Elderberry herb - unpretentious, beautiful and medicinal weed
Tall, spreading shrubs with beautiful feathery leaves grow on the roadsides, along the banks of the river and on the forest edges. And on the wastelands, the elder herbaceous and in a couple of years becomes the queen of an abandoned site. However, for its lush flowering and medicinal properties, the plant can often be found in the garden. Elderberry really looks very beautiful, with its carved leaves, delicate clusters of inflorescences or contrasting black clusters of fruits. In addition, it lends itself well to pruning, allowing you to give the bush a well-groomed look. And there are legends about the healing properties of this culture: herbalists are sure that it can help even in oncology.
For the specific unpleasant smell of leaves and stems, the people call elderberry smelly or wild.
Description of the plant
Herbaceous elderberry grows in the form of a dense bush with many branched straight shoots. Its height is at least 60 cm, and under favorable conditions it can even exceed 1.5 m.If you break or cut the stem, it becomes clear that inside it is hollow, with a whitish core. Above, the branches are green, like the leaves. The leaf plate is very decorative thanks to the division into lobes. Each of them has a shallow jagged border and a sharp tip.
At the beginning of summer, large white thyroid inflorescences consisting of small flowers bloom on the branches. Their diameter can be 20 cm, and the shape is almost regular, round. By autumn, clusters of small black berries with red pulp and also an unpleasant aroma ripen.
Elderberry and black elderberry are related, but different cultures. They can be distinguished by two signs: in the first, the unpleasant odor is more pronounced, in addition, the anthers are colored red. In the black elderberry, they are yellow.
Elderberry herb: beneficial properties and application
Elderberry leaves and fruits contain a dangerous component - amygdalin, so fresh berries cannot be used, like the deciduous part. But during the drying process, it is neutralized. Most of the useful substances are found in the roots of the plant, from which effective diuretics are prepared. Other parts of the bush are also curative. An infusion of leaves with twigs helps with skin diseases in the form of a compress, and a decoction of inflorescences has a diaphoretic effect.
Potions made from herbaceous elderberry have a beneficial effect on the human body, namely:
- relieve headache;
- soothes and improves sleep;
- lower blood glucose levels;
- increase immunity;
- help with joint diseases, neuralgia, arthritis, radiculitis;
- increase the outflow of bile and sweating;
- inhibit the development of malignant tumors.
When taking broths of elderberry, you must strictly adhere to the instructions, not forgetting that the plant is poisonous. But for children, pregnant and lactating women, such treatment is categorically contraindicated.