Spring Adonis is a medicinal crop that is often used in medicine. Based on the extract of this plant, tinctures and tablets are made that help cope with heart pathologies, improve the condition of kidney diseases and vegetative-vascular dystonia. The medicinal properties of the herb are associated with the high content of biologically active components.
Description of the plant
Adonis vernatum is a perennial plant that has a thick, shortened stem and dark brown rhizome.This crop is characterized by simple or branched stems. They can be direct or deviated. The height of the plant is 20-50 centimeters.
This crop is characterized by strongly dissected leaves. During the flowering period, large spiral flowers of bright yellow color appear on the bushes. They are located at the ends of the shoots and reach 40-80 millimeters in diameter.
After flowering is complete, elongated spherical fruits appear on the bushes. Their structure includes 30-40 nuts. The flowering of the crop begins at the moment the leaves appear - April-May. Fruit ripening occurs in June-July.
Growth area
This culture has become widespread in the steppes and forest-steppes of the European part of Russia. It also grows in Western Siberia. Adonis vernatum mainly grows in mixed-grass steppes, in calcareous soil, on dry slopes and on the edges of pine forests. At the same time, due to the plowing of the steppes, the distribution of Adonis greatly decreased.
Legend of the flower
The flower got its name in honor of Aphrodite's lover. One day, Princess Mirra angered the goddess of love. As punishment, she turned the girl into a tree. However, when a child was born from a crack in the trunk, Aphrodite decided to kidnap him. She delivered the baby to the kingdom of Persephone, asking him to be hidden from prying eyes. Soon the beautiful baby won the heart of Hades's wife.
Persephone did not want to return Adonis to Aphrodite. The goddess got angry and turned to Zeus to help resolve this dispute. He ordered Adonis to live for six months with Persephone and Aphrodite. When the boy grew up, he turned into a handsome young man and became Aphrodite's lover. Ares couldn't stand it. He waylaid Adonis while hunting in the mountains and killed him, turning into a boar.
Aphrodite bitterly mourned her lover. As a result, the girl grew an anemone from drops of his blood. On the day of mourning, she ordered the tender plant to bloom. It was this grass that people called Adonis.
Medicinal properties
Since ancient times, people have been familiar with the medicinal properties of the plant. They are described in herbalists of the sixteenth century. Traditional healers used the herb to treat heart disease, fever, and dropsy. Adonis includes many valuable substances that have a beneficial effect on the condition of the human body. Using this plant you can get the following results:
- Calm the nervous system, get rid of excitement in various neuroses.
- Improve the functioning of the body in various types of psychoses and cope with seizures.
- Normalize the functions of the heart and blood vessels. The plant helps to even out the heart rate, enhance organ contractions, and activate blood flow. Adonis also helps to cope with symptoms of chronic failure, shortness of breath and other pathologies of the cardiovascular system.
- Improve the condition of rheumatic pain in joints, ligaments and muscle tissue.
- Strengthen the body's defenses against bacterial infections. Adonis helps with pneumonia, scarlet fever, and sore throat.
- Improve the condition of dry annoying cough.
- Coping with infectious urological pathologies.
- Improve the condition of kidney and bladder stones.
Chemical composition
Adonis contains 0.83% cardiac glycosides. The maximum amount of such components is present in green fruits and foliage. Also above-ground fragments of the plant include adonitoxin, K-strophanthin, cymarin.
In addition, the herb contains flavonoids and phytosterol. It contains dimethoxyquinone, ascorbic acid, choline, and coumarins.The plant also includes adonite alcohol, carotene, and organic acids. The maximum content of biologically active components is observed during flowering and fruiting. Glycosides accumulate in the root system towards the end of the growing season.
Indications for use
Preparations made from spring adonis are prescribed for the following pathologies:
- heart failure, which is accompanied by circulatory disorders;
- neuroses of the heart;
- ischemia;
- epilepsy;
- exhaustion of the nervous system;
- vegetative-vascular dystonia;
- pulmonary diseases;
- exacerbation of cystitis;
- parkinsonism.
Contraindications
Tissue culture includes toxic cardiac glycosides. However, due to the low cumulative effect, they do not accumulate in the body and, if the dosage is observed, do not pose a threat to the human body. If you violate the recommendations for the use of a substance or are individual intolerant, there is a risk of the following symptoms:
- nausea;
- pain in the digestive organs;
- vomit;
- suppression of the nervous system;
- increased excitement.
The main contraindications to the use of spring adonis include the following:
- arterial hypertension;
- gastritis;
- peptic ulcer;
- enterocolitis;
- atherosclerosis;
- angina pectoris.
Use in folk medicine
Before using Adonis vernacular, you should consult a doctor, since the plant has poisonous properties. The following remedies are used in folk medicine:
- Adonis tea is used for heart diseases and infections. To prepare it, you need to take 2 tablespoons of herb per 800 milliliters of water. You need to take 1 spoon every hour.
- In case of formation of stones in the bladder and kidneys, it is necessary to take an infusion of 2 tablespoons of crushed Adonis herb and 4 glasses of warm boiled water. This mixture should be infused in a warm place overnight. It is recommended to take 1 tablespoon every hour.
- To cope with cramps, it is recommended to take 1 tablespoon of dried adonis and pour 300 milliliters of boiling water. Leave the composition to infuse for 2 hours. Take 1 spoon 3 times a day.
- If a strong cough occurs, mix 1 small spoon of dried adonis with 100 milliliters of boiling water. After 2 hours the product will be ready for use. It should be taken 1 spoon before each meal.
- In case of myositis development, mix 7 grams of herb with 250 milliliters of boiling water. After an hour, you can drink the composition in the amount of 1 tablespoon. The course of treatment lasts 1 month. After which you need to interrupt for 10 days and continue therapy again.
Collection of raw materials
For medicinal purposes, it is better to use steppe forms of culture. In this case, it is recommended to collect raw materials from powerful bushes, cutting off the upper part of the plant. It is worth leaving 10-15 centimeters from the bushes. By the end of flowering, Adonis loses its biological activity. It is recommended to dry the collected raw materials in the attic or in a special dryer at a temperature of +50-60 degrees.
Adonis vernatum is a valuable medicinal plant that contains many useful components. That is why the culture is used in official and folk medicine.
