Today among gourmets and fans of an overseas delicacy there will hardly be a person who at least once would not taste fragrant Ukrainian borsch. In kitchens of the Slavic people it won nearly the first place of honor, and all thanks to the unsurpassed taste, aroma and saturation of color. But not all know why borsch so is called. And since the 18th century the Slavs, except habitual vegetables, added to it young branches of black fox, or a cow-parsnip which broke in the forest at the beginning of spring.
Description
Grass plant black fox, a cow-parsnip is the perennial umbellate plant reaching height of 180 centimeters, sometimes twice above. It is really a grass giant in flora. In Latin its name sounds so: Heracléum sibíricum, or Siberian Heracles.
By the form the cow-parsnip is similar to mix of fennel and a burdock. Leaves are cut up on 5 wide shares from 25 to 50 centimeters in size in diameter. Sunny side of a leaf smooth, internal — slightly rough and fluffy. The powerful stalk, has a set of branchings. A root system too strong, in the form of a direct thick core.
Result of its blossoming — fruits with flattened backs, up to 1 centimeter in length, have a weak spicy smell, as well as a plant. Blossoming of this giant begins since June and continues to the first frosts in September.
Study useful properties of such herbs as an acorus marsh, a tsetrariya, a stevia, a celandine, a yarrow, a goutweed ordinary, coltsfoot, a gold root, a bergenia, a St. John's wort, a nettle, a motherwort, a plantain, a horsetail field, solyanka holmovy, ekhinatseya, a lyubistok and a thistle.
This umbellate plant very much loves damp soils — meadows, lowlands, itself the place between trees and bushes also finds. Though black fox is also called the Siberian Heracles, or a cow-parsnip Siberian, it grows on all Eurasian continent, from Central Europe to Kazakhstan.
Useful properties
The nutritional value of this umbellate grass is defined by existence in it of a large amount of vitamin C and also carotene and essential oils. That is why the cow-parsnip was to the taste to our ancestors who after long winter restored the forces, adding sprouts of this plant to different dishes.
Whether you know? At the beginning of the 20th century the starving peasants survived, eating a young spring nettle and black foxes. In warm season ate a cow-parsnip up to two months, the first greens did not appear yet: plumose onions, the first cucumbers and new potato.
Also black foxes are rich with such substances as sucrose, polyacetylene connections (they bear in themselves ecological functions), coumarins and anthocyans.
This vegetable healer has the whole range of useful properties:
- immunomodulator;
- bile-expelling property;
Blueberry, sea-buckthorn, St. John's wort, clover meadow, thistle oil, an immortelle sandy, tomato juice also have bile-expelling properties.
- analgetic;
- treats epileptic seizures and neurosises and also depressions;
- normalizes function of intestines;
- has low caloric content.
Harm and contraindications
Recently black foxes expand uncontrolledly, big thickets and not only in forests or boggy places. This plant successfully and promptly occupied even settlements and farmsteads, forcing out local flora because of what the ecological equilibrium of the region gets off.
But this culture not only is dangerous by violation of ecological harmony. In process of growth and development of a cow-parsnip in its leaves and escapes some substances which bear danger to the person and pets collect: juice of black foxes contains photodynamic coumarins.
They have toxic effect, causing bleedings and also increase photosensitivity to sunlight perception. When juice of this plant gets on skin of the person or an animal, under the influence of ultraviolet so-called burn, or dermatitis is formed. The first symptom of such burn are blisters which pass into dark stains. They can not descend from a body about half a year. If big parts of the body, then even in a year are affected, at repeated solar radiation, these spots can be shown again. Perhaps even scarring of fabrics.
Important! It is impossible to assume that children even touched a cow-parsnip! Dermatichesky reactions after hit of its juice to skin are capable to cause even death in small children, especially if the big part of the body suffered.
When coumarins from black foxes accumulate in a human body, it can cause a vitiligo disease. Hit of juice in eyes is very dangerous, the blindness can be result of what. Children can sometimes cut hollow stalks of various plants to use them in the form of the telescope or a loud-hailer.
