Pine

What Is Pine?

Pine is a large genus of evergreen conifers, and in European herbal medicine the word usually means Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris). Its needles, buds, resin and inner bark are used for coughs and catarrh, wounds and aching joints.

Scots pine has the largest natural range of any pine, from Scotland and Spain across Europe and Siberia to Mongolia ^{1,18Reference 1Earle · 2023Pinus sylvestris — species description, distribution, varieties, conservation status and ethnobotany — reference databaseView study →Reference 18Earle · 2026Pinus (pine) — genus description, classification, distribution, ecology and ethnobotany — reference databaseView study →}. Almost every part of the tree has been used: the needles as a tea, the buds as a cough syrup, the resin as a wound salve, the inner bark as food, and the pollen as a tonic.

Its needle-and-twig oil, Pini sylvestris aetheroleum, is a European Pharmacopoeia article, alongside the oil of mugo pine ^{3Reference 3Allenspach M et al. · 2020Verification of the chromatographic profile of the primary essential oil of Pinus sylvestris L. combined with chemometric analysis — analyticalView study →}. The oil has been studied for antimicrobial activity and airway effects in the laboratory and in animals ^{4,5Reference 4Csikós E et al. · 2022AnimalPinus sylvestris L. and Syzygium aromaticum essential oils inhibit endotoxin-induced airway hyperreactivity despite aggravated inflammatory mechanisms in mice — animalView study →Reference 5Jurado P et al. · 2023In vitroEssential oils of Pinus sylvestris, Citrus limon and Origanum vulgare exhibit high bactericidal and anti-biofilm activities against Neisseria gonorrhoeae and Streptococcus suis — in vitroView study →}.

Yew (Taxus), the genus of Pacific yew, is sometimes mistaken for pine. It has flat, soft needles and red berry-like arils, and it is poisonous.

The Pines

About 130 species of pine are recognised ^{18Reference 18Earle · 2026Pinus (pine) — genus description, classification, distribution, ecology and ethnobotany — reference databaseView study →}. Scots pine is the species behind the European Pharmacopoeia’s pine needle oil and the pine of the Scandinavian, Baltic and Carpathian traditions. A European recipe for pine tea, pine bud syrup or pine resin salve assumes this tree.

Several other pines are used as medicines in their own right, each for a different part or preparation. Each has its own page.

Other Medicinal Pines

• Maritime pine (P. pinaster) — a Mediterranean pine whose bark is standardised into Pycnogenol, the bark extract studied in human trials for circulation, blood pressure and blood sugar.
• Mugo pine (P. mugo) — a subalpine shrub whose oil, Pini pumilionis aetheroleum, is the second European Pharmacopoeia pine oil ^{3Reference 3Allenspach M et al. · 2020Verification of the chromatographic profile of the primary essential oil of Pinus sylvestris L. combined with chemometric analysis — analyticalView study →}. It is used in the same way as Scots pine oil.
• Masson pine (P. massoniana) — a two-needled pine of southern China and one of the official sources of pine pollen, which Chinese medicine applies to weeping skin and wounds.
• Korean pine (P. koraiensis) — a five-needled pine of northeast Asia, valued for its large edible seeds. Its seed oil is rich in pinolenic acid.
• Korean red pine (P. densiflora) — a two-needled pine with red, flaking bark, the most widespread pine in Korea. Its needles are drunk as a tea and its pollen is eaten in confectionery.
• Chir pine (P. roxburghii) — a three-needled Himalayan pine, sarala in Ayurveda, whose tapped resin yields Indian turpentine.
• Monterey pine (P. radiata) — a three-needled Californian pine, rare in the wild and planted for timber across the Southern Hemisphere. Its bark gives the extract Enzogenol.
• Lodgepole pine (P. contorta) — a western North American pine whose pitch is used as a salve. Its needles contain isocupressic acid, which causes abortion in cattle ^{20Reference 20Gardner DR et al. · 1998Abortifacient effects of lodgepole pine (Pinus contorta) and common juniper (Juniperus communis) on cattle — animalView study →}.

