tea
Willow bark decoction
Adult ache and low fever tea from creek willow. Treat it like aspirin that tastes of wet wood.
20 minutes · 1–2 cups
- In spring, cut a pencil-thick new willow shoot. Peel or scrape the green inner bark. Dry it on paper for later, or use fresh (use a bit more).
- Simmer 1–2 tsp dried inner bark in 1½ cups water, 10 minutes. Strain.
- Honey and a mint leaf make it drinkable.
- Dose
- One cup, up to twice a day, adult only, short use.
- Store
- Dry bark in a jar, a year.
No children or teens with viral illness. No aspirin allergy, no blood thinners, no third-trimester pregnancy, no bleeding ulcers. This is the same chemical family as the pill in the med chest.