Bark Use

Bark, Healing, and Country: The Medicinal and Cultural Uses of Tree Bark in Victorian Indigenous Communities

MLA Educational Series — Country, Medicine, and Ecology

Across the forests, plains, and wetlands of Victoria, the bark of native trees has long served as one of the most versatile and sacred materials on Country. For thousands of years, Indigenous peoples — including the Wadawurrung, Wurundjeri, Dja Dja Wurrung, Gunditjmara, Taungurung, Boon Wurrung, and other Kulin Nations — understood bark not merely as a physical covering, but as the skin of the land: protective, living, and full of healing energy.

Bark provided medicine, tools, shelter, and ceremony. It could soothe wounds, make canoes and coolamons, carry fire, and mark sacred stories in scar trees. The removal of bark was done with ceremony and care, thanking the tree for its gift and ensuring the life of both tree and healer remained in balance (Clarke 2009; Gott 2019).

This article explores the medicinal, technological, and spiritual roles of bark in Victorian Indigenous life — with examples from Wadawurrung Country and the broader Kulin Nations, and insights from modern ecological science.

The Living Skin of the Land

In Indigenous worldview, every part of the tree has purpose — roots drink, leaves breathe, wood supports, and bark protects. Bark is the interface between life and environment; it shields the tree from fire, cold, and disease, just as skin protects the body.

Traditional healers observed that each tree’s bark carried unique properties — texture, aroma, colour, and taste all indicated its uses. Bitter bark often meant strong medicine; smooth bark was used for containers or bandages. These understandings came from observation, seasonal practice, and ancestral teaching, not from chemical extraction — yet they align closely with modern botanical science (RBGV 2023).

Medicinal Barks of Victoria

Eucalyptus (River Red Gum, Manna Gum, Yellow Box)

Bark from Eucalyptus camaldulensis, E. viminalis, and E. melliodora was widely used across Victoria.
The inner bark was boiled in water to wash wounds and skin infections, and decoctions were taken to relieve diarrhoea, fever, or chest ailments. The red gum resin, or kino, acted as an antiseptic and astringent (Clarke 2009; Gott 2019). Burning bark and leaves produced cleansing smoke that cleared sickness and “bad wind” from shelters. On Wadawurrung Country, bark infusions were used as a cooling wash for fevers and insect bites, particularly for children.

Wattle (Acacia mearnsii, A. melanoxylon, A. dealbata)

Wattle bark was one of the strongest natural medicines known to the Kulin Nations.
Bark decoctions treated coughs, sore throats, and diarrhoea, while poultices reduced swelling and bleeding. Wattle gum dissolved in water soothed inflammation and stomach upset (Clarke 2009). Among Wadawurrung healers, wattle bark was used as a “strengthener” — medicine for resilience after sickness, childbirth, or travel.

Stringybark (Eucalyptus obliqua and E. baxteri)

Stringybark’s thick, fibrous bark was valued for both healing and craft. Bark ash mixed with water and plant paste treated burns and sores, while large sheets were used for shelters, carrying vessels, and canoe building. The first fires in a new camp were often lit using dry stringybark; its smoke symbolised welcome and safety (Howitt 1904).

Cherry Ballart (Exocarpos cupressiformis)

Cherry Ballart bark was considered spiritually potent and used in cleansing smoke. Heated bark was applied to rheumatic pain or infections, and its resin-rich smoke was believed to balance emotions and protect the heart. Among Wadawurrung and Wurundjeri peoples, bark and leaves were combined with eucalyptus in smoke baths for healing after grief or illness (Atkinson 2002; Gott 2019).

She-Oak and Bull-Oak (Casuarina and Allocasuarina spp.)

The bark of she-oaks was steeped in water for antiseptic washes and skin irritation. Astringent teas were made to treat diarrhoea and mouth ulcers, and their smoke was used to calm the mind and cleanse spaces. On Wadawurrung Country, she-oak bark was used in postpartum healing and for protection of newborns through gentle smoke cleansing (Clarke 2009).

