Category: Indigenous knowledge systems

A paper in Forest Ecology and Management describes how high-quality “briar root” smoking pipes are made from the lignotuber — a starchy swelling on underground stems or roots — of the tree heath, Erica arborea. The best lignotubers, and therefore the best pipes, come from the Peloritani Mountains of NE Sicily. Unfortunately, current management practices — which discourage “grub-felling” and use for pipe-making and charcoal production — have ironically resulted in an increasing frequency and severity of fires. The authors suggest that the cultural and environmental roles of tree heath in Sicily need to be seen as two sides of the same coin and not as being in opposition. What’s happening with cork is another example of the same thing.