Willow bark of the willow tree have been mentioned in ancient texts from Assyria, Sumer and Egypt as a remedy for aches and fever, and in Ancient Greece the physician Hippocrates wrote about its medicinal properties in the fifth century BC. Native Americans across the Americas relied on it as a staple of their medical treatments. It provides temporary pain relief. Salicin is metabolized into salicylic acid in the human body, and is a precursor of aspirin. In 1763, its medicinal properties were observed by the Reverend Edward Stone in England. He notified the Royal Society, which published his findings. The
Bark hack The first sentence is basically correct except that the blade is straight rather than curved. With the bark hack, only the bark is removed; it does not cut into the wood as the wood hack did. The wood hack was used up until the early 1950's and the trees were "chipped or streaked" each week during the sap flow season. With the bark hack, only the bark was removed and a 50% sulfuric acid solution was sprayed on the "streak" and it had to be done only every 2 weeks. Bark hack A bark hack is a tool used to