Other Pines

Most pines are grown for timber, resin, nuts or ornament ^{18Reference 18Earle · 2026Pinus (pine) — genus description, classification, distribution, ecology and ethnobotany — reference databaseView study →}. A few are worth knowing by name:

• Ponderosa pine (P. ponderosa) — pregnant cattle that graze its needles may abort ^{12Reference 12James LF et al. · 1989AnimalPine needle abortion in cattle: a review and report of 1973-1984 research — animal modelView study →}. Isocupressic acid is the compound identified as responsible ^{19Reference 19Stegelmeier BL et al. · 1996The toxic and abortifacient effects of ponderosa pine — animalView study →}.
• Black pine (P. nigra) — the needle oil of its Dalmatian subspecies is antimicrobial in laboratory tests ^{17Reference 17Politeo O et al. · 2011In vitroChemical composition and antimicrobial activity of the essential oil of endemic Dalmatian black pine (Pinus nigra ssp. dalmatica) — in vitroView study →}.
• Stone pine (P. pinea), Siberian pine (P. sibirica) and the piñon pines — nut pines, whose large seeds are gathered as food ^{18Reference 18Earle · 2026Pinus (pine) — genus description, classification, distribution, ecology and ethnobotany — reference databaseView study →}.
• Chinese white pine (P. armandii) — also a nut pine ^{18Reference 18Earle · 2026Pinus (pine) — genus description, classification, distribution, ecology and ethnobotany — reference databaseView study →}. Its nuts are linked to “pine mouth”, a metallic taste disturbance after eating pine nuts ^{14Reference 14Hampton R et al. · 2011ReviewPine mouth — reviewView study →}.

How Is Pine Used?

• Needles — dried or fresh, as a tea for coughs and sore throats, and as a wash.
• Buds (young shoots) — made into syrups and tinctures for coughs.
• Essential oil — inhaled with steam for catarrh, or diluted and rubbed into aching joints and muscles.
• Resin (pitch) — worked into salves for cuts, sores and insect bites.
• Inner bark — dried, ground and baked into bread, and as a source of vitamin C.
• Pollen — taken as a powder, mainly in Chinese practice.

Traditional Uses

Northern and Eastern European Folk Medicine

Pine is one of the most consistently recorded medicinal trees in European folk medicine, and its uses centre on the chest, then on wounds, skin and aching joints.

A survey of 515 Hungarian-speaking people in Transylvania recorded the young shoots of Scots pine and black pine used for respiratory illness, the resin for dental problems, and the cones made into syrups and decoctions ^{2Reference 2Papp N et al. · 2022The importance of pine species in the ethnomedicine of Transylvania (Romania) — ethnobotanical field surveyView study →}.

Each part has its own use:

• Needles — a warming, aromatic tea for the chest and a sore throat, to loosen phlegm and to settle gas and bloating. The infusion is also used as a wash.
• Buds (young shoots) — gathered in spring and made into syrups and tinctures across northern and eastern Europe. A tincture of the buds has been assessed in the EU as a feed flavouring ^{13Reference 13EFSA Panel on Additives et al. · 2023Safety and efficacy of a feed additive consisting of a tincture derived from the buds of Pinus sylvestris L. (pine tincture) — regulatory assessmentView study →}.
• Resin (pitch) — worked into salves for cuts, infections and insect bites, and taken internally in small amounts for coughs and wind.
• Essential oil — inhaled in steam for catarrh and blocked sinuses, and rubbed in, diluted, for aching joints and muscles.

Sámi and Nordic Bark Bread

The Sámi people ate the inner bark of Scots pine. The outer bark was stripped away, and the cambium and phloem were scraped off, ground and baked with ordinary flour into bark bread ^{1Reference 1Earle · 2023Pinus sylvestris — species description, distribution, varieties, conservation status and ethnobotany — reference databaseView study →}.

