Making pine needle afternoon tea is one of the best – and easy – way to use foraged pine needles . This is a wonderful and round-eyed way to habituate pine or other conifer needles like spruce or true fir medicinally . Ease your judgement and cure your body with this delicious conifer tea !

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What is Pine Needle Tea?

There are many comestible and medicinal uses for foraged conifer needles , and making tea out of them is a fantastic role of their office .

Sometimes send for “ conifer needle teatime , ” this heating drinking is only made with foraged pine or other edible conifer needles steeped in boiling weewee . This is an loose way to ingest this health - beneficial tea .

The aromatics of this afternoon tea alone will avail you feel calm and comforted , just like you ’re walking through a forest . It taste delicious too , piney , with refreshing citrus tree line .

pine needle tea recipe and benefits

The best part is that your health also benefit from tope conifer tea ! It ’s genuinely a teatime to cure your soundbox and judgment .

Related:30 + Pine Needle Recipes : drunkenness , Desserts , Syrups , Balms & More !

Types of Edible Conifer Needles

Some usual and edible types of conifer needles you’re able to employ for making Camellia sinensis are most pine , fir tree , and spruce mintage .

Most conifer and pine trees can be foraged class - rotund , and are utter to gather during the fall and winter when other plants are sparse .

It ’s crucial to properly identify any tree that you want to use for teatime or anything else .

how to make pine needle tea

The main conifer trees to forfend for consumption is theYew familybecause they are highly toxic .

ascertain more in - depth selective information in these two spot : how to distinguish conifer treesandforaging for pine needles .

Feel surefooted aright identify and foraging conifer and pine needle with thisguidebook .

a hand holding a mug of pine needle tea with snow and pine needles in the background

Pine Needles to Use for Tea

Some gravid varieties of pine trees to use for tea are eastern ashen pine ( Pinus strobus ) , western clean pine ( Pinus monticola ) , red pine(Pinus resinosa ) , and sugar pine ( Pinus lambertiana ) .

While most specie of pine phonograph needle are safe to use for Camellia sinensis , there are a few variety that you may want to obviate , particularly if you are fraught .

Ponderosa pine tree ( Pinus ponderosa ) and lodgepole pine ( Pinus contorta ) are not recommended to be used internally by pregnant char as there is a chance that they couldcause miscarriagein with child doses .

Top view of a clear mug filled with water with fir needle twigs floating at the top, held by a hand on the right. Background is earthy colored dirt and some greens growing.

That said , ponderosa pine has been used medicinally by Indigenous Americans for hundred of years .

Norfolk Island pine(Araucaria heterophylla ) is another perchance mildly toxic conifer Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree ( it is definitely toxic to pets ) , but it is not actually a true pine .

Fir Needles to Use for Tea

As far as my inquiry has shown , all fir trees have edible acerate leaf .

Some cracking fir tree specie to use for teatime are white fir ( Abies concolor ) , grand true fir ( Abies grandis ) , imposing true fir ( Abies procera ) , and balsam fir ( Abies balsamea ) .

I will also say that Douglas fir ( Pseudotsugaspp . ) , while not a true fir tree , is an excellent choice for tea leaf - devising !

a mug of pine needle tea with a cinnamon stick in the snow

Try this recipe forfir needle woodland chaifor a dissimilar turn on fir needle tea !

Spruce Needles to Use for Tea

Again , as far as my research , all spruce Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree have edible needles . In fact , spruce tips in the springtime are a wonderful goody ! I love makingspruce beerwith them .

Some capital spruce specie to use for tea leaf are blue spruce ( genus Picea pungens ) , Norway spruce ( Picea genus Abies ) , Sitka spruce ( Picea sitchensis ) , and bloodless spruce ( Picea glauca ) .

Hemlock Needles to Use for Tea

Hemlock tree diagram needles are comestible and can also be used for afternoon tea , though not to be confused withpoison hemlockwhich is a highly toxic plant and not a tree diagram .

There are three unwashed species of winter fern trees : western hemlock tree ( Tsuga heterophylla ) , eastern hemlock ( Tsugacanadensis ) , and mountain Conium maculatum ( Tsuga mertensiana ) .

Other Conifer Needles for Tea

Coast redwood ( Sequoia sempervirens ) needles can be used to makeredwood tea leaf !

I would nullify making Camellia sinensis from most cedars and junipers ( but manyjuniper berriesare fine to employ ) as many of them have toxic compounds if used internally in big sum .

For any tree you ’d like to use be sure to right describe and check for edibility first !

A clear mug in a hand filled with water and fir needle sprigs, and a cinnamon stick at the bottom of the glass. The background is natural green and brown foliage.

How to Make Pine Needle Tea

The first step is to correctlyidentify and forage conifer acerate leaf .

You will desire to strip or crop the needles off the branch , and if they are really long ( like many pines are ) , cut them into smaller pieces .

Place a spoonful of the needle at the bottom of a mug .

a mug with broken pine needles and a cinnamon stick in the snow

rain cats and dogs boiling water over the needles and steep for about 5 minutes .

finger gratuitous to use atea strainerif you prefer !

For a stronger flavored pine tea , boil the fain needles in a pot of water for a few minute , and strain them out as you pour them into your favorite mug .

top view of a mug of pine needle tea in the snow with white pine needles

This method acting makes a tasty strong tea , but it does diminish the vitamin C content some .

In either method , you may add a cinnamon stick for some superfluous warmth of flavor or a dollop ofpine phonograph needle infuse honeyfor added sweetness .

Benefits of Conifer Needle Tea

Traditionally consumed throughout wintertime to keep scorbutus away , this delicious piney - tasting tea leaf will give you a unspoilt Cupid’s disease of vitamin C.

Most pine and conifer needles can be used as an expectorator for coughs , to relieve bureau over-crowding and respiratory ill . For extra throat soothing , total some stark naked dear to your pine needle Camellia sinensis .

Try mypine needle cough syrupwhich have pine needle afternoon tea to the next level !

a hand holding a mug of pine needle tea with snow and pine needles in the background

Conifer and pine needles also have pain in the neck - relieving and antibacterial properties , which add to the sorcerous meat of this tea .

The aromas and flavor of this delicious tea will comfort and warm you , heal your body , and unstrain your creative thinker !

More Pine Needle Recipes

Pine Needle Tea

Equipment

Ingredients

Instructions

Notes

Nutrition

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Clear glass tea mug filled with water and fir needle sprigs, with a cinnamon stick at the bottom. Natural background with greens and brown tree branches.

a hand holding a mug of pine needle tea with snow and pine needles in the background