Saxifrage (grass) - Useful Properties And Use Of Saxifrage, Saxifrage Flowers. Saxifrage Indoor, Arensa, Polar

2024 Author: Josephine Shorter | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 21:43

Saxifrage

Useful properties and use of saxifrage

Botanical characteristics of saxifrage

The saxifrage is a perennial plant that belongs to the saxifrage family, has a complex root system, creeping leaves grow from the root, forming a rosette. The leaf surface of different types of grass can be leathery and fleshy, round and velvety. The characteristic greyish bloom of the leaves indicates that the plant is capable of producing lime. The saxifrage blooms from May to August in white, pink, crimson or yellow.

The flowers have five petals, collected in paniculate or umbellate inflorescences symmetrical about the center. In September, the fruit is formed - a box with many seeds. The saxifrage selects rock cracks, gaps between stones, its powerful root system is capable of destroying the structure of stones. There are about 400 species of saxifrage. In the wild, they can be seen in the mountainous regions of the Northern Hemisphere, in the Caucasus and Africa.

Favorite habitats of saxifrage are rocks, mountain slopes, mountain forests. It is also grown in rocky gardens as an ornamental plant, it tolerates severe winter temperatures well, moist soils and areas in the shade are suitable for it. Several plant species are listed in the Red Book.

Useful properties of saxifrage

In folk medicine, saxifrage is used as a plant with strong medicinal properties. Its anti-inflammatory and antiseptic properties are known. The plant has an anti-febrile and antitumor effect. The use of saxifrage is useful as a powerful antihemorrhoidal and bactericidal agent. The presence of such useful substances as alkaloids, flavonoids, saponins, coumarins, organic acids, glycosides, triterpene and fatty acids was revealed in the leaves. Also, the plant is rich in vitamins, essential oil, trace elements, pigments.

Application of saxifrage

Saxifrage leaves are the medicinal raw material. After the leaves are plucked, the plant is able to resume the growth of new leaves in a short time. To relieve pain in otitis media, you need a flagellum made of bandage or cotton wool, moistened with fresh plant juice, carefully inserted into the auditory opening and left for a few minutes. With frostbite, suppuration and boils, the juice can be used for lotions. The sap of the plant is a sedative for nervous system disorders, bronchial asthma and ascites.

Decoctions and infusions help with fever, vomiting and infectious diseases. The plant is recommended for inflammatory processes of the liver and urinary bladder, cancer problems. Leaves are applied to skin areas affected by ulcers, purulent rashes, carbuncles.

Saxifrage infusion:

Recipe No. 1: 30 g of fresh crushed leaves must be added to 300 ml of boiling water, cook in a water bath under a lid for 10-15 minutes, then cool, strain and add warm water to get the initial volume. Use a remedy for relieving any pain, 2 tablespoons 4 times during or after meals.

Recipe number 2: 0.5 cups of crushed leaves should be poured with 500 ml of 40-degree vodka, infused for 14-16 days in a dark place, shaking constantly, then squeeze the raw materials and drink the tincture 2 times a day before meals, 1 teaspoon diluted in 10–20 g of water. This medicine is indicated for hypertension.

Recipe number 3: to prepare it, you need 20 g of saxifrage leaves and 200 ml of water to simmer in a water bath for 15 minutes, leave for 45 minutes before cooling and drain. It is recommended to use the ready-made infusion 2 tablespoons 3-4 times a day after meals. The remedy treats angina, gout and bronchitis.

Tincture of saxifrage: the roots of the plant are poured with 40% vodka in a ratio of 1: 5, infused for 10 days and taken 30 drops 4-5 times a day after meals as a diuretic for edema. The rhizomes of the plant, prepared in the form of infusions and decoctions, are an excellent remedy for the formation of kidney and bladder stones.

Saxifrage flowers

Blooming saxifrage resembles a solid colorful, incredibly luxurious carpet of flowers in May-June. Small flowers, five-petal, regular shape, gather in paniculate inflorescences, towering on peduncles. Saxifrage varieties differ in color. Flowers can be white, pink, lilac, yellow, red, bicolor. The plant easily takes root when planting and transplanting. It is better to choose the time after flowering for transplanting.

No special plant care is required. Saxifrage propagates by self-seeding, by dividing the curtain, separating the rosettes. It takes root quickly, almost within a month you can already get an almost finished saxifrage flower. The plant develops well in light areas, is not afraid of darkened places. The soil must be sufficiently moist.

Saxifrage seeds

Saxifrage seeds are placed in large numbers and ripen in a capsule fruit. At home, seeds are sown in greenhouses in March; in April and May, they can be sown in open ground. The seeds are small, so when planting they are lightly sprinkled without deepening into the soil. The first shoots appear in 2–3 weeks. The seeds of one of the types of saxifrage - thighs - are used in salads, they have a pleasant spicy taste, they are as prized as the seeds of caraway and anise.

Indoor saxifrage

The saxifrage is a beautiful plant used for hanging vases and pots. A characteristic feature of saxifrage is long filamentous shoots up to 60 cm in length, bearing young plants at the ends of the rosette. A herbaceous plant from the genus saxifrage, intended for indoor use, may have flat rosettes of basal leaves, with growth a short stem is formed. There is a variegated saxifrage, characterized by leaves decorated with a white or pink border around the edges. The plant loves shade, so it should be placed in the middle of the room and watered well. The rapid development of saxifrage will allow in just a few months to admire the juiciness of the leaves and beautiful flowers and use the healing properties.

