Almost everyone has them . But what can you do with them?
There’s always the obvious answers , like. Shade, lumber, firewood, and of course
,creating oxygen. If your Joyce Kilmer , you may even gaze at one and write a poem about it. Although in my opinion
they tend to lose some of their wonderment after they drop a limb through your roof after a windstorm. But I’m certain
J.K. never had that trouble . Nor had to spend the fall raking dead leaves. By the way. While I’m thinking of that.
Stop doing that .Your not doing your lawn any favors by raking those leaves. They insulate your grass through winter, and
if you mow what ever is left in the spring they make excellent fertilizer. And as a bonus. Your kids would probably erect
a monument in your honor If all leaf raking duties came to a sudden halt.
But what else? Isn’t there something more that you can do with that big ol’
tree. Well of course there is.
Warning
As misidentifying a tree can and probably will result in your sickness and or death. I am going to
add this part, and point out that I am in no way responsible for your well being if you fail to properly identify your tree.
Nor am I responsible if you correctly identify it. So, with that being said. The first thing you need to do is learn
how to properly identify a tree. Because many look similar and mistaking one for another can Kill you deader than the proverbial
hammer. The best way I know to do this is to head down to your local library and check out a book on identifying
plants and trees. Once your comfortable with your identifications come back and pick up your reading from here.
Now lets take a look at some common trees and their uses.
Lets start with some Evergreens.
The Balsam Fir is found in cool moist woods mostly in the east and North east. The pitch contained
in the blisters in the smooth bark is a concentrated food stuff. The inner bark can be dried and ground into meal and added
to flour to stretch a food stock. However , bear in mind that. “You can live on it, but it tastes like shit”.
The American Yew, which is often mistaken for the Balsam Fir. Contain the heart depressing alkaloid,
‘taxine’. So be very careful.
The
Eastern Hemlock is found in hilly or rocky woods. The light green young needles can be used to make a pleasant
tea high in vitamin C. the inner bark can be used like the Balsam Fir with the same results.
White
Pines are found everywhere. Their tender new shoots can be stripped of needles and peeled, then boiled until
tender and simmered (abt 20 min.) in a rich sugar syrup to make candy. The firm young male cones can be boiled, and
the inner bark made into flour. When chopped fine and steeped in hot water the fresh needles make an aromatic tea high in
vitamins A and C.
Spruces bark can be used
like that of the Balsam Fir. The condensed and hardened sap is a familiar north woods substitute for chewing gum.
Some soft woods:
The Maple, Ok do I really have to mention this one? Can you say maple surple yumm...
Sumacs. When ripe the hard berries are covered with acidic red hairs. Collect the entire fruit cluster,
rub the berries gently to bruise them soak for about 15 minutes in cool water. Then pour the pinkish juice through a cheese
cloth to strain out the hairs and loose berries sweeten to taste and chill. It tastes like pink lemonade. Note gather
the clusters before heavy rains wash out most of the acid. Warning: do not mistake Sumac for poison Sumac. Which is
more virulent than poison ivy.
Some Hardwoods.
Hardwoods are usually used for their nuts but here are some other uses.
Walnut.(Butternut
and Black Walnut) The husks of the nuts can be boiled to render dye. The nuts can be ground into an excellent
tasting flour, or boiled down to separate out a good vegetable oil. The sap can also be used like maple to make syrup.
Hickories
(Shagbark, Pecans, and Mockernut.). Use the nuts like walnuts, and the sap as maple.
Oaks. Most oaks have very bitter acorns too much so to be eaten raw or roasted . However, that bitterness
is due to the presence of tannin, which is water soluble . Strip the hole nut then boil in repeated changes of water until
the water quits turning brown. If you have hides to cure don’t throw away the tannin laced water. That tannin can be
condensed and used to tan them. After boiling you can dry or roast your nuts or grind them into an excellent tasting flour.
rich in protein and fat. I normally boil our acorns in a small burlap sack. These sacks can often be found at steakhouses
that serve peanuts. You know the places where you throw the shells on the floor. Often they’re happy to find a place
to get rid of the empty sacks.
Well there you go. This is by no means a comprehensive list of trees and their uses. But it gives
a good idea what you might be able to use on some of the more common trees you may find around. As far as edible parts of
trees I would recommend “Petersons Field guide of edible wild plants”. They have a very good layout that
makes things easy to find. However they are a bit light on the identification aspect. The arbor day Foundation can be very
helpful in identifying trees . And usually for a small donation they will send you a small selection of trees that will
thrive in your area to plant and enjoy. Often the easiest way to identify a tree is by a nut or berry. So while your walking
through the woods and looking down to watch for snakes, also look for old nuts and such. You may be surprised how
many different and useful trees you have near you.
