The pine tree is a jewel in the garden and a beauty when it forms a forest together with other trees. Besides being a beautiful tree that smells delicious, the pine is a supplier of many products that we can use. We can build with materials that provide the pine, we can eat and drink from the tree and we can warm ourselves with it. If you ever find yourself alone, without a backpack with provisions and without people around, but with pine trees around you, you can survive by making smart use of the tree. A special tree, that’s it.
Eating, drinking and living with the den
- The pine
- The Pinus as a supplier
- Components of the fir tree
- Pine needles
- Pine tops
- Inner bark
- Pine cones
- Resin
- Wood
The pine
The pine or fir tree is an evergreen coniferous tree that is common mainly in the northern hemisphere. Pine groves can be found everywhere in the Netherlands, natural or planted. Pine forests were planted on the Wadden Islands in the first half of the twentieth century to prevent drifting dunes and thus play a role in coastal defense. Plantings have also taken place in the Veluwe to curb the sand drifts. Pine trees grow in the countryside, in mountains and in countries close to the North Pole. The tree can withstand the cold and some species can withstand the salty sea breeze.
Pinus
The botanical name for the pine is Pinus, the family name is Pinaceae. There are several types of it. The Corsican pine, the Scots pine and the maritime pine grow in the Netherlands. Dozens of different species grow worldwide. The pine is distinguished from the fir by the needles that grow two by two in the branch. A few needles grow from the fir.
The Pinus as a supplier
The pine is a supplier of various raw materials. Traditionally, it supplies turpentine oil. The tree provides wood and pine cones and the tree is edible. The tree can be used from root to crown. In addition, it is a feast for the eyes and because of the delicious pine scent it spreads also for the nose. The usable parts of the tree can sometimes be picked from the tree and consumed immediately, but in many cases more or less laborious processing takes place. In the kitchen or in the carpenter’s shed.
Medicinal
The pine has medicinal properties. It has a relaxing effect and increases resistance. The pine can be used for inflammation, colds, skin ailments and fever.
Components of the fir tree
What then is there in the pine that is so beneficial and healthy? The pine contains:
- essential oil (good as a fragrance and flavoring agent and soothing)
- resin (good as a preservative and adhesive and disinfectant)
- bitter substances (good for digestion)
- terpenes (good for coughing)
- vitamin C (good for the immune system)
- flavone glycosides (good for memory)
Pine needles
A tasty and healthy tea can be made from the pine needles. It is packed with vitamin C and can be used in a cleansing treatment of the body. Strain the needles out of the tea, as they can sting your throat dangerously.
Bath of pine needles
The same pine needles can be used in the bath and give a wonderfully relaxing pine scent to the bathroom. In a saucepan, pour a bundle of pine needles with boiling water and let it steep for 20 minutes. Pine shoots can also be used here. Strain the mixture and mix the scented water with your bath water.
Fragrance sachets
You can also put the needles, bruised, in scent bags or scent boxes that you put somewhere in the house. A light pine scent will then spread throughout the room and you will bring the forest into the house, especially if you regularly shake the bags.
Pine oil
A pine oil can be made from needles. You will need half a cup of almond oil and three cups of pine needles. Wash the fresh pine needles and dry them on kitchen paper. Crush the dry needles in a mortar. The almond oil goes into a preserving jar and the crushed needles are added. Shake the mixture well. Put the pot away at room temperature for a week, not in the sun. Shake the jar every day. After that, the pot must rest in a dark place for another two weeks. Finally, the oil is filtered through a cheesecloth. The pine oil is kept airtight in a dark bottle.
Pine tops
Pine tops are the young, fresh green offshoots of the branches, which can be seen on the tree from March to May. The pine tops can be used for different products.
Pine top vinegar
Vinegar can be made from the young pine tops. As a basis you use three quarters of a liter of rice vinegar with ten peppercorns and six crushed juniper berries. With about 200 grams of pine tips you make pine tip vinegar. The vinegar is brought to a boil along with the peppers and berries. This mixture is poured hot over the pine tops. Then it should be left for about 12 hours. Finally, the liquid is strained through a cheesecloth and poured into a bottle (always use clean bottles and jars boiled with soda). Pine top vinegar is delicious over the salad and in the dressing.
Pine top jelly
Pine tips can also be used to make pine jelly. In addition to pine tops (200 grams for this recipe), you need a liter of apple juice, a pound of jam sugar, 400 ml of fresh grapefruit juice, juice of two limes and two sprigs of thyme. The tops and apple juice are brought to a boil and this should be left for half a day. After 12 hours it is heated for another ten minutes, close to a boil. Then it is strained through a sieve with cheesecloth and reduced until about 800 ml remains. The mixture must then cool down again. Then it is mixed with the rest of the ingredients and when it is all in the juice it is boiled for another four minutes. The jelly is poured into clean glass preserving jars while hot. The airtight closed pots are kept cool and dark. The jelly can be eaten as a spread on bread and can be used for cooking.