The inner bark contains small amounts of protein, fat and digestible carbohydrate, and vitamin C. It is mostly indigestible cellulose and tastes unpleasant, so it was eaten mainly in times of famine ^{1Reference 1Earle · 2023Pinus sylvestris — species description, distribution, varieties, conservation status and ethnobotany — reference databaseView study →}.

Traditional Chinese Medicine: Pine Pollen from Masson Pine

Pine pollen, song hua fen, is a Chinese medicine taken mainly from Masson pine and related Chinese pines rather than from Scots pine. It is dusted onto weeping skin and wounds, and taken as a tonic.

Indications

• Coughs, catarrh and bronchitis [essential oil inhaled; buds; European folk use] ⚠Caution: In mice, inhaled Scots pine oil improved airway function but increased several inflammatory markers in the lungs ⁴.
• Blocked sinuses and colds [essential oil, steam inhalation]
• Sore throat [needle tea]
• Wind and bloating [needle tea; resin]
• Cuts, sores and insect bites [resin salve]
• Aching joints and muscles, rheumatic pain [diluted essential oil, topical]
• Dental problems [resin; Transylvanian folk use]
• Vitamin C source [inner bark; needles; Sámi food use]
• General tonic [pollen; TCM] ⚠Caution: Scots pine pollen contains testosterone and related steroids in nanogram amounts per gram ⁹. No human study has shown a change in hormone levels.

Botany

Pines are aromatic evergreen trees or shrubs. Their needles grow in bundles of one to eight, usually two to five, held together at the base by a sheath of small scale leaves ^{18Reference 18Earle · 2026Pinus (pine) — genus description, classification, distribution, ecology and ethnobotany — reference databaseView study →}. The seed cones are woody, take one and a half to three years to ripen, and carry two seeds at the base of each scale ^{18Reference 18Earle · 2026Pinus (pine) — genus description, classification, distribution, ecology and ethnobotany — reference databaseView study →}. Most pine seeds have a wing and are carried by the wind, while the large seeds of the nut pines have a reduced wing and are spread by birds such as jays ^{18Reference 18Earle · 2026Pinus (pine) — genus description, classification, distribution, ecology and ethnobotany — reference databaseView study →}.

The genus has two subgenera. The hard pines have two vascular bundles in each needle and two to six needles in a bundle. The white or soft pines have one vascular bundle in each needle and one to five needles in a bundle ^{18Reference 18Earle · 2026Pinus (pine) — genus description, classification, distribution, ecology and ethnobotany — reference databaseView study →}. Scots pine is a hard pine; Korean pine is a white pine.

Scots pine is a tall evergreen tree that can reach 40 m in height ^{1Reference 1Earle · 2023Pinus sylvestris — species description, distribution, varieties, conservation status and ethnobotany — reference databaseView study →}. Its lower trunk has thick, scaly, grey-brown bark, and its upper trunk and branches have thin, flaking, orange-red bark ^{1Reference 1Earle · 2023Pinus sylvestris — species description, distribution, varieties, conservation status and ethnobotany — reference databaseView study →}.

Its needles grow in pairs and are 4–6 cm long, often slightly twisted ^{1Reference 1Earle · 2023Pinus sylvestris — species description, distribution, varieties, conservation status and ethnobotany — reference databaseView study →}. They are always somewhat blue-green or grey-green, which sets Scots pine apart from other two-needled hard pines ^{1Reference 1Earle · 2023Pinus sylvestris — species description, distribution, varieties, conservation status and ethnobotany — reference databaseView study →}. The cones are 3–6 cm long and ripen about 20 months after pollination. The seeds are black, 4–5 mm long, with a wing of 12–20 mm ^{1Reference 1Earle · 2023Pinus sylvestris — species description, distribution, varieties, conservation status and ethnobotany — reference databaseView study →}.

