Perilla Shrub Or Basil (Perilla Ocymoides L) - Ornamental And Medicinal Plant

2024 Author: Sebastian Paterson | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 13:47

Perilla shrub or basil is not only an excellent ornamental plant, but also "living tablets"

The botanical genus Perilla (Perilla L.) includes six species of perennial and annual plants of the Lamb family (Lipocytes), from which most of the known and unknown spice plants come from.

So, get acquainted: this plant came to us from Asia. Wild perilla is found in the Himalayas, India, China, Japan. Here it is cultivated both as a decorative and as a spice and taste culture. In Russia, it grows in the Primorsky Territory and the Caucasus.

Perilla shrub or basil (Perilla ocymoides L.) is a highly branching plant 40-140 cm high. In cultivation it is cultivated as an annual. It has an erect tetrahedral stem. Leaves are large, opposite, long-petiolate, ovate with a serrated edge, wrinkled, dryish to the touch. The whole plant is covered with hairs. The color of plants is green, pink-purple, red. Moreover, green plants usually have more tender and succulent leaves, although less decorative. Perilla forms numerous flowers, collected in a dense apical racemose inflorescence. The fruit is dry, breaking into four nuts. Seeds are light orange or brown, small (up to 800 seeds per 1 g).

Perilla is light and thermophilic, prefers loose, rich garden soils. It is usually grown through seedlings, sowing seeds from April to May. Seeds are soaked in water for 2-3 days, and then sown in boxes on the windowsill or in a greenhouse. Seedlings appear at about 10 days, they dive into greenhouses, shelters, boxes or pots. You can pinch the main shoot to get compact bushes.

Seedlings are planted in the ground after the termination of spring frosts - in early June, according to the scheme 20-30x20-30 cm.

Given the fact that there are few seeds of this most valuable crop on sale, you can get them yourself. Perilla is a short-day plant, therefore, in the garden for three weeks, for some plants, the day is limited to 9 hours from sunrise, covering them with opaque boxes. Or, before the autumn frosts, they dig up several of the most developed plants, plant them in pots and put them on the windowsill. In winter, they bloom and give seeds, which it is not a sin to share with acquaintances, relatives, friends.

Perilla varieties and seeds are still tight. The most inveterate amateurs exchange among themselves varieties obtained from research institutes, agricultural universities, etc. In the middle zone of the Russian Federation, the Japanese varieties Aoshiso (green-leaved) and Akashiso (red-leaved) showed good results. You can safely use seeds sold for decorative purposes in the garden. Indeed, this culture (especially red-leaved plants) and asks for a flower bed, in a border, and even edible, useful.

In the "State Register … RF" (2007), a green-leaved variety of perilla basilicova Rosinka, selection of VNIISSOK (2004), with a yield of up to 5 kg / m3 is registered ?!

And now let's talk about why all the fuss was started. Well, ornamental culture, but you never know ornamental plants? However, perilla leaves contain up to 12% dry matter, including up to 4% protein, about 7% carbohydrates, vitamins B1, B2, PP, up to 55 mg% vitamin C. Plants contain large amounts of calcium, potassium, magnesium, iron … But, most importantly, they contain about 8.7 mg% carotene. According to this indicator, perilla sometimes surpasses carrots, which are included in the first, highest category according to the international classification of plants for vitamin A.

From here and it is necessary to dance. Perilla leaves are an excellent antioxidant that prolongs life. This "yellow-green" plant in Chinese medicine has long been used as a sedative, analgesic, diaphoretic, anti-inflammatory agent. It is also widely used in Western homeopathy, incl. and as a regulator of digestion.

So, perilla is not only a wonderful ornamental plant, it is also "living tablets".

In addition, perilla leaves, fragrant due to the presence of essential oil, are an excellent addition to salads, meat and fish dishes, they are good for serving. They can be dried, canned for future use and used for the same purposes in winter. Yes, perilla works well in pot culture in winter too. Red-leaved forms are more often used for decorative purposes, for canning and salting, especially stachis.

In a word, as they say: do not pass by. You can't buy it in a store, as in fact, health and longevity.

Go for it! I wish you success!