Wormwood And Common Wormwood

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

Wormwood

Bitter wormwood (Artemisia absintum L.) - as its name suggests - is really bitter, being a rare exception among spicy wormwood. However, its leaves are also used as a spice. They contain 0.5-2% essential oil, organic acids, carotene, vitamins C, B6, K, bitterness.

First of all, various alcoholic beverages insist on it: aperitifs, pernod, vermouth, martini, liqueurs. In brewing, it is sometimes used as a substitute for hops. Previously, absinthe was also prepared on its basis - wormwood tincture, the name of which (in French - absinte) arose from the Latin name of this wormwood. But it turned out to be extremely harmful due to the presence of wormwood ethers, caused serious disturbances in the central nervous system and a special type of alcoholism - absentism, and later death, so the production of this tincture was stopped.

Bitter wormwood is a plant of the steppe zone, loves open sandy habitats, grows in wastelands, pastures, ditches, banks of water bodies, ravines, forest belts, along railways. Prefers rich, loose and well-drained soils. He doesn't like damp places, he gets wet. In the wild (feral) state in the Leningrad region is rare.

It is bred by gardeners as an ornamental, aromatic and medicinal plant.

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Propagated by seeds, occasionally vegetatively - by parts of the roots with buds. It is very beautiful, so one or two bushes of it will not only give you an original spice, but also decorate your site. Weakly ribbed stems, alternate leaves and inflorescences are covered with silky-silky tomentose pubescence. The flowers are small, yellow, in small globular baskets, which are collected in a dense paniculate inflorescence. Blooms in July-August. A honey plant.

Fruiting in August-September, the seeds are numerous, small, usually do not ripen in the Leningrad region. Propagated by seeds and vegetatively, by root cuttings. It is grown in culture, but there are no zoned varieties yet.

Leaves and grass are used for medicinal purposes. Before flowering, the basal leaves are collected, and at the beginning - the tops of the flowering stems. Tincture and infusion of this wormwood is used as bitterness to stimulate appetite (included in an appetizing collection), for diseases of the gastrointestinal tract, insomnia, fainting, shortness of breath, insect bites. Outwardly, it is used as compresses and lotions for eye diseases, bruises, in enemas - against worms, as a rinse for diseases of the oral cavity.

In folk medicine, it is used even more widely: for gastritis with low acidity, stomach colic, as a choleretic for diseases of the liver and gallbladder, to increase the secretion of pancreatic juice, for anemia, flatulence, diarrhea, as a sedative, for epilepsy, scrofula, hemorrhoids, articular rheumatism, eczema. For this, tincture, tea, infusion are prepared from wormwood. The latter is prepared as follows: 1 teaspoon of herbs is brewed with 2 cups of boiling water, infused for 20 minutes, 1/4 cup is drunk a day 30 minutes before meals.

Attention! Long-term use and overdose can lead to poisoning and disorders of the nervous system.

It is used as a remedy in veterinary medicine, improves the appetite of animals. This wormwood is an insecticide that contains natural pyrethroids, so fleas, cockroaches and other insects are afraid of its smell. Its broth is used against pests of the garden and vegetable garden. To do this, 3 kg of raw (1 kg of dry) herbs are poured into 1 liter of water, infused for a day, then boiled for 15 minutes, filtered, 10 liters of water are added and the affected plants are sprayed; and also wash animals to kill parasites on them.

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Wormwood

Common wormwood (Artemisia vulgaris L.), synonyms - Chernobyl, Chernobyl. Stems are ribbed, brownish-purple. Leaves above are shiny, dark green, below - grayish-tomentose, pubescent; not at all bitter, but only slightly spicy in taste. Only young tops in the budding stage are used. Flowers are small, reddish or yellowish, 20-40 flowers per basket. The latter, 3-4 mm in diameter, are collected in a complex paniculate inflorescence.

Wormwood is propagated by seeds, occasionally by dividing the bush. Numerous seeds ripen in August. Distributed throughout the European part of the country, in Siberia, in the Far East. It grows along roadsides, along fences, on garbage heaps along the banks of water bodies, and often as a weed in vegetable gardens and fields (especially in winter rye), in perennial grasses, less often in other crops. It is found everywhere, often and abundantly. Frost and frost at any age is not afraid. Wormwood is worth, if not to be introduced into the culture (although breeders should think about this), then, at least, it is much more widely used as a useful wild-growing spice-aromatic and medicinal plant. By the way, in the Czech Republic, it is already grown in vegetable gardens as spicy herbs.

Wormwood contains: carotene, vitamin C (up to 175 mg%), saponins, tannins, essential oil (0.6%). Young leaves, stems and flowers are used as a spice for flavoring sauces, pickles, tinctures, wines, meat dishes, game (or its imitation); for this, the meat (especially if it is fatty) is kept in wormwood broth or marinade, or just before serving, for 1-2 minutes, add a little, at the tip of a knife, powder from dried leaves. This gives the dish a unique game flavor. This seasoning is especially appreciated by hunters.

For medical purposes, grass and roots are used, the first is harvested during flowering, the second is dug up in the fall. When harvesting, they are shaken off the ground, but not washed. In scientific medicine, the herb is used as an appetite stimulant, with neurasthenia, it is also included in Zdrenko's mixture.

Traditional medicine uses Chernobyl as an analgesic, blood-purifying agent, for epilepsy (root powder, 1 teaspoon 4 times a day), for hepatitis, neuroses, insomnia, female diseases, for round worms. Outwardly, this wormwood is used as a gargle for toothache, diseases of the oral mucosa. In the treatment of non-healing wounds and ulcers, juice and fresh grass are used. To prepare the infusion, take 1 tablespoon of herbs and pour 1 glass of boiling water, leave for 15-20 minutes; drink 1/3 - 1/4 cup 20 minutes before meals 3-4 times a day. The broth is used as a diuretic for kidney stones; 3 tablespoons of herbs are poured with 1 glass of boiling water, boiled for 10 minutes, filtered. Take 1 tablespoon 3 times daily before meals.

In veterinary medicine, wormwood is used as an astringent and for disinfection of mucous membranes, ulcers, wounds. A few of its branches, fresh or dry, are an excellent medicine for rabbits with a loss of appetite, lethargy, or sickness.

This wormwood insecticide, the regular use of brooms from the Chernobyl disaster repels mosquitoes, mosquitoes, fleas, cockroaches and other insects. It may not be worth it to grow wormwood in the garden yet, it is still a weed (although many of the ancient weeds later became the leading agricultural crops), but it is worth introducing it more widely on our table.

The final introduction into cultivation and breeding of varieties of spicy aromatic wormwood is restrained, obviously, on the one hand, by their insufficient consumption by the food industry and the population, and on the other, by their still rather large natural reserves. But needs are growing and natural resources are being depleted. In addition, varietal products always have a better taste, a more refined aroma. Therefore, the time is not far off when the needs will exceed the natural raw material possibilities, and it is necessary to prepare for this now, i.e. engage in breeding wormwood. And the population needs to develop taste and interest in their consumption. After all, we cannot imagine life now without onions, dill, bay leaves, and other spices. And wormwood can decorate our table, make it even tastier and more varied.

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