Effect:
astringent, expectorant
Areas of application:
Sores, swelling, ulcers, boils, burns, skin problems, wet cough, bronchitis, loosens mucus, respiratory problems, makes breathing easier, arthritis, joint pain, tapeworms, flatworms, roundworms, colds, flu, sore throats
Plant parts used:
inner bark, needles, resin
Collection time:
spring
To find:
In North and Central America, on low hills and in the Appalachians up to an altitude of 1200 meters, moist river lowlands, moors, dry and sandy plains, steep and rocky slopes and rocky buttes.
Ingredients:
Tannins, mucilage
Miscellaneous:
The white pine is a coniferous tree that grows between 25 to 35 meters high, but can also reach a height of up to 65 meters. The tree has a tall, cylindrical trunk with a pyramid-shaped crown, which is characterized by pronounced, plate-like branching. On a young tree, the bark is rather thin, smooth and greenish-brown. On older trees the bark becomes dark grey-brown. The evergreen needles of the strobe come in bunches of five, are soft and flexible and usually bluish-green. The cones of this plant are almost 10 to 20 cm long and about 2.5 cm thick. After ripening in the fall of the second year, they can persist for several months. The small seeds are dispersed by the wind when the cones open.
In the kitchen, the flowers, bark and seeds are edible and are used as a spice and tea.
The white pine was once the most important source of wood in eastern North America. Today, most of the wood is processed into lumber and plywood and used to make furniture, paper and toys.
A widely distributed species in eastern North America, the white pine has been chosen as the official symbol of the US states of Maine and Michigan and the Canadian province of Ontario. Since September 2017, it has also been depicted as a symbol of the five tribes of the Iroquois Confederacy in the coat of arms and flag of Montreal.