Cedar aka Juniperus virginiana, not to be confused with the western red cedar (Thuja plicata). This post is NOT about the western red cedar.
From “A reference Guide to Medicinal Plants” here Herbal Medicine Books - Peanut recommends
Tommie Bass – The cedar oil was used by old timers. I still get the oil and put it in salves for a few folks. The oil has been used for many different things. It’s good for the kidney. Some have used it for coughs and colds, as a tonic and for rheumatism. It’s powerful and I don’t recommend it for folks who don’t know it. The crushed leaves can be used like mullein to take swellings out. It’s an old Indian remedy. Lots of folks have told me about it. A tea from the berries (a few berries in a teacup) is a refreshing drink.
From Juliette de Bairacli Levy, her book is here… Herbal Medicine Books - Peanut recommends
Juniperus communis - It’s very beneficial to many animals… it’s young shoots are sought by animals, horses, goat, deer and sheep for example. The whole plant is a tonic and nerve stimulant. A “tar” can be made from the wood of the trunk and limbs. The inner bark and berries are used to the best effect.
More importantly… Oil of Cades or Oil of Juniper is made by heat-infusing one large handful of the berries, crushed in pint of olive oil.
The bark is a treatment for inflamed liver and kidney, gall stones, jaundice and obesity, sciatica and rheumatism. The berries are used to treat blood ailments, acid milk, malaria and miscarriage.
Dose: 2oz of flaked bark mixed with bran and molasses once daily, early morning. A small handful of berries, fresh or dried (less if dried) made into a paste with molasses and bran given morning and night. This is an old treatment for miscarriages in cattle.
External uses, fumigation of farm buildings, dog kennels etc. Damp branches are burned slowly to drive out insects, rodents and weasels. The pungent fumes are especially good against mosquitoes. Can also be used inside farm houses.
A side note… Appalachian folk lore says cedar saw dust will drive away rattlesnakes. A 20 gauge with birdshot works for me… just sayin’
Big picture… over 60 species of juniper in the northern hemisphere around the world are used in a similar manner by many peoples. They have been used for millennia by native people up to modern times.
I personally know several people (including me) that use the berries and twigs for livestock and poultry. I have dumped twigs and berries in the water trough for sick and injured cattle. It definitely helps.
There is a big cedar by my chicken pen, the limbs hang over the pen. 2 or 3 times a year, when I notice it has berries, I dump some berries and twigs in the waterer for my chickens. It definitely has a beneficial effect. Within a couple of days of dumping the berries in the water they are more energetic, look better and act healthier. Old hens will start laying again.
I put some in the chicken water today. I cleaned off the tank and went to get some berries. Wouldn't ya know it! they pooped all over the tank again while I was gone.
Cedar has another use here in the south... cedars stand like little beacons pointing the way south. In the photo just above I put a black vertical line through the cedar tree. Which side are most of the limbs on? This particular tree gets most of its sunlight in mid afternoon. The majority of its limbs point southwest.
Most plants and trees reach/lean toward the strongest point of sunlight. It's just easier to see in a cedar tree due to the large number of small limbs.
The following book by Harold Gatty is amazing. He goes trough dozens of plants, animals and insects that indicate compass directions...
Mr. Gatty was the navigator for Wily Post. They were the first two people to circumnavigate the globe in an airplane in 1931. Mr. Gatty also wrote the emergency survival guide used during WW2 and given to crew members on army aircorp planes.
I posted Mr. Gatty's book here.
https://www.homesteadingforum.org/t...without-map-or-compass”-by-harold-gatty.1120/
It still doesn't end... The whitish powder on cedar berries is yeast. You can see it in the first picture... I know people who have collected it for making bread. You might have to collect yeast strains from a dozen or so different trees before you find a good strain for baking. The yeast strains on some cedars are good for baking others not so much.
The Cedar is a very good tree to know!
From “A reference Guide to Medicinal Plants” here Herbal Medicine Books - Peanut recommends
Tommie Bass – The cedar oil was used by old timers. I still get the oil and put it in salves for a few folks. The oil has been used for many different things. It’s good for the kidney. Some have used it for coughs and colds, as a tonic and for rheumatism. It’s powerful and I don’t recommend it for folks who don’t know it. The crushed leaves can be used like mullein to take swellings out. It’s an old Indian remedy. Lots of folks have told me about it. A tea from the berries (a few berries in a teacup) is a refreshing drink.
From Juliette de Bairacli Levy, her book is here… Herbal Medicine Books - Peanut recommends
Juniperus communis - It’s very beneficial to many animals… it’s young shoots are sought by animals, horses, goat, deer and sheep for example. The whole plant is a tonic and nerve stimulant. A “tar” can be made from the wood of the trunk and limbs. The inner bark and berries are used to the best effect.
More importantly… Oil of Cades or Oil of Juniper is made by heat-infusing one large handful of the berries, crushed in pint of olive oil.
The bark is a treatment for inflamed liver and kidney, gall stones, jaundice and obesity, sciatica and rheumatism. The berries are used to treat blood ailments, acid milk, malaria and miscarriage.
Dose: 2oz of flaked bark mixed with bran and molasses once daily, early morning. A small handful of berries, fresh or dried (less if dried) made into a paste with molasses and bran given morning and night. This is an old treatment for miscarriages in cattle.
External uses, fumigation of farm buildings, dog kennels etc. Damp branches are burned slowly to drive out insects, rodents and weasels. The pungent fumes are especially good against mosquitoes. Can also be used inside farm houses.
A side note… Appalachian folk lore says cedar saw dust will drive away rattlesnakes. A 20 gauge with birdshot works for me… just sayin’
Big picture… over 60 species of juniper in the northern hemisphere around the world are used in a similar manner by many peoples. They have been used for millennia by native people up to modern times.
I personally know several people (including me) that use the berries and twigs for livestock and poultry. I have dumped twigs and berries in the water trough for sick and injured cattle. It definitely helps.
There is a big cedar by my chicken pen, the limbs hang over the pen. 2 or 3 times a year, when I notice it has berries, I dump some berries and twigs in the waterer for my chickens. It definitely has a beneficial effect. Within a couple of days of dumping the berries in the water they are more energetic, look better and act healthier. Old hens will start laying again.
I put some in the chicken water today. I cleaned off the tank and went to get some berries. Wouldn't ya know it! they pooped all over the tank again while I was gone.
Cedar has another use here in the south... cedars stand like little beacons pointing the way south. In the photo just above I put a black vertical line through the cedar tree. Which side are most of the limbs on? This particular tree gets most of its sunlight in mid afternoon. The majority of its limbs point southwest.
Most plants and trees reach/lean toward the strongest point of sunlight. It's just easier to see in a cedar tree due to the large number of small limbs.
The following book by Harold Gatty is amazing. He goes trough dozens of plants, animals and insects that indicate compass directions...
Mr. Gatty was the navigator for Wily Post. They were the first two people to circumnavigate the globe in an airplane in 1931. Mr. Gatty also wrote the emergency survival guide used during WW2 and given to crew members on army aircorp planes.
I posted Mr. Gatty's book here.
https://www.homesteadingforum.org/t...without-map-or-compass”-by-harold-gatty.1120/
It still doesn't end... The whitish powder on cedar berries is yeast. You can see it in the first picture... I know people who have collected it for making bread. You might have to collect yeast strains from a dozen or so different trees before you find a good strain for baking. The yeast strains on some cedars are good for baking others not so much.
The Cedar is a very good tree to know!
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