Therefore during forest walks it is necessary to preserve the children against games near this dangerous plant and it is necessary to explain to them that it poses threat for life. If on a personal plot there is a need of fight against thickets of this umbellate plant, then, rooting out the uninvited guest, not superfluous will remember some precautionary measures:
- It is the best of all to destroy a cow-parsnip on the site in the evening or when it is cloudy.
- The protective mask and glasses, overalls from water-repellent fabric are surely necessary.
- In order to avoid allergic reactions it is obligatory to take the antihistaminic drug.
- When cut off or root out black foxes, their juice inevitably gets on garden tools therefore they need to be cleaned carefully after work.
Whether you know? Honey from enormous inflorescences of a cow-parsnip is considered one of elite grades of this valuable product. It has a caramel taste with light slightly bitter taste. In pure form such honey is practically not on sale. Usually it is a part of other flower grades of honey.
It is necessary to consider that stalks of black foxes very juicy, and when cutting their juice can be sprayed. If nevertheless splashes remained on open parts of the body, then it is necessary to take urgent measures:
- laundry soap to wash up affected areas of skin under flowing water;
- to flood (but not to wipe) the place soiled by juice on a body with cologne or other alcohol-containing solution;
- if burns nevertheless developed, to process them sintomitsinovy ointment or other softening burns medicine;
- it is impossible to apply the fixing bandages to affected skin — it is necessary to give access to oxygen.
Important! The cow-parsnip poisons with the enzymes the soil where grows. Therefore if on the site such guest lodged, it is necessary to consider his influence on cultures which will grow on this place after its destruction.
Pregnant women and the feeding women cannot contact to a cow-parsnip plant at all! Its ability to cause an allergy at inhalation of pollen from the blossoming umbrellas is one more contraindication for contact with this toxic plant. Nausea and vomiting and also a headache and dizziness can become reaction to it.
Application
And still, despite such frightening information on black foxes, people can extract from these plants a lot of useful. They with success are applied in cookery as the vitaminized food, and in medicine — as a panacea from many diseases. The cow-parsnip contains approximately about 10% of sugar, 16% are celluloses, 27% — a protein.
In cookery
From the beginning of summer when black foxes young and dairy, them it is possible to use as ingredient in combined salad, when cooking Russian cabbage soup or soup. This soup with addition of a fresh nettle can saturate with useful substances the organism which grew weak from frosts and help to get rid of a winter depression.
Usually such cow-parsnip soup has pleasant mushroom aroma. Very tasty and beautiful borsch from young leaves and scapes of black foxes turns out. Young escapes can be used even in the raw, it is necessary to peel it from a rough thin skin only. Small stalks on taste very juicy and crispy, a little sourish. It is also possible to boil them and to eat as greens or to pickle and use as a garnish. Some hostesses do the caviar which is tasting like aubergine of these scapes.
There are several councils as it is possible to make first courses from black foxes:
- Oxalic cow-parsnip soup
To take two glasses of water or broth, to weld in it 2 pieces of potatoes and the grated carrots. Then there to add the cut four leaves of a sorrel and a half of a glass of leaves of a cow-parsnip, to add to taste of spice and fennel greens. To separately roast onions, to fill with it soup. Then to boil thoroughly a minutes more three.
We recommend to you to esteem how to cook nettle soup.
- Oxalic Russian cabbage soup with a cow-parsnip and a nettle
On ready meat broth to boil 3-4 potatoes cut into cubes to semi-readiness. To add stewed in a frying pan with flour one carrot and one bulb. Then we put in Russian cabbage soup on one glass of the crushed greens of a cow-parsnip, a sorrel and a nettle, butter to taste. To cook to readiness about 10 more minutes. At the very end of cooking to fill Russian cabbage soup with crude egg, couple of laurel leaves, bell pepper and greens of fennel and also the cut green plumelets of onions. We salt to taste. It is possible to add sour cream.
- Gerkulesovy or millet cow-parsnip soup
To weld practically to readiness in 1 liter of water or broth 3-4 tablespoons of millet grain or oat-flakes. Then to add couple of cut potatoes and the crushed cow-parsnip scapes. To salt, cook to readiness of potatoes. We add butter and sour cream to taste. Already in a plate to strew a ready dish with favourite greens.