Scots pine is long-lived. The oldest known living tree, in Finnish Lapland, was 764 years old when it was sampled in 2007 ^{1Reference 1Earle · 2023Pinus sylvestris — species description, distribution, varieties, conservation status and ethnobotany — reference databaseView study →}. Several geographic varieties are recognised. The Spanish var. nevadensis was listed as Vulnerable on the 1996 IUCN Red List ^{1Reference 1Earle · 2023Pinus sylvestris — species description, distribution, varieties, conservation status and ethnobotany — reference databaseView study →}.

Distribution

Pines grow wild across the Northern Hemisphere, mainly in boreal, temperate and tropical mountain regions, and reach just south of the Equator in Sumatra ^{18Reference 18Earle · 2026Pinus (pine) — genus description, classification, distribution, ecology and ethnobotany — reference databaseView study →}. They have been planted for timber and ornament through much of the Southern Hemisphere ^{18Reference 18Earle · 2026Pinus (pine) — genus description, classification, distribution, ecology and ethnobotany — reference databaseView study →}. Most pines need full light and many are adapted to fire; where fire is rare, they tend to grow on poor soils ^{18Reference 18Earle · 2026Pinus (pine) — genus description, classification, distribution, ecology and ethnobotany — reference databaseView study →}.

Scots pine grows from Scotland and Spain eastward across Europe and northern Asia, nearly to the Pacific coast, and south into Turkey, the Caucasus, Mongolia and northwest China ^{1Reference 1Earle · 2023Pinus sylvestris — species description, distribution, varieties, conservation status and ethnobotany — reference databaseView study →}. In northern Eurasia it grows from sea level to about 1,000 m. In southern Europe it grows only in mountains above 500 m, up to 2,400 m in the Sierra Nevada of Spain ^{1Reference 1Earle · 2023Pinus sylvestris — species description, distribution, varieties, conservation status and ethnobotany — reference databaseView study →}.

It was lost to felling, burning and overgrazing in Ireland, Wales, England, the Netherlands and Denmark, and has since been replanted in all of them ^{1Reference 1Earle · 2023Pinus sylvestris — species description, distribution, varieties, conservation status and ethnobotany — reference databaseView study →}. It has naturalised in southeastern Canada and the northeastern and midwestern United States ^{1Reference 1Earle · 2023Pinus sylvestris — species description, distribution, varieties, conservation status and ethnobotany — reference databaseView study →}.

Sourcing: Scots pine is an important timber tree throughout its range ^{1Reference 1Earle · 2023Pinus sylvestris — species description, distribution, varieties, conservation status and ethnobotany — reference databaseView study →}, and the needles, twigs and bark sold for extraction come from managed and cultivated forest rather than from wild collection of a scarce plant. In Scotland the native pine forest survives only as remnants ^{1Reference 1Earle · 2023Pinus sylvestris — species description, distribution, varieties, conservation status and ethnobotany — reference databaseView study →}, so pine material gathered by hand there is best taken from planted trees.

Growing Conditions

Cultivation snapshot for Pine

Lifeperennial and long-lived

• A pioneer of poor, acid, sandy and peaty ground, very cold-hardy, and in need of full light. Like most pines it does not regenerate in its own shade ^{18Reference 18Earle · 2026Pinus (pine) — genus description, classification, distribution, ecology and ethnobotany — reference databaseView study →}. It tolerates exposure and drought better than most conifers.

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Harvesting & Preparation

Each part is best gathered in its own season:

1. Buds (young shoots) — early spring, while still short and resinous. The material for syrups and tinctures.
2. Pollen — released in late spring; each tree produces a great deal. Collect by bagging the male catkins and shaking.
3. Needles — harvestable year-round; spring’s young growth has the best flavour.
4. Resin (pitch) — available all year; easiest to gather in winter, when it hardens into brittle lumps.
5. Inner bark — available year-round; spring and summer are convenient.

