At the mention of wild strawberries straight from childhood, a wonderful aroma and unique taste of wild berries, known and loved by everyone without exception, emerges in the memory. Even in ancient times, the people used the fruits, leaves, flowers and even the roots of this plant, both for food and for he alth purposes.
Description
Forest strawberry (lat. Fragaria) is a herbaceous perennial, whose name comes from the old Russian "strawberry", that is, "leaning towards the ground." The Latin name comes from "fragaris", which translates as "fragrant".
The plant classification is as follows:
- Department - Flowering.
- Class - Bipartite.
- Order - Roses.
- Family - Pink.
- Subfamily – Rosanaceae.
- Genus - Strawberries.
Wild strawberry (the photo demonstrates this well) has trifoliate oval-shaped leaves onlong petioles. They are dark green above and whitish gray below. The size of the leaf plates may vary depending on the species and variety.
When describing wild strawberries, it should be noted that the plant grows up to 20 cm in height and has rooting creeping shoots. Flowering occurs from May to June, depending on the region of growth and weather conditions. The flowers of the plant are bisexual, pollinated by insects. They are painted white, form an inflorescence (many-flowered corymb), have a simple shape and a slight pleasant smell.
The photo of wild strawberries shows that the flowers are located on long peduncles extending from the root collar with a rosette. They have white or yellowish petals, as well as many stamens and pistils.
Wild berry strawberries ripen about three weeks after flowering has been completed. The fruits are false berries, which are an overgrown juicy receptacle with several brown seeds on the surface, have a red color, a sweet taste and a unique strawberry aroma.
Composition
Official medicine wild strawberry is recognized as a multivitamin remedy with many useful properties. The composition of fruits and leaves is different, so it is more convenient to consider it separately.
In the composition of fruits you can find:
- organic acids: malic, ascorbic, quinic, citric, salicylic;
- minerals, including iron, calcium,manganese, copper, potassium, cob alt, phosphorus, sodium, magnesium;
- pectin;
- dietary fiber;
- fruit sugars such as fructose and glucose.
The composition of the leaves included:
- tannin organics;
- carotene;
- flavonoids;
- alkaloids;
- vitamins;
- minerals: potassium, calcium, iron, magnesium;
- fragarin glycoside;
- ascorbic acid;
- essential oils;
- polysaccharides;
- ash.
It is interesting that even in the root of wild strawberries a useful substance called tannin was found. Along with this, iron was also found there. It is also found in the seeds of the plant. Tannins and alkaloids can also be found in the strawberry root. The amount of potassium in fruits exceeds that in plants rich in this substance, such as currants, apples, raspberries and grapes.
Useful properties
It is not surprising that wild strawberries, rich in their chemical composition, are distinguished by many useful properties. Especially valuable among them is the ability of this plant to quickly increase human immunity.
But the beneficial properties of wild strawberries are not limited to this. With the help of this wonderful plant, you can regulate the processes of digestion in the body, speed up metabolism, increase appetite, enhance the regeneration of skin cells.
The healing properties of wild strawberries are as follows:
- prevention of atherosclerosis;
- improving the absorption of iron by the body, which is usedin the treatment of anemia;
- normalization of blood pressure;
- toxin removal;
- ability to clear bladder stones;
- eliminate skin rashes;
- application for diseases of the oral cavity;
- ability to stop bleeding;
- decrease in body temperature due to diaphoretic properties;
- increased uterine tone.
The properties of wild strawberries are used to improve the quality of the heart. The chemical composition of berries helps to remove unnecessary cholesterol from cells.
With an ulcer of both the stomach and the duodenum, it is useful to eat a glass of strawberries a day. A decoction of the leaves will help treat gastritis and intestinal colic, normalize the acid-base balance.
Decoction of the stem and roots of strawberries has diuretic properties, which is used to normalize water-s alt metabolism, remove excess uric acid and improve metabolic processes.
It is believed that the use of fresh berries with milk will be more beneficial for the general strengthening of the body tone in case of colds and viral diseases and for the prevention of these diseases.
Collecting and harvesting
In order for the wild strawberry to bring more benefits, it must be properly collected and prepared. A certain time of the season is suitable for collecting leaves, fruits and roots, when the concentration of nutrients in them is optimal. And when harvesting, methods are used in which the plant is subjected to gentle processing methods to preserve its beneficial properties.
Collection andleaf harvesting
The properties of wild strawberry leaves will not lose their usefulness if harvesting and collection is carried out correctly. For this, the time is chosen during the flowering period of the plant, which occurs in May or early June. At this moment, the concentration of nutrients in the leaves is maximum. Together with the leaves, you can harvest flowers with peduncles and plant stems, which also contain a lot of useful substances.
After the leaves, flowers and stems are collected, they are laid out in a thin layer in a room with good air circulation, in a dark and dry place. Dry, turning if necessary, until the grass becomes brittle. Store no more than two years in the dark and dry.
But it can also be prepared by the fermentation method, in which the leaves are dried in the shade and crushed by hand or with a knife, after which they are slightly crushed. Then the raw materials are put into a container and covered with a damp clean cloth, leaving it to ferment for 8 hours. The cloth must always be damp. After that, the leaves are laid out in a thin layer and dried.
