THE BORDER LIFE
 

TEN BARK TEA  - Dashawalkala  
(da'-sha-wal'-ka-la < Sanskrit दशवल्कलः) 

New Formula Created by Herbalists 
Riverdave Owen and Suki Roth

Description:  This tree bark tea formula combines native forest species of Eastern America having the strongest traditional use as herbal medicine. Sustainably pruned twigs are shaved down to the sweet inner bark to make this forest tonic. It is offered in the spirit of the medicinal Ayurvedic ten root tree formula known as Dashamoola.  


 
  
Preparation: Place a small handful of tea blend in a sauce pan.  Add a quart of water and simmer for 20 to 30 minutes, depending on the strength of the tea you wish to serve.  Remove from heat, cover saucepan and steep. Serve warm or at room temperature. The bark can be resimmered for another round or two.
 

Ingredients and symptoms indicated (for educational purposes only):    

                    

Black Cherry - Prunus serotina - Rose Family

chest congestion, sore throat, heart irregularities, indigestion, nervousness

 

Black Walnut - Juglans nigra - Walnut Family  

parasites, candida,weak liver, low thyroid, gallbladder congestion, intestinal inflammation, skin conditions

 

Black Willow - Salix nigra - Willow Family

pain, inflammation, infection, nervousness, rheumatism, fever

 

Sassafras - Sassafras albidum - Laurel Family 

thick blood, indigestion, postpartum, depression

 

Sweet Birch - Betula lenta - Birch Family 

insomnia, cramps, pain, kidney stones, cystitis, gout, rheumatism, skins eruptions, toxicity

 

Sweetgum - Liquidambar styraciflua - Witch-Hazel Family 

chest congestion, sore throat, cough, diarrhea

 

Tulip Tree - Liriodendron tulipifera - Magnolia Family 

non-inflammatory joint pain, rheumatism, fever

 

While Oak - Quercus alba - Beech Family 

weak organs and tissues, diarrhea, hemorrhoids, hernia, high blood pressure, gum disease

 

White Pine - Pinus strobus - Pine Family 

respiratory infections, weak bones and joints, indigestion, constipation


Yaupon Holly - Ilex vomitoria - Holly Family 

physical and mental sluggishness, neurodegenerative diseases, high blood pressure

 

 



Photos: 1- the ten individual barks before blending  
2 - blended barks   
















"They make considerable use of the barks of trees such as the white & black oak, the white walnut of which they make pills, the cherry, dogwood, maple, birch, and several others. Their mode of preparing & compounding these medicines is a profound secret."      Indian Notebooks, by Henry David Thoreau; transcribed by Richard F. Fleck