Identify the tree before making needle tea. Ponderosa and lodgepole pine needles contain isocupressic acid ^{19,20Reference 19Stegelmeier BL et al. · 1996The toxic and abortifacient effects of ponderosa pine — animalView study →Reference 20Gardner DR et al. · 1998Abortifacient effects of lodgepole pine (Pinus contorta) and common juniper (Juniperus communis) on cattle — animalView study →}, and yew is poisonous.

Phytochemistry

The needle-and-twig oil is a mixture of monoterpenes led by α-pinene. Needle oils have been reported at 11–41% α-pinene ^{7Reference 7Mirković S et al. · 2025ReviewAntimicrobial and antioxidant activity of essential oils from selected Pinus species from Bosnia and Herzegovina — reviewView study →}, and a commercial Scots pine oil contained 39% ^{4Reference 4Csikós E et al. · 2022AnimalPinus sylvestris L. and Syzygium aromaticum essential oils inhibit endotoxin-induced airway hyperreactivity despite aggravated inflammatory mechanisms in mice — animalView study →}. The European Pharmacopoeia assay tracks eleven compounds: α-pinene, camphene, β-pinene, Δ-3-carene, myrcene, limonene, β-phellandrene, p-cymene, terpinolene, bornyl acetate and β-caryophyllene ^{3Reference 3Allenspach M et al. · 2020Verification of the chromatographic profile of the primary essential oil of Pinus sylvestris L. combined with chemometric analysis — analyticalView study →}.

Composition varies with origin, season, growing conditions and harvest time ^{3Reference 3Allenspach M et al. · 2020Verification of the chromatographic profile of the primary essential oil of Pinus sylvestris L. combined with chemometric analysis — analyticalView study →}. A GC study of Scots pine oils from different countries separated them by origin on their sesquiterpene pattern, and also found labdane, pimarane and abietane diterpenoids ^{3Reference 3Allenspach M et al. · 2020Verification of the chromatographic profile of the primary essential oil of Pinus sylvestris L. combined with chemometric analysis — analyticalView study →}.

The resin contains diterpene resin acids — abietic, dehydroabietic, isopimaric, levopimaric, palustric and pimaric acid. These make up rosin (colophony), the solid left after turpentine is distilled off.

The needles contain flavonoids, phenolic acids and ascorbic acid. In a comparison of needles from five pine species, Scots pine had the highest total phenolic content, with rutin, ferulic acid and quercitrin the main phenolics ^{8Reference 8Kurtiš A et al. · 2026In vitroQuantitative analysis of polyphenols and in vitro antioxidant, antimicrobial and toxicity assessments in needles of five Pinus species from Montenegro — in vitroView study →}. The needles also contain shikimic acid.

The heartwood and knots contain the stilbene pinosylvin and its monomethyl ester, which defend the wood against fungi. The bark contains proanthocyanidins built from catechin and taxifolin units.

The pollen contains vitamins, amino acids and small amounts of testosterone, epitestosterone and androstenedione ^{9Reference 9Saden-Krehula M et al. · 1971Testosterone, epitestosterone and androstenedione in the pollen of Scotch pine P. silvestris L. — analyticalView study →}.

A needle oil profile sometimes given for pine, with α-terpineol about 30% and linalool about 24%, comes from Cedrus deodara, a cedar ^{21Reference 21Zeng WC et al. · 2012In vitroChemical composition, antioxidant, and antimicrobial activities of essential oil from pine needle (Cedrus deodara) — analytical / in vitroView study →}.

Constituent Summary

Oil components are shown as a share of the oil; pollen steroids are per gram of pollen.

