Fireweed, the healing properties of which are known to most people, is a herbaceous plant with a thick creeping root. Its popular name is "Ivan Chai". He has a completely bare long stalk. Pink (sometimes white) flowers are collected in a long beautiful brush. The leaves have slightly convex veins, attached alternately to the stem. The fruit is in the form of a box, seeds are placed in it. It is necessary to collect fireweed at a certain time, its healing properties in this case will be maximum. This occurs during mass flowering. Ivan-tea grows on almost all continents with a temperate climate, in well-lit places - these are logging, burning, meadows, and the shores of flat water bodies.
Chemical composition
It shows fire-healing properties due to the substances contained in it. In particular, these are tannins, mucus, alkaloids, vitamin C, gallic and ascorbic acids, coumarins. There is tannin and pectin in it. It affects the microelement set: copper, boron, iron, manganese, titanium and even molybdenum.
Pharmacological properties
This herb has a mild laxative, wound healing, hemostatic, astringent, emollient, mild hypnotic and anti-inflammatory effect. For medicinal purposes, the entire fireweed is used, the healing properties of the leaves, root system, stems, flowers are.
Application
Preparations from Ivan tea help with gastrointestinal ailments: colitis, gastritis, ulcers. Outwardly, fireweed is used to wash bruises, wounds, and joint pains. It is believed that Ivan-tea has medicinal properties that help in the fight against male ailments of the prostate, including adenoma. It is used for insomnia, headaches, for washing ulcers on the skin. Not only the fireweed itself is useful, Ivan-tea transfers its healing properties even to honey collected from it. Means on the basis of this plant help in case of anemia, internal outflows of this fluid, ailments of the throat, kidneys, bladder.
Koporye tea
This is the most common way to consume this healing herb. According to the classic recipe of Koporye peasants, Ivan tea is harvested, tearing off the flower brushes by 30-40 cm. Then they are scattered on a flat surface with a layer of 4-5 cm and the resulting mass is rolled up. At the same time, it must be squeezed with a certain effort so that partially juice stands out from the grass. Then the twisted mass should be left overnight, covered with a moist burlap. During this period, the raw materials will lash and fermentation will take place. At the end of the process, the grass is again sprinkled with an even layer and partially wilted. Final operations - drying in a hot oven (oven) and grinding. The main sign of the proper preparation of Kopor tea is the color, it should be green. It must be stored in tight bags or paper bags for no longer than two years.
Other dosage forms
From young leaves and shoots of fireweed prepare soups, salads. Fresh or boiled roots are used similarly to cabbage or asparagus. They make flour from them. By roasting them, you can get the so-called "cypress coffee." Fresh flowers make juice, decoctions, infusions and oil.