On the banks of the great Amur grows a beautiful and amazing tree, which is called Amur velvet. This plant is distributed throughout the Far East. You can meet him in the Primorsky and Khabarovsk Territories, in the Kuriles and Sakhalin, in the Manchurian forests, in Korea, China and Japan. This tree is considered a relic. This real monument of nature grew on Earth even before the ice age. Nowadays, due to the unpretentiousness of care, the tree is used for landscaping many areas, streets, parks.
Description
The botanical name of the plant is philodendron or Amur velvet, otherwise it is called the Amur cork tree. Belongs to the Rutaceae family.
The tree has a beautiful dense openwork crown. A powerful trunk in diameter reaches 1 meter, its height is up to 30 meters. Leaves pinnate, lanceolate. They have their own specific smell, you can feel it if you knead the leaf in the palm of your hand orrub lightly with your fingers.
The trunk of the philodendron is covered with velvety, soft, light brown bark.
Flowers in inflorescences are same-sex, regular, small and inconspicuous, they have petals of a greenish tint.
Berries (fruits) of the tree - a black shiny drupe. They have a bitter taste and a strong specific smell. Amur velvet blooms in late spring, closer to summer. At the end of August, the fruits ripen, and they hang on the tree until winter.
For a tree to develop well, the soil must be fertile and moist. The root system of grass carp is well developed, goes deep into the soil, so resistance to strong winds is quite high.
Reproduction occurs by seeds. More often this happens with the help of birds that eat the fruits of velvet. Seeds germinate for about a year. In good conditions, a tree can reach the age of 300 years.
Amur velvet: berries and their uses
Philodendron can bear fruit only once in 5-7 years. Therefore, its berries can not be found as often as we would like. The fruits have a spherical shape, reminiscent of pearls. Their color is black, the smell is resinous, specific, the taste is bitter.
Amur velvet berries are used only for medicinal purposes. The reviews of those who have tried the action of the remedy on themselves confirm the strong effect. This is due to the fact that the fruit contains many useful substances: myrcene, geraniol, limonin, berberine, tannins, palmatin and diosmin.
The most valued are those berries that hang on the tree longer, inin some cases - until the first frost. One cupid tree can produce up to 10 kilograms of berries. They are dried outdoors and then used for medicinal purposes. We will talk about this in more detail below.
Amur velvet: medicinal properties
Absolutely all parts of the plant contain jatrorricin, phelodendrin, flavonoids. Each leaf of the tree is rich in various vitamins, essential oils, tannins, the chemical composition contains at least 10 flavonoids, vitamins C and P.
Berberine is mostly found in bast. It also contains saponins, coumarins, terpenoids, sterols, phenolcarboxylic acids.
In addition to the above substances, cupid fruits contain up to 10% of essential oils.
Thanks to all these substances, the healing properties of Amur velvet make it possible to use it for many diseases. In folk medicine, the plant is used in the form of infusions, tinctures, decoctions. Not only berries are used, but also leaves, bark and flowers of the plant.
With pneumonia, pulmonary tuberculosis, pleurisy, a decoction of the bark and fruits is used. It has astringent, antipyretic, anti-inflammatory and deodorant properties.
Skin diseases can be cured by decoction of tree bark and bast.
As studies have confirmed, preparations based on Amur velvet have a fungicidal effect, lower blood pressure. When they are taken, resistance to sarcomas and tumors increases.
Lub is valued for its painkillers, antimicrobial, expectorant andtonic properties. Bast tincture is used for fungal and cancerous diseases.
The substances contained in the leaves of the plant have an antimicrobial, antiseptic, antihelminthic effect.
Honey
Amur velvet blooms profusely in mid-late July. The flower clusters appear first. Some trees have male flowers, others have female flowers. From them, berries are subsequently formed. The main pollinators of this plant are bees. Sometimes the wind comes to the rescue. When flowering, grass carp produces a lot of nectar with pollen, so the plant is very attractive to bees.
They produce honey of a dark yellow color, slightly with a greenish tint. The taste and smell are very pleasant. The quality of honey may depend on the weather. In good weather, the flowers of the tree are excellent honey plants, in bad weather there is too little nectar on the flowers.
Velvet honey is very valuable because it contains little glucose and many useful substances. It is stored for a long time and does not crystallize. Helps with the following ailments:
- pulmonary tuberculosis;
- flu, SARS, colds;
- tonsillitis, laryngitis; bronchitis;
- disorders of the gastrointestinal tract;
- increased bile secretion;
- drowsiness and fatigue;
- poor immunity;
- hormonal imbalance.