Pharmacology & Research

Research on Scots pine is laboratory and animal work. The needle oil has been tested against bacteria and fungi, and inhaled by mice with inflamed airways ^{4,5,7Reference 4Csikós E et al. · 2022AnimalPinus sylvestris L. and Syzygium aromaticum essential oils inhibit endotoxin-induced airway hyperreactivity despite aggravated inflammatory mechanisms in mice — animalView study →Reference 5Jurado P et al. · 2023In vitroEssential oils of Pinus sylvestris, Citrus limon and Origanum vulgare exhibit high bactericidal and anti-biofilm activities against Neisseria gonorrhoeae and Streptococcus suis — in vitroView study →Reference 7Mirković S et al. · 2025ReviewAntimicrobial and antioxidant activity of essential oils from selected Pinus species from Bosnia and Herzegovina — reviewView study →}. The pollen has been studied in cells and mice for antioxidant and anti-ageing effects ^{15,16Reference 15Mao GX et al. · 2012AnimalAntiaging effect of pine pollen in human diploid fibroblasts and in a mouse model induced by D-galactose — mouseView study →Reference 16Lee KH et al. · 2009In vitroAntioxidant and anti-inflammatory activity of pine pollen extract in vitro — in vitroView study →}.

No human trial of any Scots pine preparation has been published. The human trials in the genus test bark extracts of maritime pine and Monterey pine.

1. Antimicrobial

Essential oils from the needles of coniferous trees, including two Pinus species, inhibited bacteria and fungi in laboratory tests ^{6Reference 6Hong EJ et al. · 2004In vitroAntibacterial and antifungal effects of essential oils from coniferous trees — in vitroView study →}.

Scots pine needle oil was bactericidal against multidrug-resistant Neisseria gonorrhoeae (MIC ≤ 0.5 mg/mL) and rapidly broke up its biofilms. The oil acted on the bacterial outer membrane, and its α-pinene, β-pinene and limonene contributed to the effect ^{5Reference 5Jurado P et al. · 2023In vitroEssential oils of Pinus sylvestris, Citrus limon and Origanum vulgare exhibit high bactericidal and anti-biofilm activities against Neisseria gonorrhoeae and Streptococcus suis — in vitroView study →}.

A review of Pinus essential oils reports that, among pines from Bosnia and Herzegovina, Scots pine cone oil was among the most active ^{7Reference 7Mirković S et al. · 2025ReviewAntimicrobial and antioxidant activity of essential oils from selected Pinus species from Bosnia and Herzegovina — reviewView study →}. Needle oil of the Dalmatian black pine was antibacterial, most strongly against Gram-positive bacteria, and inhibited all fungi tested ^{17Reference 17Politeo O et al. · 2011In vitroChemical composition and antimicrobial activity of the essential oil of endemic Dalmatian black pine (Pinus nigra ssp. dalmatica) — in vitroView study →}.

Gap: all of this is laboratory work. There are no controlled human trials for infection or wound healing.

2. Respiratory & Airway

In a mouse model of acute lung inflammation caused by bacterial endotoxin, a commercial Scots pine oil (39% α-pinene) was inhaled three times over 24 hours ^{4Reference 4Csikós E et al. · 2022AnimalPinus sylvestris L. and Syzygium aromaticum essential oils inhibit endotoxin-induced airway hyperreactivity despite aggravated inflammatory mechanisms in mice — animalView study →}.

The oil reduced airway hyperresponsiveness and prevented changes in breathing measures and swelling around the blood vessels of the lung. It also increased myeloperoxidase activity and several inflammatory cytokines, including IL-1β and TNF-α ^{4Reference 4Csikós E et al. · 2022AnimalPinus sylvestris L. and Syzygium aromaticum essential oils inhibit endotoxin-induced airway hyperreactivity despite aggravated inflammatory mechanisms in mice — animalView study →}. The authors advised caution with the oil in inflammatory lung disease ^{4Reference 4Csikós E et al. · 2022AnimalPinus sylvestris L. and Syzygium aromaticum essential oils inhibit endotoxin-induced airway hyperreactivity despite aggravated inflammatory mechanisms in mice — animalView study →}.

Gap: no human trial of pine oil for catarrh, bronchitis or sinusitis has been published.

