Common Oak

Alternative names : Quercus robur, Chêne Blanc, Écorce de Chêne ,White Oak

Venerated by Druids and held sacred by the Greeks, Common Oak breathes health and longevity. Recent research supports its therapeutic properties, confirming the fact that near an Oak tree blood pressure normalizes, cerebral functions improve and the immune system activates. In superstitions, oak branches hanging in a home have a protective role and an acorn carried by a woman increases her chances of becoming a mother.

Acorns harvested during the month of September and October are anti–inflammatory and antioxidant agents and have diuretic effects. A popular treatment for diabetes is the powder obtained from fried or baked acorns (without the hull). 1 teaspoon of powder is recommended one hour before breakfast and another one , one hour before dinner. The cure lasts 7 days, with a break for another 7 days and takes up to 4 weeks. Acorn infusion obtained from 1 teaspoon of mashed acorn to 1 cup of boiling water, stimulates digestion and relieves stomach complaints. Acorn coffee is an excellent substitute for natural coffee and a good remedy for asthma, bronchitis and cough , but also for diarrhea and heart disease. The recipe requires you to bake the acorns up to 1 hour. When cold, remove the hull and place the baked acorns in milk. Leave for a few hours and take it out to dry for 24 hours. After 24 hours, grind the acorns in the coffee grinder and you are done!

The bark of Common Oak is also curative and is used mainly externally for its astringent and antiseptic properties. Baths and poultices with Common Oak bark decoction (a handful of bark boiled for 10 minutes and infused for  a few hours) are used in popular medicine to treat skin disease, eczema, leucorrhoea and excessive sweating of hands and feet. For excessive sweating of the feet, traditional remedies use oak bark powder in the socks or bark decoction to rinse the socks. A special caution for baths with Common Oak bark decoction is  that due to the high tannin content, the bark is a powerful dye and you should avoid using it in enamelled bath tubs. Zinc or plastic bath tubes should do just fine.

The decoction obtained from Common Oak bark can treat anemia, rachitis, gastritis and ulcer, but consumption can cause serious side effects , such as kidney and liver damage. The infusion obtained from Common Oak leaves can treat ascites.