Arends' saxifrage

Arends' saxifrage is a group of complex interspecific hybrids called bryophyte saxifrage, or turf. A perennial plant with a strong root system forms green carpets on the surface of the soil. It has thin shoots 3–10 cm in height, which have short internodes and an apical rosette of small leaves. Flowers are small, numerous, white, pink, cherry, purple in color. The plant blooms in May and June.

This species looks spectacular in any composition, is suitable for decorating a garden, and attracts gardeners with its ease of cultivation. Arends's saxifrage comes in several varieties, the following are very popular:

• Blutenteppix - 16 cm high with bright red flowers;
• Purple Mantel - with deep pink flowers.

Polar saxifrage

The Far North is characterized by permafrost soils, but even in such a harsh climatic zone you can see beautiful plants such as the polar saxifrage. In the short polar summer, the saxifrage manages to delight the locals with its incredibly beautiful carpet. Saxifrage leaves are fleshy, this will protect them from the effects of cold. The plant chooses relatively warm sandy slopes of the banks of rivers and lakes. Red flowers, towering above the ground, are visible to butterflies and tundra bumblebees.

Wicker saxifrage

Indoor species saxifrage wicker hails from China and Japan. The graceful ornamental plant is distinguished by the rounded shape of the thyroid leaves, the top of the leaves is green with large stripes along the veins, the bottom is bright red. The grass grows in height by no more than 30–40 cm, throwing out threadlike shoots, at the ends of which rosettes appear. The saxifrage blooms in summer with a light yellow or pinkish-white color. Loves moisture, in the spring it is imperative to feed the soil.

Traditional medicine recommends nursing mothers to increase lactation to eat one leaf of saxifrage wicker morning and evening. After three days of taking the medicinal plant, a positive result will be observed, and along with an increase in the amount of milk, its quality improves. Saxifrage contains tannins, arbutin. The juice from the leaves of saxifrage braid eliminates pain with inflammation of the ears, dissolves abscesses. taking herbal decoctions is used for bloody vomiting, fever. The smoke of the burnt dry raw material is used to fumigate cones with hemorrhoids.

Marsh saxifrage

The marsh saxifrage is endangered as a result of reclamation, it is included in the Red Book of the Republic of Bashkortostan. The plant is widespread in the northern regions of the forest and alpine zone of the Northern Hemisphere and in the Arctic. A herb with a short rhizome, creeping shoots, without a basal rosette. It grows in swamps, in water with a high mineral content. Nature has endowed saxifrage with many properties useful for the treatment of ailments. Among them are tannins, effective for skin diseases, the plant helps well with heart ailments, indigestion.

Infusion of marsh saxifrage: 1 tablespoon of crushed roots or a teaspoon of seeds is poured with 1 glass of water. The composition is boiled for 4–5 minutes over low heat, insisted for 1 hour, filtered. It is a good lotion for dermatitis and acne.

Saxifrage mossy

This perennial plant forms a loose, dark green carpet. This species has recumbent, highly branched shoots with dense foliage. The leaves are rough, oblong. Before flowering, buds appear, they are spherical, large, the same length as the covering leaf. The flowers of the grass are yellowish-white with red dots, oblong, obtuse with short marigolds. A large pistil with two carpels fused at the base, submerged in a receptacle. The fruit of the plant is egg-shaped, the columns are protruding, short. Bryophyte saxifrage is a resident of European mountain systems, lives on rocks and stony areas of the alpine belt. At home, such a plant can be propagated by cuttings, seeds or dividing the bush. Varieties of mossy saxifrage:

• "Red Admiral" - with bright red flowers;
• "Elf" is a low plant with pink flowers;
• "Sprite" - with crimson flowers.

Soddy saxifrage

Soddy saxifrage is a perennial plant with a dense rosette of dark green leaves and an erect stem. Flowers are collected in paniculate or corymbose inflorescences, they are white, pink and red. The petiolate lower leaves are finger-separate, consist of five obtuse lobes. The leaves on the stems are tripartite or sessile, whole and smaller. The plant is shaped like a pillow. The grass is frost-resistant, unpretentious in care, prefers good watering in spring and summer. This species propagates by cuttings, dividing the bush and seeds.

Saxifrage tea

Tea recipe: pour 1 teaspoon of raw materials (dry roots) with 1 cup of boiling water, leave for half an hour, add 0.5 cups of rosehip infusion and 1 teaspoon of honey. Take a remedy for stones in the bladder for one to two weeks, 2 times a day.

Contraindications to the use of saxifrage

The correct approach to the treatment of many diseases with a saxifrage gives positive results. But you need to be careful when taking decoctions, tea and saxifrage infusions during pregnancy, feeding babies, as well as people who have thrombosis or bradycardia. Uncontrolled intake of funds from this medicinal plant can lead to dermatitis.

The author of the article: Sokolova Nina Vladimirovna | Phytotherapist

Education: Diploma in "General Medicine" and "Therapy" received at the Pirogov University (2005 and 2006). Advanced training at the Department of Phytotherapy at the Peoples' Friendship University of Moscow (2008).