Essiac Essentials

some of the seed to scatter and harvest the rest when ripe on a dry, sunny day during the autumn. Shake the seeds out of the ‘burr heads’ and dry by spreading them out on clean cotton or muslin in full sun. Store them as for the root, lightly crushing or grinding them to break the hard outer casing just before including in the tea.
    Protect your hands when handling the burr heads, as the hooked bracts can cling as tenaciously to human skin as they do to fur or clothing.
     
    SLIPPERY ELM
    The method for harvesting Slippery elm bark is simple. Don’t! Unless you have a large tree on your property that you have a particularly good relationship with and you are an experienced arborist.
    The trees have suffered enough desecration by disease and careless harvesting. Buy the ready-prepared powdered bark and trust that those who are responsible for collecting it have done the job with grace. Once common in the wild, commercial interests — as well as Dutch elm disease — have taken their toll as spring harvesting of the bark can lead to permanent damage or the complete destruction of the tree.
     
    Slippery elm
     
    Theoretically the innermost bark is stripped from a large limb, rather then the trunk, of a mature tree in the early spring when the sap is running. Stripping the trunk can, and often does, kill the tree. The inner bark separates easily from the outer part in one-inch wide strips that are two to three feet long and approximately a quarter of an inch thick. Good quality bark pieces are tough and flexible and bend without breaking. Inferior grades are brittle and snap easily. The bark is dried whole in strips and powdered before use.
     
    TURKEY RHUBARB
    Considering how little you need, it is hardly practical to harvest the root for yourself unless you have Rheum palmatum in your garden and the plant is more than six years old. The roots are not considered to be fully medicinally potent until then.
    Treat the root as for Burdock, cleaning and chopping to size before drying. Powder before use, taking great care not to inhale the herb as you process it. The resulting powder should be a warm, golden colour. Put it, well-wrapped in a clean, brown paper bag, in a screw-top glass jar and store in a cool dark place.
     
    Note : Make a practice of never leaving any of the herbs or the prepared dry mixture exposed to heat or damp conditions or under prolonged exposure to light during storage. Aim to use all the herbs in store within fifteen months after harvesting.
     

    Turkey Rhubarb
     

Chapter Eight

Myth and Reality
     

     
    Due in part to Rene’s reticence in disclosing details of the formula, the myths surrounding Essiac have become legion. The only way to get to the truth is to go back to the source and examine some of the more widely-held misconceptions and beliefs.
     
    Myth : The recipe as confirmed by Mary McPherson is not a valid version of Rene’s working formula.
    Reality: Mary was well respected by Rene and was allowed to help make the Essiac during Rene’s final years. She continued to supply the decoction to Rene’s existing patients after her death. There was no deterioration either in their condition or in the quality of the Essiac. The taste was the same and they continued to return to Mary for further supplies.
    A copy of the Essiac formula, as verified by Mary McPherson, is prominent on one of the walls of the museum in Bracebridge, Ontario. This recipe has been carefully and independently researched by Sheila Snow, drawing on her own recollections and research material from her association with Rene and piecing together information both from other people who knew Rene and from some of the doctors she collaborated with during the 1970s.
    The final test was to examine and compare the colour, taste and texture of the made-up tea, all of which were found to be sympathetic to Rene’s decoction.
    Rene can be seen holding two clear bottles of the tea in John Newton’s film, ‘The Rene Caisse Story’, the only known original film archive shot at her home in Hiram Street, Bracebridge, 1978 (See “Resources and Suppliers” for details of how to obtain this video)
     
    Myth: An Ojibwe Indian herbalist gave Rene the recipe and instructed her how to use it.
    Reality : There were a number of Native American Indian tribes living in Northern Ontario at the end of the nineteenth century including Algonquin, Cree, Cherokee, Huron, Iroquois and Ojibwe. The old medicine man could have belonged to any