Wild fruit and my favourite cordage !!!

pitdog

pitdog

Joined
Apr 13, 2007
Messages
12,294
Struggled with a tiltle again today !!!

Anyways I hadn't been out long with the dogs when I came across this bounty, about 5 trees each packed with plums !

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A little further along I came across more useful stuff, although not edible this time....some liquid gold ( resin ).......

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The creepy indian tree is still there with all it's little add-ons......

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Time to let the dogs cool off in the water, not much around this area anymore, more of a deep mud hole but the dogs still liked it !

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Cedar roots are my very favourite natural cordage, very easy to get, can be used without any preparation, very strong and very flexible !

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The lengths I usually get are perfect size for making shelters etc.....

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Flexible enough to tie into tight knots without breaking......

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My JK knives that went with me today.......

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fujita yuji said:
That plum looks great!

Cedar roots are cool. Are they remain flexible when they get dried?
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I made some plaited rope from some once and left it out in the sun, it dried out and became a little brittle ( kinda like wicker ) but I'd imagine it still retains quite a lot of strength when holding up a shelter etc !
 
J.Wade said:
HAve you ever asked about the "creepy indian tree", What is it for ?,what does it mean? who put it there and why
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Sorry but never heard/seen it before.

Not exactly like things within that picture, I've found some images of trees
with colourful piece of cloths, which is an expression of some wish or thought.
 
fishiker said:
When we begin to worry about every post being "politically correct" this forum will no longer exist. Great post pitdog as always.
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that has got to be one of the dumbest things I have ever read on this forum,

Really, to say that we don't have the ablitiy to show cultural sensativity really looks extremely poorly upon the group here,

Are we just a bunch of ignorant rednecks with no clue, or is this a group of intelligent individuals that can respect others beliefs

I don't think this place we just go away if we were polite.......


jimi
 
I think if the tree gives a guy the creeps for whatever reason he should be able to call it creepy if its his description. Maybe the people your refering to as possibly finding the creepy description offensive could then step in and enlighten everyone to its significance and therby remove the creepiness. I didn't see anything offensive about the description and I doubt many did. I also think its time we stopped worrying so damn much about possibly offending anyone that these kind of discussions are necessary, its stupid. Use some concideration when talking to people, if you offend, apologize and move on.
 
SIXFOOTER said:
Use some concideration when talking to people, if you offend, apologize and move on.
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Yes good advice. It is just as stupid to act like you are offended that somebody else got offended. When somebody calls somebody on a poor choice of words, that is all they are doing, and it should be acknowledged and perhaps spin off into a discussion about it, but it shouldn't be met with open hostility.

Jimi's first post was polite and he was indicating that he didn't like having rituals of Native American culture being called creepy. I know both Jimi and I think I know Pitdog and I doubt pitdog was trying to offend anyone. I also know that Jimi isn't Mr. PC boy. In fact, I believe the fact that pitdog took a photo of the ritual and posted suggests a genuine interest in the subject matter. The word 'creepy' might have easily been substituted with the word 'mysterious' and retain the same context without being offensive.

Anyhow, lets move on guys.

Cool pictures Pitdog, I never came across wild plumbs before just apples. Of course, around these parts we had Johnny Appleseed and that how our trees spread. In British Columbia, we know everybody is plumb crazy and thus....propagation.

(p.s. I wasn't calling everybody in B.C. plumb crazy....Just referring to Bushman5 :D)
 
I think my wording ' creepy ' was correct in that I feel a little nervous coming across a tree adorned with feathers and wooden heads in the middle of a dark forest !

There are many indian legends associated with the Cedar tree's as they held a special place in their lives both for their uses and believed magic !!!

Here is one legend...

Long ago, when the Cherokee people were new on the earth, there was little appreciation for the night time. All of their activities happened during the day. In fact, the people thought that they would be better off if there were no darkness of night. So they turned to the Great Creator (Ogedoda) and asked that it might be day light all of the time.

The Great Spirit heard the voices and wanted to make the people happy. So he asked Sun not to go behind the great sky vault at the end of the day, but to stay on the underside and give continuous light to the people. It wasn't long before the forest became thick with new growth, making it hard to find the path or even to walk. The weeds grew wild in the gardens and the people had to continually tend to their corn (selu) and beans (tuya) and other crops. With no relief from the sun, it became very, very hot. With continuous sunlight it was hard to sleep, and needing to work so much harder, the people became very tired and impatient with one another. There was little happiness.