Paperbark (Melaleuca and Leptospermum spp.)

Paperbark trees along Victoria’s coastal and river regions provided both medicine and shelter. Inner bark and leaves were steeped for antiseptic washes, while bark layers were used to wrap food for steaming and to line cradles, keeping newborns warm and clean. Paperbark smoke was burned in family gatherings to bless journeys and homes (RBGV 2023).

The Healing Science of Bark

Traditional healers across Victoria understood that the bark of different trees carried distinct healing properties, an insight now confirmed by modern botanical chemistry. The bark of eucalyptus contains cineole, tannins, and polyphenols — powerful compounds with antibacterial and anti-inflammatory effects that cleanse wounds and reduce infection. Acacia, or wattle, bark is rich in tannins and alkaloids, giving it astringent and antiviral qualities used to tighten tissue and aid recovery. The she-oaks (Casuarina species) hold phenolics and flavonoids that promote antimicrobial action and help in wound healing, while paperbark (Melaleuca species) is infused with terpenes and aromatic oils that act as natural antiseptics and decongestants. The cherry ballart (Exocarpos cupressiformis) contains resin and volatile oils with anti-inflammatory and aromatic properties used in smoke healing and poultices. Even the coarse stringybark provided medicinal ash and tannins used for cleansing wounds and sterilising burns. Together, these complex chemical profiles reveal that traditional bark medicines functioned as sophisticated natural antiseptics and tonics — balancing the body’s systems and treating infection or inflammation long before Western pharmacology articulated such principles (Clarke 2009; Kellerman et al. 2005).

Practical and Cultural Uses of Bark

Beyond medicine, bark was one of the most vital materials for daily life and cultural expression. Across Victoria, large sheets of bark were skilfully cut and shaped to create canoes, coolamons (carrying vessels), shields, and shelters. From River Red Gum and Stringybark, people made lightweight canoes used on rivers like the Barwon, Yarra, and Murray, sealing cracks with grass, clay, or resin. Coolamons were carved from smooth bark and used for carrying water, seeds, babies, or ochre.

Bark shelters provided warmth and protection — curved sheets layered against wind and rain. Bark shields were decorated with clan markings and used for ceremony and defence. Smaller strips of bark served as torches or as fire carriers, with slow-burning fungi or embers wrapped inside. Some communities also used hollow bark pieces as sound instruments in ceremony, amplifying voices or beating rhythms during song and dance (Howitt 1904; Museums Victoria 2023).

Each item carried spiritual meaning — not simply a tool, but a living connection to the tree it came from. When bark was taken, the people offered thanks, and the tree was left standing — ensuring continuity of life, story, and Country.

Spiritual and Cultural Dimensions of Bark

For the Kulin Nations, bark was never removed without purpose or ceremony. When harvesting bark for medicine, canoes, or coolamons, Elders performed rituals of permission — offering water, smoke, or words of thanks. Each removal left a scar, a visible reminder of the relationship between people and tree. Today, these scar trees stand across Victoria as living historical markers, testifying to centuries of sustainable practice and cultural continuity (Museums Victoria 2023).

Bark also carried symbolic meaning. Smooth white bark (manna gum) represented peace and cleansing; dark stringybark symbolised strength and protection; and resinous red bark signified vitality and blood — the lifeforce of Country. These metaphors echo the deep interconnection between the physical and the spiritual within Indigenous ecological law.

Wadawurrung Country: Bark and Healing on the Barwon

On Wadawurrung Country, along the Barwon River and Bellarine wetlands, healers drew from abundant tree medicines — particularly red gum, wattle, and she-oak. Red gum bark washes were used for sores and insect bites; wattle bark decoctions treated stomach pain; and she-oak smoke cooled fever and balanced emotional states. Bark was also integral in crafting canoes, shelters, and ceremonial shields, connecting physical and spiritual survival. Elders taught that “the bark carries the story of the land,” reminding people of cycles of birth, growth, fire, and renewal.

Today, these traditions are being revitalised in Wadawurrung cultural gardens and education programs, where younger generations learn how to identify, harvest, and prepare bark with cultural protocol and environmental care.

