Winter foraging can be fun, and a cup of steaming evergreen needle tea is some of the best the winter can offer. Brewing a pot of this on the stove infuses the whole house with a wonderful smell.

Blue Spruce

Evergreen needles such as pine, spruce, fir, cedar and hemlock (the evergreen tree, NOT the deadly poisonous plants!) are edible and high in vitamin C and has saved American explorers from scurvy. Native Americans brewed both the needles and inner bark of these trees into tonic and medicinal tea.

Though in the spring the newest needles are used to brew tea, in the winter any fresh looking needles will do. I usually add the needles to water and bring it to a boil for a few minutes, then turn off the heat and continue to let the needles steep in the water for 20 minutes or more before drinking. The tea can be sweetened with honey if desired.

White Cedar

Not all evergreens are edible! The yew - a very common hedge plant is extremely poisonous. You will often find yews in the landscape around people’s houses, but some have escaped and do grow wild. They have flat evergreen needles and red berries in the summer and fall, but they do not have cones like the edible plants mentioned above. Please make sure you know with 100% certainty which plant you have before brewing it into tea.

Happy foraging!

Melissa Sokulski, Food Under Foot