The Pine Storehouse --- By Coy Domecq

Pine trees play important roles in the United States. The most well known uses of pine include fodder for paper products, window framing timbers, flooring materials, pine pitch, turpentine, and cones for
decorative crafts. Some lesser-known benefits of the pine tree from an earlier age include medical and nutritive uses.
Many types of pines trees, notably the eastern pine, have needles that can be steeped to make tea that is high in Vitamins A and C. It is reported that pine needle tea contains as much as four times the
content of Vitamin C than that of lemons.
The pine nut, although small, packs a bundle of nutritive energy and is a common ingredient in recipes, such as pesto, but is also eaten raw or lightly toasted.
Although appealing to those with a taste for such things, male pine cones, inner pine bark, outer bark of young pine twigs and resin can be consumed. From an aesthetic perspective, chewing on young
pine branches was used as a breath freshener. Pine resin once enjoyed popularity as chewing gum; only a single flavor was available.
One historical anecdote points towards how the Adirondack Indians got their name from the Mohawk Indians, as the term atir’u:taks can be translated as “tree eaters”. Not all parts of all pine species
are safe for human consumption as some varieties contain toxins detrimental to humans.
The pine tree components offer many services as a medical tool box. Pine resin is known to have antimicrobial and anti fungal disinfectant properties and can be applied directly to wounds or breaks
in the skin. The sticky resin was also used to remove splinters from the skin. Even today pine ingredients are found in dandruff treatments.
Pine resin was also used as a worming compound, effective against roundworms and tape worms. As a medical instrument, it was used to quickly and effectively staunch blood flow.
With the benefits beyond building materials, it is easy to see why the pine tree has been an important plant genus throughout history.