Get out your ladder—it’s time for tea! Well, not exactly. But some trees, other than the obvious Camellia sinensis (a source of green, oolong and black teas) offer interesting options and you might need a vertical boost to harvest them.

Right off the bat, we need to note that preparing teas from leaves is done differently from teas made from woody plant parts. Leaf teas, using twice the amount when brewing with fresh leaves versus dried, are steeped in hot water from three to five minutes. Tisanes, or teas made from woody materials, are simmered for fifteen minutes to extract the flavor and healthful constituents.

So, let’s go out on a limb and look at some options: birch, willow, basswood, pine, fir, cedar, and sumac.

Using Birch Trees for Teas

Both leaves and twigs of the Betula genus can be used to brew healthy and flavorful teas. Choose young leaves and new twigs for the best flavor which is reminiscent of wintergreen.

Benefits of Willow Tree Tea

Willow teas have been used traditionally as gentle pain relievers with their aspirin-like chemicals. Collect new bark in the spring when growth starts. Brew with the tisane method.

From Basswood Blossom to Tree Tea

Also known as linden, basswoods (Tilia Americana) are huge trees which produce delicate creamy blossoms in early to mid summer. Get out your ladder and gather the blossoms. Dry in a dark place to retain their color and use alone for a lightly flavored tea or blend with other leaves and flowers for unique combinations.

Using Pine Needles and Spruce Tips for Tree Tea

Our ancestors knew to use conifers for a vitamin boost (A and C). Available year-round, though young needles have a lighter flavor than mature ones, chop or crush to release the flavor before brewing. Note: avoid yew, ponderosa and Norfolk pine which are not safe to consume.

Harvesting Fir Trees for Teas

The evergreen scent and flavor of fir may be considered sharp by some. Add a little honey to balance the tea of these flat “needles.”

Cedar Tree Tea Benefits

With hints of both pine and citrus, tea made from leaves and twigs of cedar trees have numerous health benefits from boosting the immune system to easing respiratory conditions. Cedar is sometimes confused with juniper though both are in the plant order Pinale. (Juniper berries are also used in antiseptic teas though they should be avoided by anyone with kidney disease or women who are pregnant.)

Try Sumac for Unique Tree Tea Flavor

“Lemonade” made from common sumac (Anacardiaceae rhus typhina) berries is high in vitamin C. Make sumac sun tea by placing a handful of fall-picked sumac berries in a jar, fill with water to cover the berries and put in a sunny spot for a few hours. The citrus flavor and vitamins are preserved by the lower temperature during brewing. (If you’re concerned about mistaking poison sumac for common sumac, there’s an easy identifier: common sumac has red berries and poison sumac has white berries.

As with wild foraging, don’t overdo it when sampling something new to you. Individual sensitivities may arise though this list of trees for tea is generally safe.

Trees, by their nature, are slow growing but you can still plant a tea plot. Birch trees can provide the bones of a design with cedars and conifers filling in with interesting shapes and heights. Add sumac for a bright fall color punch. As mentioned previously, basswoods become very large trees so it might be better to plant this one apart from other landscape features, or take your ladder and go on a wild tea treasure hunt.

Additional Resources:

For help in identifying conifers for teas: https://www.healthygreensavvy.com/spruce-vs-fir-vs-pine-conifer/

For brewing and storage methods: https://iteaworld.com/blogs/guide/beginners-guide-wild-tea-brewing-and-storage-methods

Featured image: Basswood blossom, courtesy of Jim Downes (Long Prairie, MN). All other images courtesy of Nancy Packard Leasman.

Nancy Packard Leasman is a columnist, artist and gardener who maintains 40 acres in central Minnesota.