Fire and Sound: Communication and Ceremony

Bark not only carried medicine and tools but also carried fire and voice. Thin sheets of bark were wrapped around glowing embers, holding heat for hours as families travelled between camps. This technique ensured warmth, safety, and continuity — fire was never extinguished without reason, symbolising life’s ongoing flame (Howitt 1904).

Smoke from burning bark held profound ceremonial value. It was used to cleanse places, to welcome visitors, to farewell the dead, and to purify healers before medicine work. The smoke of she-oak calmed and soothed; red gum smoke was used for strength and renewal; and paperbark smoke was seen as gentle and protective, especially for children (Clarke 2009).

Bark also carried sound. Hollowed or curved bark could be struck as a drum, clapped in rhythm, or used to amplify the voice in song and storytelling. Bark tubes helped project ceremonial chants across open plains or wetlands. These practices linked sound, air, and earth — expressing the belief that the trees themselves could sing when people worked in harmony with them.

Colonisation and Cultural Loss

With colonisation came massive deforestation, the draining of wetlands, and the destruction of bark-based knowledge systems. Ancient trees were felled, scar trees vandalised or lost to farming, and traditional bark medicines dismissed as superstition. Healers were forbidden to practise under mission control, severing knowledge passed through generations. This erasure destroyed ecological balance and spiritual connection alike (Atkinson 2002).

Revival and Renewal

Today, Indigenous communities across Victoria — including Wadawurrung, Wurundjeri, Gunditjmara, and Dja Dja Wurrung — are restoring the practice of bark medicine and cultural use. Community projects teach bark harvesting and traditional preparation, scar tree heritage is being legally protected, and cultural burning programs support forest health. Healing workshops reintroduce bark-based smokes and teas for wellbeing, while collaborations between Elders, ethnobotanists, and scientists are confirming the pharmacology of Victorian tree barks — showing that traditional ecological knowledge and science are two voices of the same truth.

Conclusion

For thousands of years, the bark of trees has been the medicine, memory, and shelter of Victoria’s Indigenous peoples. It is the protective skin of Country — a living record of relationship, healing, and respect. From eucalyptus and wattle to she-oak, cherry ballart, and paperbark, each layer of bark carries a story of survival and care. For the Wadawurrung and the Kulin Nations, to work with bark is to work with life itself — to heal the body, honour the land, and ensure that the voice of the forest continues to speak through time.

References

Atkinson, J 2002, Trauma Trails: Recreating Song Lines, Spinifex Press, Melbourne.
Clarke, PA 2009, Australian Aboriginal Ethnobotany: An Overview, CSIRO Publishing, Melbourne.
DEECA Victoria 2022, Traditional Plant Use and Biodiversity Conservation, Department of Energy, Environment & Climate Action, Melbourne.
Gott, B 2019, The Yam Daisy: A History of Aboriginal Plant Use in Victoria, Aboriginal Studies Press, Canberra.
Howitt, AW 1904, The Native Tribes of South-East Australia, Macmillan, London.
Kellerman, T et al. 2005, ‘Pharmacological potential of Australian ethnomedicinal species’, Journal of Ethnopharmacology, vol. 96, pp. 177–185.
Museums Victoria 2023, Scar Trees and Aboriginal Bark Use Collections, Museums Victoria, Melbourne.
Royal Botanic Gardens Victoria (RBGV) 2023, Traditional Tree Use and Healing Practices in Victoria, RBGV, Melbourne.
Southcott, R 1976, Medical Uses of Australian Plants and Fungi, Australian Journal of Ethnobotany, Canberra.

Written, Researched and Directed by James Vegter (22 September 2025)

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Magic Lands Alliance acknowledges the Traditional Owners, Custodians, and First Nations communities across Australia and internationally. We honour their enduring connection to the sky, land, waters, language, and culture. We pay respect to Elders past, present, and emerging, and to all First Peoples’ communities and language groups. This article draws only on publicly available information; many cultural practices remain the intellectual property of their respective communities.