Apothecary
Brew Sacred Cedar Tea And Reap Powerful Health Benefits
Sourcing cedar is as easy as stepping outside your doorstep. Discover the remarkable health properties of this ordinary tree.
Apothecary is a series focusing on natural remedies produced or grown wild in local habitats. Influences come from family and Indigenous practices centered on improving physical, mental health, and well-being.
Behind our family property at Rice Lake, Southern Ontario, lies a magical coniferous forest with trails to walk or cross country ski. And growing along the path are the aromatic cedar trees, majestic and teaming with life. Over the last season, my Mom and I have come to learn, the cedar we pass every day on our woods walks possesses incredible health benefits and is ‘steeped’ in the local traditions of our Indigenous neighbors.
How to Correctly Identify Canadian Cedar Trees
Cedar, in Canada, refers to evergreen conifers (genus Thuja) of the cypress family (Cupressaceae). They are also called arbor vitae [Latin, “tree of life”]. Arborvitae is any of the five species of the genus Thuja, resinous, evergreen ornamental, and timber conifers of the cypress family, native to North America and…
