a the edge of a chainsaw down the side of the tree) it will produce loads of resin, I've seen paths through plantations marked this way, as the resin is white. Just don't go mad, and I'm sure you'll get plenty of it.

 

[directdrive]

Hi: Find yourself a tree with damaged trunk or limbs. You'll see the resin leaking out of the tree. The time for this is now as spring is here and the sap is rising in the trees (and in the young folks, no doubt.... Anyway, that's all there is to it. You can turn this resin (we call it "rosin") into pitch or glue by heating it slowly over a fire. Place it in a can and put it over a fire. It'll smoke. If it catches afire, cover the can with something nonflammable and douse the fire that way. As it heats it'll melt and you can add (if you wish) a bit of powdered charcoal to make pitch. The charcoal will make it less sticky and less pliable as well.....Anyway, good luck and have fun! Bruce

 

[Ogri the trog]

Ogri, I like your discription of "good chewing gum", rather than "nice chewing gum".....

Aparently the taste gets better the more you chew it but I didn't get past the initial YUCKY lol

Cheers,

Bam.

Yes Bam, I have to agree,
You have to get past the "powdery" stage which could be described as mildly unpleasant, before you get to the chewy pine scented/flavoured gum stage. Only try this with well dried resin though - don't be tempted to give the sticky resin a go as it just coats your teeth in slimey, pine scented goo that takes an age to get rid of

Ogri the trog