High Desert Cedar Smudge Sticks

In recent years it’s become a ritual for me at the onset of cold weather to harvest fresh, green branches from the many juniper trees surrounding my home. I bring the armloads of them inside and separate them into small bunches that fill several huge baskets and bowls. They look beautiful, and as they dry the house is pervaded with the pungent, wild fragrance of desert evergreens. Eventually I process them down into a kind of twiggy, rustic potpourri that fills a very large bowl, and I’ll dip into it from time to burn some as loose smudge or use a bit as a bed for a cone of incense.

This year there was one tree that had to be pruned back, a very lively and vibrant female that has grown very full and very fast. (The females have the berries and the males make the pollen…I only harvest from the female trees as I’m very allergic to the pollen.) I did it yesterday, after we’d had several days of rain and snow which cleansed the branches of dust and debris, and I rinsed them off once more for good measure, then plunked them all down in the middle of my living room and made an enormous mess as I happily spent the day clipping smaller bunches off the branches and bundling them into smudge sticks. I don’t usually make more than a couple of smudge sticks for myself but the sheer amount I had to take off the tree was enough to make a couple dozen, because I thought I’d try to sell some if anyone was interested.

“Cedar” is a term Pueblo people use for a number of different evergreens including the true cedars, junipers, and others. These trees have been used in the Southwest for a multitude of purposes from building material to medicine for over 2,000 years. The junipers—the one-seed junipers from the cypress family—are my favorite tree (allergies notwithstanding). They have always represented the desert southwest to me, the canyons and long horizons and clear, dry air…the echoes of the ancients and their beautiful homes. There’s a sense of eternity and strength and wisdom to these trees. A number of the Pueblos burn cedar branches in their homes to drive out negative beings and influences, and to offer protection. I do the same with mine, as it is also done around the world, as far away as Tibet. So there must be something to it! I feel cedar/juniper smudging blesses a space, and objects, and beings alike.

These are fresh and green and wonderfully fragrant at the moment. You can’t use them for smudge yet but they’re lovely as they dry. In about a couple of weeks or so they may be ready to light. They’re about 8” long and I’m selling them in pairs because they fit perfectly in my small mailing boxes. The $35 price includes shipping which is running over $11 now for these boxes, alas.

If you want to purchase more than two, let me know and I’ll box them in a larger package. The more you buy, the more you’ll save on shipping.