Collecting and harvesting fruits
Experts recommend picking ripe strawberries in dry weather with bright sunshine, either in the morning when the dew dries, or in the late afternoon before the dew. It is better to collect and transport directly with the stalks to reduce spoilage of berries. It is better to separate from the stalks at home, immediately before harvesting.
You can dry them directly under the sun, scattering them in a thin layer, periodically turning over. You can use for this purposeoven at 40-50°C, or use an electric dryer.
Ready, well-dried fruits crumble easily and do not stick to each other. The blank is stored in glassware for no more than 2 years.
In addition to drying, wild strawberries can be harvested by freezing, boiling jam and twisting with sugar.
Collecting and harvesting the root
Strawberry roots are harvested either during the flowering period of the plant, or already in the fall. To do this, they are dug up, then thoroughly washed and cut. Then dry in a room that is well ventilated, away from sunlight.
Store dried roots better in paper or cloth bags. The storage location must be dry and dark.
Medicinal recipes
There are many recipes that heal from various ailments from the components of wild strawberries. For example, fresh berries are great for poor digestion, to increase appetite, for anemia and beriberi. They remove s alts and toxins from the body, as well as improve liver function and strengthen the immune system.
Puree of fresh berries, applied to the affected part of the skin, will help heal eczema. After applying on top, cover with a bandage and fix with a bandage. Such dressings are made for a week every day until the damaged skin dries out. Other rashes, lichen and wounds are treated in the same way.
Strawberry congee
Leaf and berry mixture in equal proportions of 2 tablespoons brew half a liter of boiling water. Cook over low heat for 10 minutes. Taken to improve blood compositionand increase immunity in half a glass 3 times a day.
Infusion of fruits and leaves
In case of liver disease, two tablespoons of dried fruits are brewed with two cups of boiling water and infused for about three hours. Take orally four times a day, 100 ml half an hour before the next meal.
Infusion of strawberry fruits is used for general strengthening of the body, as a bactericidal and diuretic. You can prepare it as follows: 1 tablespoon of dried fruit is brewed with 200 ml of boiling water and insisted for an hour. Then be sure to filter and consume inside 100 ml of infusion 4 times a day.
If you pour 4 tablespoons of freshly picked berries with cold boiled water in 400 ml and leave for about 1 hour, then you can gargle with this cold infusion up to several times a day, after straining.
And if the prepared infusion of 2 tbsp. crushed leaves and 2 cups boiling water, infused for 2 hours and filtered, take 1 tablespoon several times a day, greatly alleviate the symptoms of bronchial asthma. The same infusion will help with uterine bleeding. In this case, you should take 100 ml of the drink immediately before meals. The same infusion will help with bleeding gums, if rinsed after any meal and before bed at night.
Herbal tea
If you brew dried leaves like tea, you can get rid of insomnia, neuroses and beriberi. Tea can also lower cholesterol levels. This happens thanks tosilicon in the composition, which is able to clean the vessels from plaques.
Strawberry juice
Fresh fruit juice is prepared using a juicer or by squeezing crushed berries through gauze. It is excellent for gallstones. Here you need to take up to 8 tablespoons of juice before meals, preferably 3 times a day.
Use in cosmetology
Since ancient times, strawberries have been used to get rid of freckles. To do this, they wiped the face with a prepared alcohol infusion on berries.
Mask of fresh pureed fruits reduces pores, brightens the skin of the face, helps with acne and removes age spots.
To stimulate collagen production, strawberry extract is added to creams and ointments, which helps to reduce expression lines and nourishes the skin.
The phytoncides contained in strawberries can kill harmful bacteria, which is used to cure gum disease and cleanse the oral cavity.
Fresh berry tincture will serve as a natural lotion. To prepare 1 glass of strawberries, pour 300 ml of vodka and insist for 1 month, periodically shaking the vessel. After this, the tincture must be filtered. It is better to store in a cool place. Before you start using it, it must be diluted in proportions 1: 1 with boiled purified water.
Decoction of strawberries will help slow down baldness. To take 2 tablespoons of dried berries, brew and take 25 ml 3 times a day.
And a decoction or infusion of the roots of the plant will relieve sweating of the feet. Ankletsbaths before bed will help.
Contraindications
Along with medicinal properties, wild strawberries also have contraindications. The first step before using for medicinal purposes is to consult with your doctor to prevent negative consequences, which may include:
- Individual intolerance to plant components leading to allergic reactions of varying severity (strawberry is a strong allergen).
- You should be very careful about the use of wild strawberries for young children and pregnant women. Careless consumption of strawberries can lead to uterine hypertonicity and premature birth.
- Use with extreme caution in diseases of the gastrointestinal tract, as a high content of organic acids can irritate the mucous membranes of the gastrointestinal tract and provoke exacerbations.
- When taking strawberries together with drugs for hypertension, you can cause unnecessary stress on the kidneys.
When using strawberries, contraindications must be taken into account. Otherwise, you can seriously harm your he alth. The recommended intake of wild strawberries per day is up to 0.5 kg, if there are no contraindications.
When using wild strawberries for food or medicinal purposes, the most important thing is not to overdo it. If you follow the measure, then this plant will bring great he alth benefits and will delight you with excellent taste.
