Licorice (plant photo) - secrets, tips, recommendations.

Origin

Licorice (or Licorice) grows in the floodplains of the Volga and Don, in the basins of the Syr Darya and Amu Darya rivers, in the Crimea and the Caucasus, in the steppes and desert. She is known among Chinese healers and Tibetan sages.

The homeland of licorice is the Mediterranean, primarily Spain, Southern France, Italy, and Greece.

Homeland of licorice

Description

A perennial plant belonging to the legume family, it has a tall herbaceous stem. Its powerful root reaches a depth of five meters, simultaneously giving off lateral branches that sprout with new shoots next spring. Therefore, licorice, a photo of the plant is given below, forms entire thickets, especially along rivers. And the root, going deep into the soil, allows the plant to survive the dry season.

Wild licorice

If we are talking about the use of licorice for medicinal purposes, then we mean licorice glabra. It was she who received the second name - licorice. In addition, two more common types are:

Ural licorice, growing in the eastern part of Central Asia. It is distributed in the territory from the Urals to Lake Baikal.

Ural licorice
Korzhinsky's licorice grows in the southern part of the Volga riverbed, Kazakhstan and China. It also has healing properties, but is classified as an endangered species and its collection is prohibited.

Licorice Korzhinsky

Licorice and its medicinal properties were known to the ancient Egyptians and Greeks. In China, it was used as a rejuvenating agent that cleanses the body. It is not for nothing that Eastern sages valued licorice on a par with ginseng.

Preparation of licorice

The most valuable thing in licorice is the root and rhizome, which is used for medicinal purposes. Harvesting roots begins in spring or autumn. The dug up root is cleaned of small roots, since the root is at least ten millimeters thick and has healing properties.

Liquorice root

The peeled roots are cut into small pieces and dried in air without direct sunlight or in special electric dryers. The degree of readiness is determined by the fragility of the root. Store the harvested root in a dry place.

If the conditions are met, it retains its beneficial properties for up to ten years.

Modern agricultural technologies make it possible to grow licorice on an industrial scale. In this way, raw materials are obtained for the pharmaceutical and confectionery industries in the Mediterranean countries (Spain, Italy, Greece) and Asia (Iran, Turkmenistan, China). Industrially, juice is extracted from licorice root, from which, by evaporation, pressed sticks are obtained, called licorice.

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Growing in the garden

The unpretentiousness of licorice allows it to be grown in a summer cottage or garden. The main thing is that the soil at the planting site is not too wet. An abundance of sand, which cannot retain moisture, is also not suitable. Chernozem, loam, and sandy soils are suitable for planting. It is advisable that the planting site be protected from cold winds, because licorice is native to areas with subtropical and temperate climates.

Licorice in the garden

Licorice can be grown from seeds or rhizome cuttings. The vegetative method is simpler and faster. Moreover, an adult plant produces long lateral root shoots from which new plants grow.

Cuttings with buds are planted to a depth of thirty centimeters, keeping a distance of 25 centimeters between them.

If it is not possible to purchase root shoots, you can take seeds that are pre-stratified for better germination. You can pre-germinate the seeds in damp cotton wool.

Where does it grow?

In its natural environment it is found in Eastern and Southern Europe, in the Northern Caucasus, Western Siberia, North Africa, Central and Western Asia. It grows in large quantities in Turkmenistan in the valley of the Amu Darya River. Cultivated in almost all areas with a temperate climate. It lives in flooded areas or with large accumulations of groundwater. Licorice glabra is found in the beds and banks of reservoirs, shallow streams, floodplains and river valleys, at the bottom of shallow ravines, steppe and brackish meadows, rocky and sandy slopes. In mountainous areas where the plant's roots touch groundwater, licorice populations reach altitudes of 2000 m above sea level.

The healing power of licorice

The beneficial properties of the plant are due to its rich composition. Glycyrrhizin and sugars add sweetness to the root. Licorice contains the following substances:

flavonoids (licurazine, liquiritin and others);
phenolcarboxylic acids;
organic acids;
essential oil;
microelements.

This is only a basic list of beneficial substances contained in licorice.

Even ancient Chinese doctors valued licorice root for its rejuvenating effect on the body, which in modern language is called anti-atherosclerotic, tonic properties.

Licorice is included in many cough preparations and preparations, which is explained by its not only antitussive and expectorant effects, but also anti-inflammatory and antimicrobial.

The plant is valued for its diuretic and diaphoretic effects. Let's look at what diseases licorice root is used for. It is used in decoctions and infusions, both independently and as part of preparations. It is also included in pharmaceutical syrups and cough preparations, pharmaceutical preparations glycyram, liquiriton and others.

