Hemlock : Grow Your Own Way

Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference.

This cycle we focus on Hemlock, a conifer native to damp, cool climates such as New England and Canada. Tsuga, derived from the Japanese word for tree (tsu) and mother (ga), this mother of trees provides shelter and warmth to animals and those nearby with voluminous needled branches. It's wood is soft and also ideal for building structures, needles offering medicine and inner bark a nutritious survival food. Vital to its ecosystem, Hemlock is one of the most common  conifers found in local woods, stabilizing the soil and preventing erosion while shading mountain waters to maintain cool temperatures for native fish and invertebrates. 

Hemlock’s medicine mirrors a similar critical role in the human body, a caretaker and stabilizer reminding us of the importance of our innermost functions and overall regulation of systems. Physiologically and in a broader context, Hemlock supports two of our most vital systems for homeostasis, respiratory and gastrointestinal, that when tended to sustain our grounding, intake and release on multiple levels.

A theme of balance also comes into play when working with Hemlock, as the tree produces male and female pine cones, embodying both the masculine and feminine simultaneously. In the body, Hemlock is both astringent and aromatic, providing both shade and warmth. It can be useful as an expectorant and antimicrobial, and also has the ability to infiltrate the ligaments and ease gastrointestinal inflammation functioning to help us expel what is not needed. It provides a stable home and environment for Reishi mushroom which grows from decaying trunks, and Goldthread which grows beneath its canopy. When crucial systems are supported and a symbiotic exchange exists, we are able to utilize what we require from nature and in ourselves.

Hemlock Speaks:

Rest in the shed of the sacred…it’s cooling embrace and offer to you, a safe space to stay. Hemlock has and ever will be a place of respite for those in need.