Cough syrup
For the cough syrup you need freshly picked shoots, the pine tips. Fill a clean pot alternately with a layer of pine shoots and a layer of cane sugar. Finish with a layer of sugar and press the layers well. Then put the pot in a cool and dark place. After a few days, another layer of sugar can be added. Leave this for three months and you will see that the layers have developed into a syrup. The syrup can be used after about four months and will last for a year. Then it is time to make a new cough syrup. The pine syrup has an expectorant effect and is packed with vitamin C. The syrup is also suitable for children.
Mustard
Pine buds can be used to make tasty pine bud mustard. For that you need 100 grams of pine tops, a few tablespoons of rye flour, 60 grams of mustard powder, 150 ml of white wine vinegar, some honey and a little sea salt. Pour everything into a bowl and use the mixer to make a coarse paste. Put this in glass jars and put it away in a cool place for a week. The pine top mustard can be kept for about three months after opening the jar if you keep it in the fridge each time.
Inner bark
The inner bark of the pine is edible and is also rich in vitamin C. Especially the inner bark (cambium) of the exposed roots or the underside of the tree is suitable for eating raw. It tastes a bit salty. It can be eaten raw and you can cook inner bark strips (does take time), roast or bake.
Pine cones
Pine cones or cones are the seed holders of the tree and eat them. Birds and squirrels have known this for a long time, but it also has nutritional value for humans. You can cook young pine cones and the seeds that fall from the pine cones when they dry slightly and open up can be enjoyed raw.
Pine cone liqueur
A pine cone liqueur can be brewed from pine cones. You will need 15 to 30 green pine cones, which are harvested at the beginning of summer. June is a good month to pick green pine cones. A liter of gin and 150 grams of brown sugar are also essential for the preparation of this liqueur. The pine cones must be cleaned well; there should be no dirt on it (bird droppings) and no more bugs should crawl out. Place the clean pine cones in a large pot. Cover the pine cones with the gin and sprinkle with the sugar. Leave the sealed jar in a dark place for about a month, shaking the mixture from time to time. After a month, the moisture can be poured into another jar or bottle via a cheesecloth or coffee filter. The pinecones can now be removed. They have imparted the pine flavor to the liqueur.
Pine kernels
The pine cone contains seeds, seeds, which can be eaten. To harvest them, collect dense pinecones and dry on a light clean cloth or in a paper bag. It is useful to bring gloves with you when going into the forest, as the dense pine cones can be quite sticky from the resin. Shake the pinecones in the bag daily; when they open they drop their seeds. The seeds can also be lightly toasted.
Resin
Resin is the sticky sap that can seep from a tree. It has a scent, disinfectant, anti-inflammatory and diuretic effect. The resin can be harvested all year round. When trees show traces of resin, we call this the ‘crying’ of the tree. Those are the resin tears that can be harvested. Sometimes it is sticky, but it can also be hard on the outside of the bark. By making a notch in the bark you can make a tree weep. Pine resin can be processed in an oil macerate, a product that can form the basis of pine oil and pine soap. Rosin is used by violinists to wax the strings of their instrument.
Amber
Ancient resin is found in fossilized form on the beaches of the Wadden Islands and along the Baltic Sea. It has turned amber.
Turpentine
Turpentine oil is distilled from Scots pine resin. It is used as an anti-rotting agent and by the painter as a thinner for the oil paint.
Pine incense
Pine incense can be made from resin. You need two tablespoons of pine resin, five juniper berries and a little mugwort. The resin is crushed together with the juniper berries. Finally, the mugwort is also added. You use the mixture to form incense grains by hand.
Wood
The pine is the supplier of the strong and beautifully grained pinewood. It is widely used for furniture and floors. Scraps of wood disappear, just like dry pine cones, in the outdoor fireplace. They give off a pleasant warmth on cool late summer evenings.
Pine tar
Pine tar is made from pine wood. It was previously used in shipbuilding to tar and make watertight ships. It is also found in tar soap and pine tar is used to treat boils and other skin conditions. Pine tar is obtained by coal-burning the wood of the pines at a high temperature and under high pressure. It produces charcoal on the one hand and pine tar on the other.
In conclusion
Pine products can be considered safe, but if you are unsure, consult your doctor first. With some allergic skin reactions, for example, pine products can turn out wrong. One is simply more sensitive than the other and sometimes hypersensitivity occurs. Pregnant women should be careful with pine products during their pregnancy and men with prostate cancer or a history of this disease should also be careful. When in doubt, leave those tasty pine trees for a while and ask an expert for tailor-made advice.