The dried inner bark of the slippery-elm tree (a specific type of elm tree) was a favorite of many Native American tribes, and was subsequently adopted by European colonists. Like marshmallow and mullein , slippery elm was used as a treatment for sore throat, coughs, dryness of the lungs, inflammation of the skin inflammations, wounds, and irritation of the digestive tract. 1 It was also made into a kind of porridge to be taken by weaned infants and during convalescence from illness: various heroes of the Civil War are said to have credited slippery elm with their recovery from war wounds.
