Wormwood is perceived by gardeners as a weed. This grass is really very difficult to eradicate. And it grows massively. However, such a dislike for wormwood is completely unfair. After all, it is a valuable medicinal plant. Since ancient times, it has been used to combat many diseases. Consider why this plant is useful, how to use it and when to collect wormwood.
Description of the plant
Wormwood is a herbaceous perennial plant. Botanists refer it to the Compositae family. The plant has a specific characteristic smell. In addition, it has an extremely bitter taste. The stalk of the wormwood is branched, dirty purple in color, the leaves have a pinnately dissected shape. From above, they are distinguished by a dark green color, and from below, a light green palette prevails. The flowers of the plant are tubular, small, yellow. Grass can reach up to 50 centimeters in height, and sometimesmore.
Artemisia blooms, usually in July-August. If inflorescences are needed to prepare a medicine, then it is important to remember when to collect wormwood. It was during the flowering period.
This plant is quite poisonous. Herbs growing next to wormwood most often die. Animals diligently avoid it. However, healers claim that this plant is quite healing. Its healing properties were also appreciated by official medicine. It is known that if you use wormwood very carefully and do not abuse it, then the amazing gift of nature can cure many different diseases.
Types of wormwood
In nature, there are many varieties of this plant. Botanists claim that there are more than 400 species of wormwood. Of course, they all differ from each other in their appearance. However, not every variety is curative. Therefore, you should know which wormwood to collect for medicinal purposes. So, healers claim that the following subspecies have healing properties:
- lemon;
- silver;
- citation;
- Taurian (Crimean);
- tree-like;
- bitter.
The most popular is wormwood. This plant is widely demanded in official medicine. This herb has been used by healers for thousands of years to combat a variety of ailments. Appreciated by bitter wormwood and cosmetologists.
This subspecies is quite easy to distinguish. Its characteristic feature is its greyish-silver coloration.
Useful properties
Before you figure out when to collect wormwood, you need to understand for what purposes this plant is intended and in the fight against what ailments it can help. Therefore, we will initially turn to its composition.
The bitter taste of the herb is dictated by the glycosides contained in it - anabsinthine, artabsinum, absinthine. Wormwood is rich in tannins, saponins, flavonoids, organic acids. In addition, it contains phytoncides, vitamins, essential oil. But the main component of the herb is a very toxic substance - thujone. Another active ingredient of the plant is chamazulene. This component has high healing properties.
Mugwort, although it contains toxic substances and has a bitter taste, is a remedy. It is included in the official pharmacopeia and is in great demand.
The unique herb has the following properties:
- antispasmodic;
- anti-inflammatory;
- bactericidal;
- stimulating;
- toning;
- immunostimulatory.
It is known that the plant perfectly stimulates the functioning of the gastrointestinal tract, increases appetite, reduces flatulence, and activates the production of bile. In addition, wormwood has a calming effect and provides tissue regeneration. Grass is taken as part of choleretic, gastric fees. Its reception is recommended for puffiness, asthma, pathologies of the gallbladder and liver, malaria. Wormwood is an excellent anthelmintic agent. In addition, heroften used to treat wounds, with bruises and injuries.
And recent studies have shown that wormwood also has antitumor and oncoprotective effects.
Contraindications
Be sure to remember that, like any remedy, wormwood has certain limitations in use.
So, grass is contraindicated:
- pregnant;
- nursing mothers;
- with enterocolitis;
- anemia;
- bleeding.
Mugwort not recommended:
- for gastritis with low acidity;
- stomach ulcers.
Also, you should know that wormwood is not intended for long-term use. Excessive addiction to this herb can lead to a disorder of the nervous system, intoxication of the body. Against the background of long-term use, kidney failure sometimes develops, which can lead to extremely tragic consequences.
Doctors and healers recommend using wormwood for about 2 weeks. The maximum duration of therapy can be 1 month. But only if the patient's he alth condition has not deteriorated during treatment. After such therapy, a break is necessarily taken. Its duration is at least 2 weeks. And best of all - more than one month.
