The Last Frontier: February 2011

I had just been thinking about springtime and looking forward to tapping birch trees again when someone commented on my post here about Tapping Birch Trees. John lives in the UK and makes birch sap wine. Here is the link to his recipe. I am definitely going to give this a try in a couple of months, and will let you know how it goes. Thank you, John!

While you're over at Sticks' blog checking out his birch sap wine recipe, spend a little time. He has some great posts on bushcrafting, camping and the great outdoors!

The caption on the picture goes to the wine recipe on John's site, but for some reason, the pictures itself won't link properly. Sorry about that.

I'll post again when my boys and I get back from town. I've been putting off this trip for months, but now we're all kind of looking forward to it. We'll get to visit with several friends, so it should be fun.

Beetle-killed spruce tree
with dripping pitch.

I recently submitted this article on How to Make and Use Spruce Pitch Salve to Survivalist Blog. It was published today! The uses for Spruce Pitch and Sap are well-documented in books about Alaska Natives. The uses for Pine, however, are also documented, but more in writings by natural health practicioners. If you have pine trees in your area, that will work well.

I have been using Spruce Pitch for many years. Here are a few of the ways I use it:

On spider and other insect bites and stings
To prevent or cure infections of ugly scrapes
As a natural, safe and effective underarm deodorant
As a lip balm and hand cream to help kill germs and prevent illness
To increase circulation and speed healing of a sprained ankle
It makes homemade soap smell fantastic! I don’t know if it still has antimicrobial properties after it’s made into soap. I kind of doubt it, but it still smells delightful.

To learn more, read the full article at Survivalist Blog by clicking here.