2024 Author: Gavin MacAdam | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 13:38
Sparrow medicinal (lat. Lithospermum officinale) - behind the unpretentious appearance of a plant from the genus Sparrow (lat. Lithospermum) of the Boraginaceae family (lat. Boraginaceae) hides a skillful healer, whom people met long before they learned to more accurately determine the composition and abilities of the representatives of the plant kingdom of the planet. Pliny the Elder, who lived in the 1st century AD and had an insatiable thirst for knowledge, first told about the healing abilities of the Medicinal Sparrow in writing. He even combined his dinner meal with reading: Gaius Pliny Secundus ate food, while the slaves read him various clever books aloud.
What's in your name
In the Latin name of the genus "Lithospermum" Carl Linnaeus emphasized the appearance of the fruit of these plants. They, like small pebbles, stand out for their whiteness against the background of pubescent green leaves, justifying the two Latin words included in the name, which in translation sound like "stone seed".
The specific epithet "officinale" ("medicinal") is assigned to the plant for its healing abilities, known to people since ancient times.
If ancient man had to learn about the medicinal abilities of plants by trial and, possibly, fatal errors, then with the development of sciences, people learned to "look" into plants, extracting its constituent elements. In this way, an amazing acid was discovered in the composition of the leaves and rhizomes of plants of the genus "Lithospermum", which received the name "lithospermic acid".
Not all people associate plant seeds with stones, even if these “stones” are called “pearls”. Therefore, along with the official Latin name "Lithospermum officinale" (officinal sparrow), popular names are born. One of them is "Gray millet" (Gray millet).
Description
A rather inconspicuous outwardly plant "Sparrow-grass medicinal" cannot always be distinguished among others growing on the sides of roads, in glades and forest edges, abandoned wastelands, although the plant is perennial and grows in one place for a long time.
Unless, pubescence of erect shoots up to half a meter high and sharp-nosed simple or scaly leaves will turn a person's eyes to the roadside grass. After all, not everyone decides to extract the root of a plant in order to suddenly find in it the substance "lithospermum red", which can be used, for example, as a dye.
Nondescript and white-yellowish small flowers, forming an inflorescence - curl. This is how nature has been created that loves to hide real "spools" behind a nondescript look.
The fruit is white or grayish, round and smooth, a nutlet that resembles one a passerine egg, another a small pebble or millet seed, and the third a precious pearl. Which once again proves that the world around us is the way we are ready to see it.
Healing abilities
Based on the recommendations of the respected Pliny the Elder, the plant has been widely used since legendary Roman times for removing kidney stones. However, widespread use, not always respecting the dosage of the medication, has caused liver problems in people. As the saying goes, unscientific use of poisons leads to the fact that "we treat one thing, cripple the other."
Sparrow medicinal is credited with many healing abilities. But the main one among them is its ability to help the human endocrine system, which is responsible for the formation of hormones, which were hidden from the eyes of scientists for a long time, and therefore their important function was discovered by humans only in the 20th century.
This ability of the plant is due to the presence in the leaves and rhizome of the plant "lithospermic acid", which today is considered the main anti-hormonal substance used in the fight against cancerous tumors.
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Veronica Medicinal
Veronica medicinal is one of the family called norichnikovye, in Latin the name of this plant sounds like this: Veronica officinalis L. As for the name of the family itself, in Latin it will be like this: Scrophulariaceae Juss. Description of Veronica officinalis Veronica officinalis is a perennial herb, endowed with a creeping and pubescent ascending stem.
Sparrow
Sparrow (lat.Lithospermum) - a genus of ubiquitous herbaceous perennial plants that have not yet reached only Australia. Leaves silvery from pubescence, spectacular small flowers that abundantly cover the plant in spring or summer, unpretentiousness to living conditions attract the attention of gardeners.
Medicinal Sweet Clover
Medicinal sweet clover is one of the plants of a family called legumes, in Latin the name of this plant will sound like this: Melilotus officinalis L. As for the name of the sweet clover family itself, in Latin it will be like this: Fabaceae Lindl.
Red-rooted Sparrow
Red-rooted sparrow is one of the plants of the family called borage, in Latin the name of this plant will sound like this: Lithospermum erythrorhizon Siebold et Zucc. As for the name of the family of this plant itself, then in Latin it will be like this:
The Sparrow Living On The Rocks
Another unpretentious plant that blooms profusely in spring or summer (depending on the species) with miniature showy flowers. Sparrows look great in rock gardens and on rocky slopes, masking hard-to-reach places. Juicy greenery, silvered with pubescence, the brightness of the flowers, the firmness and unpretentiousness of the plant make it attractive for gardeners. Some species of sparrow have amazing medicinal properties