In medicine
It is possible to call black foxes with full confidence an officinal grass as it not only very healthy vitaminized food, but also an effective medicine from many diseases. In healing this plant always took the important place. For preparation of medicines use young scapes, leaves and roots. The dried-up leaves of black foxes are accepted in the form of infusions for treatment of a diarrhea as the bile-expelling and killing pains means. The leaves of a cow-parsnip which are steamed out on a water bath can be put also at joint pains.
Though leaves of an adult cow-parsnip cannot be touched unprotected because they can cause severe burns and dropsy, infusions from it serve as excellent cure for simplification of a condition of skin for dermatitis. Also broths at various neurosises are valuable.
Infusions from leaves together with roots well help at spasms of muscles. Roots of black foxes can be made and accepted at disorders of a stomach and intestines too: their action is even stronger, than at leaves. Broth from roots and leaves successfully treats itch.
The styptic property of a cow-parsnip at women's inflammations in a uterus and appendages is known and also positive influence on the sexual sphere of women. It is interesting how in healing applied cow-parsnip seeds. Usually, when tooth strongly hurts, such means which can remove a pain syndrome for short term is necessary. Therefore seeds filled in with the boiling vodka, 3 hours allowed to infuse and rinsed a painful tooth.
Use of broths and spirit tinctures on a cow-parsnip:
- At gastrointestinal problems — to take 30 g of dry leaves, to fill in 400 ml of the cooled boiled water. To insist 1.5 hours, to filter, to wring out raw materials. To accept 50 ml before food in 15 minutes.
- At stones in a gall bladder — to boil 15 g of roots of a cow-parsnip in 200 ml of water on small fire within 10 minutes. To let stand 10 more minutes and to filter. To accept 20 ml 3 times a day irrespective of meal.
- At indigestion — infusion from leaves: to add 3 tablespoons of dried leaves to 0.5 l of the cooled boiled water. To insist 2 hours and to accept 3 times a day on 50 ml in 15-20 minutes prior to food; infusion from roots: to 0.5 liters of cool boiled water to add 2 tablespoons of the crushed dried-up cow-parsnip root. To insist within 8 hours, to wring out raw materials, to filter infusion. To accept 50 ml 4 times a day in 20 minutes prior to meal.
Sabelnik, devyasit and cloudberries is shown to use berry at indigestions.
- At neurosises, spasms, epilepsy — to boil thoroughly 20 g of the crushed root on small fire in 250 ml of water before evaporation on 1/3 from initial volume. Then to wring out the rest and to filter. To accept 20 ml 4 times a day.
Though broths and infusions on roots and leaves of black foxes have high medical effect, spirit tinctures are much more effective, as well as at any other herbs.
Whether you know? Essential oil from seeds of black foxes is used in production of perfumery and also as fragrance for liqueurs and vodka of house production. Still it is possible to use these seeds as a deodorant for refreshing of rooms.
Storage conditions
Collecting different parts of black foxes as medicinal raw materials is made at different times. If leaves collect and dry in the summer when there is an active blossoming, and seeds — in September, then roots prepare late fall, after the end of the vegetative period.
As it was already mentioned, collecting raw materials from a cow-parsnip, it is necessary to adhere to security measures. After collecting leaves they are spread in one layer in the place where there is a good air exchange. They need to be overturned periodically to avoid rotting or a debate. Then dry raw materials are distributed on small fabric sacks or paper bags. For preparation of seeds of black foxes big trays or flat tanks on which they are filled by a thin layer are necessary. They need to be dried in the aired place too, periodically stirring slowly. It is possible to put seeds in bags from paper or linen sacks.
Preparing raw materials from roots, they are well washed and cut on small parts. It is possible to dry up on the attic or under a canopy where there is a good draft. It is necessary to dry not less than one month. Roots need to be overturned periodically too during drying that did not decay.
If there is an opportunity to use the dryer, then it will accelerate process. Then dry roots distribute in suitable packings. It is possible to store such collecting no more than 2 years as upon termination of this term any medicinal raw materials lose the medicinal properties.
Black foxes, these simple by sight, but plants, unusual on properties, as well as at all medicinal, have two parties: both advantage, and harm. If to approach intelligently and care, without abuses and observing all security measures, then it is possible to derive huge benefit and for maintenance of the health, and for good and various nutrition.