Abies balsamea
Fir balsam
Pinaceae
History and Origin
Fir forms an important part of our cultural heritage. Around this evergreen tree, our families
gather to celebrate love, abundance and warmth in the middle of winter.
When life used to be in the woods, it saved numerous lives in the camps. Natives, settlers, and
wood runners used it to cover the cold ground and get a comfortable and aromatic bed or to
build lodges covered with a thick layer of insulating snow. In the woods, it also makes it easy to
build a fire since the high concentration of essential oils in its needles makes it very flammable,
even on rainy days. Besides, fir has always been an important element of traditional medicine in
French Canada.
Balsam fir is also used by Native Americans in pomades for superficial wounds and mosquito
bites, as a laxative and analgesic, for cardiac, renal and pulmonary disorders, for irregular
menstruations, as well as to treat gonorrhea, cancer and rheumatisms.
Today, it is used in construction and its resin is used in optics.
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