It wasn't long before the people realized that it had been a mistake to ask for continual daylight, and they decided to call upon the Great Spirit once again. They cried out: "We were wrong and made a great mistake in asking for it to be daylight all the time. Please hear our cries. It would be better if it were always night time."

Again the Great Spirit heard their pleas and thought about their request. But He loved the people and therefore asked Sun to stay behind the great sky vault and not to come to the underside to shine down on the land and the people. The sky became dark. But without Sun, the people could not see to hunt and the crops stopped growing. The only light and heat came from the fires, but there was a constant need to gather wood to keep them burning. And so the people became cold, tired, and very hungry. Many of the people died.

Those who remained gathered to once more cry to the Great Spirit: "We have made a terrible mistake in asking You to change the cycles of day and night. Please help us, for we are dying in the continual darkness of night. In the beginning you made the day and night perfect, as they should be. Forgive us and return the day and night as they were before."

The Great Spirit asked Sun to once more begin her normal journeys, along the underside of the great sky vault during the day, shining down on the land and the people, and then to slip under the western edge and return on the far side of the sky vault at night, leaving the people in darkness. Soon the weather became more pleasant and the crops began to grow again. The hunting was good. The people had plenty to eat and there was far less sickness. Balance and harmony were returned to the lives of the people and life was once again good.

The people were grateful to the Great Creator and acknowledged the great wisdom in the Creator's ways. Each morning they would arise to give thanks for the peaceful night, and each evening they would give thanks for the wonderful day. The Great Creator accepted the thanks of the people and was pleased to see them living in happiness again.

But the Great Creator was sad at the thought of those who had perished during the prolonged night. So He created a new tree that he called the ajina, the cedar tree, and He put the spirits of those who had crossed over in it. So when you smell the aroma of a cedar tree or see one growing in the forest, if you are Tsalagi (Cherokee), you are looking at the spirit of your ancestors.

The cedar tree holds powerful protective spirits for the Cherokee. Many carry a small piece of cedar wood or cedar shavings in their medicine bag worn around their neck. It may also be placed above the entrance to their homes to protect against the entry of evil spirits. There is also strong medicine in drums or flutes made from cedar wood.
 
Hey pitdog, there is an excellent book called Cedar, written by Hilary Stewart, although I have a suspicion that you might already be familiar with it.

The fact that that the root dries stiff and hard makes it very useful for lacing projects such as this Cedar (Thuja occidentalis) bark berry basket - (the lacing around the top is Indian Hemp (Apocynum cannibinum)

Cedarberrybasket1.jpg


Doc
 
Hey Doc, Mrs Pit was only saying yesterday that you hadn't been on the forum for a while ( unless we just missed it ) so it's good to see your still with us !!!!

Actually I hadn't seen that book before so I'll have to look into it, thanks !
 
pitdog said:
Hey Doc, Mrs Pit was only saying yesterday that you hadn't been on the forum for a while ( unless we just missed it ) so it's good to see your still with us !!!!

Actually I hadn't seen that book before so I'll have to look into it, thanks !
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Thanks for missing me, Mrs. Pit. :D Pitdog, the book is very B.C. specific. Probably will be in your local library, if not, worth every penny! It deals with all aspects of the Cedar, including technological uses - lots of well illustrated diagrams, as would be expected from Hilary Stewart.

She also wrote Indian Fishing, which is another excellent book.

Two of the reviews for Cedar:
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You have to see it to believe it, Nov 3 2000
By pullrich "pullrich" (United States) - See all my reviews

Detailed descriptions of how various parts of cedar trees were used to create watertight boats, boxes, baskets, hats, clothing, shelter, mats, buildings, art, etc., etc. What really sends this book over the top are the detailed drawings and diagrams of how cedar was hand-processed and used to construct various objects. With this book as a guide one would have a fair shot at recreating these objects of functional art.
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Cedar - Tree of Life is a labor of love & beauty!, May 28 2000
By A Customer

The Northwest Coastal people held the cedar & its spirit in high regard for all the gifts of life it offered them. For millennia they developed tools & skills to fell the giant trees to make canoes, post-&-beam homes, waterproof boxes & carved poles. Dedicated to those who know & respect the spirit of the Cedar, Hilary Stewart's book is a labor of love, respect & infinite knowledge. It intrigued her that people lived so well & for so long using almost exclusively the materials of their environment & her curiosity has wrought a fine book of early illustrations. A must for anyone interested in how the First People lived.
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Buy them both!! :thumbup: :D

Doc
 
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