Where wormwood grows
The described plant is completely unpretentious. It can grow in almost any soil. That is why wormwood can be found in a variety of areas. It has been successfully growingpastures, meadows, near rivers, roads. It can be seen near landfills, residential buildings, in the mountains.
However, it is important to remember when to collect wormwood for treatment, and in what places. For the preparation of medicines, you should choose a herb that grows exclusively in ecologically clean places.
When and how to collect wormwood
To stock up on medicinal herbs, it is best to choose areas that are the most remote from landfills, highways, and industrial enterprises. It is desirable that it be an ecologically clean area.
Let's consider when wormwood is harvested for medicine. Initially, it should be said that all parts of the herb have healing power: flowers, leaves, roots. But they need to be prepared at different periods of time. Therefore, listen to the recommendations of healers if you are interested in wormwood.
When to collect raw materials:
- Flowers. As a rule, the period of their harvesting is July-August, when the active flowering of wormwood occurs. It is at this time that the plant contains the largest number of essential oils.
- Leaves. You can harvest raw materials without petioles. In this case, one leaflet is cut off. It is best to collect material before flowering.
- Rhizome. It is recommended to dig the underground part in late autumn. This is usually October-November.
Drying workpiece
Now you know what time to harvest wormwood. How to collect and dry raw materials? Let's consider this point in more detail.
Most often it is the flowering tops that are harvested. To do this, cut off the upper part of the stem (approximately 25 cm), avoiding coarse and thickened sprouts. It is absolutely not recommended to wash the grass. Indeed, in this case, it loses many useful substances. In addition, the washed plant is difficult to dry thoroughly. Therefore, it is recommended to collect wormwood in clean areas. And it is best to choose sunny, dry weather for harvesting.
For drying allocate a place in the attic or under a canopy. This area must be well ventilated. A cloth or paper is spread there, and the raw materials are laid out on top in a thin layer.
Fully dried material is thin stems with flowers and leaves of a gray-green hue. The raw material has a wormwood spicy smell. It tastes bitter.
Wormwood is stored separately from other medicinal herbs, in a carefully closed container. The shelf life is 1-2 years.
Knowing when to harvest mugwort for healing will help you get the raw materials right. However, the herbs are not only harvested for the preparation of medicinal products.
Mugwort for bath
Many healers recommend the use of grass for water treatments. Baths with a unique plant allow you to fight against articular rheumatism and gout. To do this, it is recommended to boil 1 kg of grass in 1 bucket of water. Dilute the resulting liquid in the bath.
Mugwort is of great benefit during bath procedures. It is recommended to hang dry grass brooms in various places in the room. In humid and hot air, the plant begins to secreteessential oils and phytoncides. It is known that the smell of a plant can increase vitality, improve mood, restore strength.
And now consider when to collect wormwood for a bath. Healers recommend harvesting during flowering. After all, it is during this period that the grass contains the maximum amount of useful components. For harvesting, it is recommended to cut off the top of the plant (about 25 cm).
The fresh grass is tied into bundles. They dry it under a canopy, in a well-ventilated place, hanging the brooms upside down.
Mugwort for absinthe
It's no secret that strong alcohol is made from bitter grass. How and when to harvest wormwood for absinthe?
For the procurement of raw materials, the following recommendations must be observed:
- Collect only flowers and leaves. The stems are not used for making the tincture as they do not contain the required amount of essential oils.
- For absinthe you need exactly bitter wormwood. This subspecies contains the highest amount of thujone.
- Raw materials must be free from damage (diseases, insects) and impurities.
- Dry the grass spread out on paper or cloth. Store in a hermetically sealed container. This protects it from weathering essential oils.
Mugwort for cooking
The unique herb is also used to prepare delicious dishes. Chernobyl (common wormwood) is in demand in cooking. This plant is different fromdescribed above, the bitter subspecies, with reddish flowers.
Leaves are used for culinary purposes. They are harvested before or during flowering. Dry the raw material in air. After that, carefully grind in a mortar and fall asleep in an airtight container for storage. This powder is able to give a delicate aroma and unsurpassed taste to meat dishes and salads.