3. Antioxidant

Pine needles, bark and pollen all show antioxidant activity in laboratory assays ^{8,16Reference 8Kurtiš A et al. · 2026In vitroQuantitative analysis of polyphenols and in vitro antioxidant, antimicrobial and toxicity assessments in needles of five Pinus species from Montenegro — in vitroView study →Reference 16Lee KH et al. · 2009In vitroAntioxidant and anti-inflammatory activity of pine pollen extract in vitro — in vitroView study →}. In a comparison of five pine species, Scots pine needles had the highest total phenolic content ^{8Reference 8Kurtiš A et al. · 2026In vitroQuantitative analysis of polyphenols and in vitro antioxidant, antimicrobial and toxicity assessments in needles of five Pinus species from Montenegro — in vitroView study →}.

Gap: human antioxidant data in the genus come only from maritime pine bark extract.

4. Anti-Aging & Longevity

Pine pollen delayed replicative ageing in human fibroblasts. In mice given daily D-galactose injections for eight weeks to accelerate ageing, it improved memory tests, lowered IL-6 and TNF-α, and reduced advanced glycation end-products ^{15Reference 15Mao GX et al. · 2012AnimalAntiaging effect of pine pollen in human diploid fibroblasts and in a mouse model induced by D-galactose — mouseView study →}.

A pine pollen extract scavenged free radicals and reduced inflammatory mediators in macrophages and synovial cells ^{16Reference 16Lee KH et al. · 2009In vitroAntioxidant and anti-inflammatory activity of pine pollen extract in vitro — in vitroView study →}.

Gap: the evidence is cell and mouse work, and the pollen species in these studies is not stated in their abstracts.

5. Androgenic / Male Tonic

Scots pine pollen contains testosterone, epitestosterone and androstenedione, first reported in 1971 ^{9Reference 9Saden-Krehula M et al. · 1971Testosterone, epitestosterone and androstenedione in the pollen of Scotch pine P. silvestris L. — analyticalView study →}. The amounts are in nanograms per gram of pollen, so a large dose of pollen supplies well under a microgram of testosterone.

Gap: no human trial has measured serum androgens or any hypogonadism outcome after taking pine pollen.

Mechanisms

The needle oil’s monoterpenes act on bacterial membranes; in the gonorrhoea study the oil disrupted the outer membrane, and α-pinene, β-pinene and limonene each contributed ^{5Reference 5Jurado P et al. · 2023In vitroEssential oils of Pinus sylvestris, Citrus limon and Origanum vulgare exhibit high bactericidal and anti-biofilm activities against Neisseria gonorrhoeae and Streptococcus suis — in vitroView study →}. Inhaled, the oil changed airway function and lung inflammation in mice ^{4Reference 4Csikós E et al. · 2022AnimalPinus sylvestris L. and Syzygium aromaticum essential oils inhibit endotoxin-induced airway hyperreactivity despite aggravated inflammatory mechanisms in mice — animalView study →}.

The needles, bark and pollen contain phenolic compounds with antioxidant activity in laboratory assays ^{8,16Reference 8Kurtiš A et al. · 2026In vitroQuantitative analysis of polyphenols and in vitro antioxidant, antimicrobial and toxicity assessments in needles of five Pinus species from Montenegro — in vitroView study →Reference 16Lee KH et al. · 2009In vitroAntioxidant and anti-inflammatory activity of pine pollen extract in vitro — in vitroView study →}.

Clinical Trials

No trials have been identified for Pinus sylvestris in any preparation. The registered trials in the genus test maritime pine bark extract.

Last checked: September 2026.

Dosage

Safety & Pregnancy

Needle tea and bark preparations are gentle. The concentrated oil and resin carry most of the documented problems.

Full Safety & Interactions Detail

Oxidised oil. Contact allergy to turpentine was a common occupational problem among painters in the early twentieth century. Researchers traced the sensitiser in Scandinavian turpentine to Δ-3-carene hydroperoxides, which form when the oil oxidises in air. French turpentine, which contains little or no Δ-3-carene, sensitised far less ^{11Reference 11Karlberg AT · 2021ReviewOne hundred years of allergic contact dermatitis due to oxidized terpenes: what we can learn from old research on turpentine allergy — reviewView study →}.

