Moldavian snakehead is a unique perennial plant, which not only has a beautiful decorative appearance, but is also known for its useful properties.
Plant description
The medicinal raw material of this beautiful plant often goes on sale under the name Melissa. But from Latin it literally translates as βdragon headβ. This name very accurately reflects the shape of the flower. Recently, the Moldovan snakehead has become so popular that it began to be planted in personal plots as a spicy-flavoring culture.
The plant is a perennial crop with an erect stem up to eighty centimeters high. Its leaves have an oblong shape and serrated edges. A beautiful purple flowers are collected in false whorls of several pieces and evenly distributed on racemes.
Fruits decay into dark seeds that do not have a quiet period. They sprout immediately after harvest. They can bite in the autumn, but they will die anyway during frosts. Others will hatch in the spring.
Habitat
Moldavian snakehead (photo is given in the article) has a large range. It is found in almost any geographical area of ββour planet, ranging from subtropical latitudes to the cold zone. The snakehead grows in America, Asia, Europe. This culture is specially grown in China, Tibet, India. And in Western Europe, the plant is already planted even in urban flower beds along with other flowering crops.
Snakehead - decorative culture
Moldavian snakehead is a rather decorative culture, as it has a long flowering period, compact, neat bushes. And the annual blooms in the year of sowing. Therefore, it can be safely placed on a flowerbed with annual crops to create a flowering composition.
Honey culture
Moldavian snakehead - honey plant. Bees get a lot of pollen and nectar from it. The flowers give the maximum amount of nectar, starting from the moment the stamens open and the pestle fully ripens. In calm weather, flower shoots exude a wonderful aroma, attracting many bees and bumblebees. It has been established that bees with ease from one hectare of crops of this plant collect at least two hundred kilograms of flower honey.
Such colorless honey has a fairly high quality. Its feature is the finest lemon flavor. In dry years, productivity is halved.
Harvesting and storage of plants
The snakehead is known for its healing properties. That is why it is grown. As a medicinal raw material, the ground part of the plant is used. Although occasionally in folk medicine, seeds and roots are used.
The Moldavian snakehead is harvested even before flowering begins. The procurement method itself is very simple. The plant is simply mowed (usually it grows in whole fields). Mowed stems are used both in dry and fresh form.
Dry the plant in the shade. The drying area should be well ventilated. In no case should direct sunlight be allowed. Before drying, the plant is crushed. And then they are stored in a sealed container so that the unique lemon smell does not disappear.
Seeds are also harvested. However, they are harvested until fully ripe, as the boxes open easily and their contents crumble. Mowed plants ripen in a dark, dry place, and then seeds are extracted from them, which are packed in paper or fabric bags. They are able to maintain their properties for up to five years.
The roots are harvested after flowering. They are dug up and dried.
Moldavian snakehead: application in folk medicine
The snakehead is used to treat a wide variety of diseases. Tinctures, essences, decoctions, ointments, oil are made from it, tea is brewed.
Snakehead tincture is good for gastritis, kidney disease and cystitis. For its preparation, four tablespoons of fresh grass or two tablespoons of dry pour a glass of boiling water. The liquid should be infused for about three hours. You need to drink the infusion in a third of a glass up to three times a day. It will help improve blood counts, lower blood pressure, and improve the functioning of the digestive tract.
Infusion helps to heal ulcers and wounds. Compresses with it must be applied to the wounds.
Tincture helps with renal colic, only grass should be steamed in a water bath. And for the treatment of hypertension, a drug is made on vodka. The roots of the snakehead are filled with alcohol in a ratio of 1:10. Insist in a dark room for two to four weeks, and then take forty drops. This tincture also helps with arthritis and rheumatism. She lubricates sore spots.
But herbal compresses have a pronounced analgesic effect. Plants are steamed and applied to a sore spot.
The aroma of oil from the snakehead saves from headaches. A couple of its drops must be poured into the aroma lamp and breathed in a wonderful lemon aroma. Headache, fatigue and bad mood will go away by themselves. The oil also has a bactericidal property.
Moldavian Snakehead: application
I would like to note that the snakehead has found widespread use not only in traditional medicine, but also in everyday life. It is used in various fields of the food industry: confectionery, canning, alcoholic and low alcohol. The plant is used both in dried and fresh form, adding to soups, borscht, salads. The snakehead perfectly emphasizes the taste of meat and fish. The grass is even laid in the production of some varieties of sausages. At home, the plant is used for conservation (pickled tomatoes, cucumbers, watermelons). It can also be added to tea, jelly, mousse, compote. Since dry grass retains a persistent aroma for a long time, it is used in confectionery and cooking. The snakehead is added to enhance the taste and smell of vermouth. Also put in carbonated drinks.
Growing a snakehead
At the summer cottage, as a decorative and therapeutic culture, you can easily plant a Moldovan snakehead. Growing this plant is not difficult. Grass prefers areas not clogged with perennial weeds.
The plant belongs to cold-resistant crops. It easily tolerates minor frosts. But prolonged cooling with heavy rainfall causes root decay. The snakehead is a photophilous plant, and therefore it should be planted in sunny areas. In the shade, grass loses the strength of its aroma. At the beginning of development, the snakehead requires a lot of water, but calmly tolerates dry periods during flowering. If at the beginning of July or June there is little moisture, then there is a decrease in the yield of land shoots.
The seeds of the snakehead are not prepared before planting. It is also not recommended to soak them, as they swell and cannot be sown.
Grass is sown in early May to a depth of 1-2 centimeters. The first shoots appear in ten days. A month and a half, the plant grows extremely slowly, so weeding is needed. But then weeds are no longer scary, as development accelerates. The snakehead is undemanding to moisture, but still sometimes needs watering during dry periods.
The plant blooms in about two and a half months. Grass can be affected by diseases and pests. With early sowing and a cold lingering spring, rot can be divorced. Since the snakehead is used for tinctures and tea, it is not recommended to treat the plant with chemicals. And if something is used, then something is the most sparing and least toxic.
Varieties of snakehead
As early as 2002, several varieties of plants approved for use were included in the State Register. The most famous Moldavian snakehead is Gorynych. It is approved for use in all regions for gardens, orchards, and farms.
Gorynych variety has a pleasant lemon aroma. Its stem reaches 120 centimeters. Dark purple flowers are collected in large inflorescences. The plant is a wonderful honey plant.
Gorgon variety is a bush about seventy centimeters in height. The leaves and stems of the plant have a pronounced purple color. The variety is characterized by early ripening. From the first shoots to flowering, only fifty days pass. And the seeds ripen in a hundred days.
There are two more varieties - Egoist and Arhat. They are, in general, similar to the varieties already described.
In 2008, a new Albion variety with white flowers appeared. In Moldova, two varieties were developed that were intended to produce essential oil (Aroma-1, Aroma-2).
Aroma-1 is a tall variety with blue flowers. And Aroma-2 has white flowers and a different shade of smell. Both varieties are promising for the perfume industry.