Medicinal properties

Licorice root has many beneficial properties:

Anti-inflammatory;
Antiviral;
Antipyretic;
Expectorants;
Laxatives;
Diuretics;
Antioxidant;
Antitumor;
Anti-aging;
Enveloping;
Wound healing;
Antispasmodic;
Detoxifying.

Ancient Chinese healers believed that licorice root prolongs life, preserves youth and beauty, and increases the body's resistance to various diseases.

The beneficial properties of licorice root are equated to the properties of ginseng. It strengthens the immune system, corrects the endocrine system, reduces cholesterol levels in the blood, and stimulates the secretory function of the glands.

Use in folk medicine

It has already been mentioned that licorice is indispensable for lung diseases. It is used to treat cough, bronchitis and pneumonia. The property of reducing acidity is used for diseases of the stomach and duodenum with high acidity. The laxative effect helps in the fight against constipation. The initial stages of hypertension and diabetes can be treated with licorice.

Syrup

Licorice ointment is used in the treatment of dermatitis, eczema and urticaria. Below are some recipes using licorice.

Traditional medicine recipes

To prepare the decoction: pour 10 grams of licorice root with a glass of boiling water and heat in a water bath for 20 minutes. The broth should brew for two hours, after which it must be strained, squeezed and topped up with hot water to a glass. Take licorice decoction five times a day, one tablespoon at a time.

The dry root can be chewed for a hoarse voice. When children get whooping cough, they are given a decoction of the root with milk, which is prepared at the rate of one teaspoon per glass of milk. The dosage for children of different ages should be checked with a doctor.

Before using other recipes listed below, it is recommended to consult a physician who knows the condition of your body and concomitant diseases.

Ointment

Here are two recipes for an ointment that can be used to treat skin diseases: dermatitis, psoriasis, eczema and burns.

The first recipe requires fresh root. It is washed, cut into small pieces and placed in a 0.5 liter glass jar, filling it ¾ full. Then pour in vegetable oil and leave in the sun for three weeks. The filtered oil is ready for use.
For the second recipe, a dry root is suitable, which is crushed into powder. Two or three tbsp. spoons of powder are mixed with 50 grams of fat. It can be butter, suet or goose fat. The finished ointment is stored in the refrigerator.

Adverse reactions and overdose

Licorice syrup can cause:

allergic reactions due to intolerance to one of the constituent ingredients;
a sharp increase in blood pressure, a decrease in the amount of potassium and an increase in the amount of sodium, swelling - when used for more than 1.5 months or a strong increase in the recommended dose;
diarrhea, myopathy, myoglobinuria.

If unusual reactions occur, the patient should contact the attending physician for a consultation.

Accidentally exceeding recommended doses leads to:

to potassium deficiency;
increased blood pressure;
changes in heart rate;
brain damage due to high blood pressure.

The appearance of overdose symptoms requires seeking medical help and symptomatic therapy.

Medicinal mixtures with licorice

Liquorice is often included in various preparations. Here are the most common recipes:

For coughs and bronchitis, a chest mixture is popular, having the following composition: Licorice is taken in a crushed state (3 parts). Add coltsfoot and plantain leaves in a ratio of 4:3. The mixture is poured with a glass of boiling water and left for 20 minutes. The strained infusion is brought in volume to one glass, taken one and a half hours after meals, 0.5 glasses two to three times a day.
For liver diseases and cholelithiasis, buckthorn bark and celandine are added to licorice in the proportion (5:1:2). One tablespoon of the mixture is poured into a glass of boiling water and boiled for ten minutes. Take two to three tablespoons three times a day.
For stomach ulcers, the roots of licorice and marshmallow, larkspur and celandine, combined in a ratio of 2:2:2:1. Prepare and take the decoction in the same way as in the previous recipe.

Root for decoction
For kidney problems, the following collection is popular: licorice, birch buds and bearberry leaves are mixed in a ratio of 10:8:5. Pour a tablespoon of the mixture into a glass of boiling water and leave for ten minutes. Take half a glass two to three times a day.

The variety of preparations that contain licorice root is difficult to cover in one article. Before using multi-component preparations, a preliminary consultation with a doctor is recommended.

Watch also the video on the topic:

Precautions from the instructions

The annotation for licorice syrup contains the following recommendations:

if the condition worsens or there is no effect of therapy, a doctor’s consultation is necessary;
to avoid the development of adverse reactions, the drug should not be combined with other products containing licorice;
for chronic or acute diarrhea, the medicine is taken with caution;
the medication contains 8% ethanol, which is contraindicated for persons with alcohol dependence;
Before use, the syrup must be shaken - during storage, sediment will form in it.

Due to the alcohol content, patients undergoing treatment should refrain from driving or operating complex moving machinery.