Old oil is therefore the main risk on the skin. Buy small amounts, store them cool and dark, and discard oil that has oxidised. The same applies to colophony, whose sensitisers are the oxidation products of abietic acid.

Pollen allergy. Pine pollen was long thought to cause little allergy. In 65 pine-pollen-allergic patients, skin tests were positive to all the pine pollens tested in 69%, and different pine species cross-reacted strongly with each other ^{10Reference 10Gastaminza G et al. · 2009ObservationalAllergenicity and cross-reactivity of pine pollen — observationalView study →}. Pine pollen did not cross-react with cypress pollen, and cross-reacted only partly with grass pollen, in patients also sensitised to ryegrass ^{10Reference 10Gastaminza G et al. · 2009ObservationalAllergenicity and cross-reactivity of pine pollen — observationalView study →}.

Resin tinctures irritate the gut and are taken in small doses. Traditional resin use is mostly on the skin.

Needles of other pines. Isocupressic acid has not been documented in Scots pine. It occurs in ponderosa pine, where it is the compound identified behind abortion in cattle, and in lodgepole pine needles at about 0.8% of dry weight ^{19,20Reference 19Stegelmeier BL et al. · 1996The toxic and abortifacient effects of ponderosa pine — animalView study →Reference 20Gardner DR et al. · 1998Abortifacient effects of lodgepole pine (Pinus contorta) and common juniper (Juniperus communis) on cattle — animalView study →}. Correct identification of the tree avoids it.

Small children. Strong aromatic oils applied near the face of an infant or small child can trigger spasm of the larynx or airways, so they are kept away from the face.

Interactions. No human drug-interaction or CYP450 study of Scots pine has been published.

Pine mouth. Some pine nuts cause a metallic taste disturbance lasting days to weeks, linked mainly to Pinus armandii ^{14Reference 14Hampton R et al. · 2011ReviewPine mouth — reviewView study →}.

References

1. Earle, C. J. (ed.) (2023). Pinus sylvestris — species description, distribution, varieties, conservation status and ethnobotany — reference database. The Gymnosperm Database. https://www.conifers.org/pi/Pinus_sylvestris.php
2. Papp N, Purger D, Czigle S, Czégényi D, et al. (2022). The importance of pine species in the ethnomedicine of Transylvania (Romania) — ethnobotanical field survey. Plants, 11, 2331. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/36145732/
3. Allenspach M, Valder C, Flamm D, Grisoni F, et al. (2020). Verification of the chromatographic profile of the primary essential oil of Pinus sylvestris L. combined with chemometric analysis — analytical. Molecules, 25, 2973. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32605289/
4. Csikós E, Csekő K, Kemény Á, Draskóczi L, et al. (2022). Pinus sylvestris L. and Syzygium aromaticum essential oils inhibit endotoxin-induced airway hyperreactivity despite aggravated inflammatory mechanisms in mice — animal. Molecules, 27, 3868. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35744988/
5. Jurado P, Uruén C, Martínez S, Lain E, et al. (2023). Essential oils of Pinus sylvestris, Citrus limon and Origanum vulgare exhibit high bactericidal and anti-biofilm activities against Neisseria gonorrhoeae and Streptococcus suis — in vitro. Biomed Pharmacother, 168, 115703. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/37857249/
6. Hong EJ, Na KJ, Choi IG, Choi KC, et al. (2004). Antibacterial and antifungal effects of essential oils from coniferous trees — in vitro. Biol Pharm Bull, 27, 863-6. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/15187434/
7. Mirković S, Martinović M, Tadić VM, Nešić I, et al. (2025). Antimicrobial and antioxidant activity of essential oils from selected Pinus species from Bosnia and Herzegovina — review. Antibiotics, 14, 677. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/40723980/
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