Contraindications for use
If you decide to use Amur velvet for treatment, contraindications must be taken into account. The plant contains a high concentration of certain substances, treatment is neededbe carried out with caution and following the recommendations. Categories of persons for whom there is an absolute ban on use:
- pregnant women;
- lactation;
- age over 65;
- exacerbation of chronic diseases;
- children under 12;
- prone to allergies;
- oncological diseases.
If the treatment is carried out using berries, then it should be borne in mind that the norm for an adult should not exceed more than 5 berries per day. Shredded dry bark is used in an amount of not more than 10 g, and leaves - 15 g.
Honey can be used in arbitrary quantities, but those who are allergic to bee products should be extremely careful.
During treatment with Amur velvet, you should refrain from fatty foods, caffeine and alcoholic beverages. It is also better to give up smoking. It is forbidden to combine treatment with other medicinal herbs. When taking any medications, you should consult your doctor about compatibility.
Use in folk medicine. Recipes
The use of Amur velvet in folk medicine is quite common. Thanks to its unique composition, the plant helps with many diseases. Here are the most common recipes for healers:
- Decoction of the bark against parasites, fungal infections, with oncology. Take 10 grams of dry grass carp, pour a glass of water and boil for 15 minutes over low heat. Then cool and strain the broth. Drink in three doses in one day.
- Hepatitis and chronic cholecystitis. An alcohol tincture based on the leaves will help. 30 g of dry crushed leaves should be poured with 200 g of alcohol. The remedy is infused in a dark place for two weeks. Strain the finished tincture and take 15 drops three times a day before meals.
- Hypertension. Increased pressure will help reduce the velvet berries. Chew 1-2 fruits daily before meals.
- Treatment and prevention of influenza. Before going to bed, you need to chew 1-2 velvet berries, do not drink, hold a little in your mouth. At the initial stage of the disease, a single application is sufficient.
- Pancreas. Within a week, chew 3-4 fruits daily. This will help normalize metabolism and pancreas function.
Fruits for diabetes
Treatment with this remedy is effective only in type 2 diabetes. Every day early in the morning on an empty stomach should be consumed 3-4 berries. Chew thoroughly and hold in your mouth. Then do not eat or drink for 6 hours. Treatment in this way for six months will help to completely normalize blood sugar. With chronic diabetes, one course of treatment will not be enough.
Velvet bark will help after operations
Healing of surgical wounds is a long process, the use of velvet cupid will help speed it up. In this case, dry bark is used. To prepare a medicine, you need to take 100 g of bark, pour 0.5 liters of water. The remedy should be infused for two days. After that, the infusion should be boiled for half an hour, add 5 g of novocaine and 15 g of boric acid to it.acids. Boil everything for 10 minutes. Cool, strain, squeeze out the remains. Sterile gauze is wetted in this solution and applied to the wound. Healing is faster.
Leaves will help increase appetite
To increase appetite, an infusion of Amur velvet leaves is used. It will help improve digestion and increase appetite. Pour 30 g of crushed dry leaves with a glass of boiling water, close. Leave to brew for two hours. Strain the infusion, take one tablespoon before meals. Store in a covered place in a cool place.
Growing a tree on the site
We have considered the benefits and harms of Amur velvet. Of course, its beneficial properties prevail if you use the product wisely, following all the recommendations.
Many are interested in whether it is possible to grow this tree on the site. I guess, yes. It is necessary to take into account the fact that under favorable conditions a tree can live up to 300 years. When choosing a place for a plant, you need to choose a place where no communications pass, there are no buildings nearby, and there should be at least three meters to the paths. Do not forget about the neighbors, so that the shadow from the tree does not block their site.
Sandy soils are not suitable for wood, cultivated loam is the best substrate. A pit with a depth and diameter of 0.5-0.6 m is filled with a mixture of fertile soil. Planting is best in autumn or early spring. Seedlings 1-2 years old are considered ideal age.
The soil must always be maintained duringwet condition. When the tree is strong, water only when dry. In the first half of summer, you can feed with mineral and organic fertilizers. The soil can be sodden.
The overgrown Amur velvet looks beautiful on the lawn, surrounded by ornamental shrubs. Combines with birch, maple and oak. Velvet is beautiful at any time of the year.
