What does wormwood look like? Wormwood - photo. Kinds of wormwood: description, names

Our ancestors always used the properties of plants in the treatment of diseases. Used broths, tinctures, extracts. The healers were very much appreciated in Russia. Virtually every person had an elementary knowledge of the strength of herbs and flowers. For example, everyone knew that wormwood has the ability to arouse appetite and fight neurasthenia. Let us dwell on this grass in more detail.

What does wormwood look like?

Grass belongs to the family of Compositae. Most often there are two- and multi-year representatives. Wormwood can have the form of a half-shrub in height from 3 to 150 cm, with a woody root. Stems are found in two types: shortened, infertile (perennial plant) and erect, fruiting (annual). The location of the leaves is regular. Flowers of wormwood of small size, yellow or red, collected in baskets of different shapes. Grass usually has a sharp smell and taste. Wormwood is not afraid of frost and drought, it is very hardy.

There are 250 plant species in the world, but according to some sources, there are 470 of them. These include, for example, medical, bitter, Australian, northern, field and so on. Where grows wormwood? In the countries of the former USSR, grass is most common in Central Asia, Transcaucasia, and Northern Kazakhstan. It also occurs in Japan, Norway, Alaska, and North America.

Wormwood

Translation of the name from Latin means that this plant has a bitter taste and therefore does not bring pleasure. How does wormwood look bitter? This is a perennial grass with erect stems. On the rhizome are able to grow shoots with inflorescences and leaves, as well as radical leaves. The grass has yellow flowers and brownish fruits, which ripen in early autumn. An unusual color has wormwood bitterness. The photo shows how a large number of pressed hairs give it a silvery-gray hue. Due to this property, the grass is also called "silvery".

Procurement of raw materials

In medicine, the top blossoming stems and leaves are used. The first harvested in June-August, when the wormwood blooms. The grass should consist of radical leaves and leafy tops. At the beginning of flowering, the leaves are collected, folded into bags, and sent to drying as soon as possible. It happens that other species of wormwood, such as the common, Sivers, also enter the collection. Such an impurity does not reduce the healing properties.

Procurement of ingredients usually lasts 10-15 days. First, all the parts are carefully examined and the inflorescences of late flowering, which have a brown color , are removed . Then in the air or in a ventilated room proceed to drying, the end of which is determined by the fragility of petioles and stems. Ultimately, the product should contain no more than 13% moisture. You can store raw materials for two years.

Reproduction and care

The wormwood is cultivated in two ways: by means of seeds and by cuttings. In the first case, the collected seeds are sown in rows. As growth grows, weak shoots and excess plants are removed. As a result, strong sprouts will remain. Wormwood silvery is transplanted to a permanent place two weeks later. It can be a primer or a pot.

Reproduction in the second way is done by cutting a handle with a heel of 10 cm. Then he is put in a pot and left in a cool place. In the first month of spring cuttings with roots are planted in flowerpots separately, and already in autumn are transferred to a permanent place.

Wormwood silvery prefers drained soil. Though a plant and unpretentious, but for good growth, it needs sunlight. In summer, the grass is watered abundantly, and in the winter - as the soil dries. In the period of rapid growth, Artemisia will not be superfluous to introduce complex fertilizers, but no more than twice.

Ordinary wormwood

This is a perennial plant that can be found in almost all regions of Russia. The second name of the species is the chernobylnik. What does the wormwood look like ? A distinctive feature of the plant is the brownish-violet stain color, whitish-silvery leaves. The height of the grass reaches 150 cm. The flowers are collected in oval baskets, forming a paniculate inflorescence. The fruit is an olive-brown seed, ripening during August-October. Flowering of Artemisia vulgaris begins in June and ends in August. The smell of grass is specific. This variety, as well as the bitter wormwood (photo and description of which are given above), is encountered quite often and is very widely used.

Decorative view

Such a species belongs to Schmidt and Steller's wormwood. They are grown on garden plots. The first variety is found in the Kuril Islands, on Sakhalin. I'm used to living in poor soils, namely in the mountains and on the seaside. What does Schmidt's wormwood look like? It is a round, openwork bushes with a height of 25-30 cm. August-September is the time of flowering.

The second grade grows on the rocks of Japan, the Far East, Alaska, and also in the estuaries of rivers. This is a perennial plant with silvery-gray leaves. In the decor is more often used for decorating curbs. To maintain the desired form, wormwood is cut and annual rejuvenation by hilling or dividing.

The color of the plant varies from green to white, with different shades. The bush is added to dry bouquets, combining with many different colors. Low-grown species are mainly used to create alpine slides, decorate curbs. Tall grades are used in decorating flower beds.

Care and reproduction

The main advantage of decorative wormwood is the lack of need for special care. It will grow on a site with always cold ground, and under the open hot sun. But the heavy, heavily moistened soil is not for her. Frequent watering is not required. For better development, the plant is fertilized with compost in spring. And to ensure that the decorative qualities last longer, you need to trim the peduncles. Decorative wormwood is not susceptible to disease, and pests bypass it. But if too hot and humid conditions, then the plant can become covered with spots - so the powdery mildew appears. With such an ailment, the fungicide will help.

Wormwood reproduces in many ways: by seeds, cuttings, segments of the rhizome, by dividing the bush. The parts that will give rise to the young plant are immediately planted in a new place. Cuttings should be done at the end of May. Shoots are put in boxes with sandy soil. A year later they are transplanted into the open ground. If the seeds are used in reproduction, they are sown in April in greenhouses.

Tarhun

In addition to the common name, this kind of wormwood is called tarragon, dragoon-grass, turgun and so on. The plant is a perennial herb with a spicy smell. There is still a kind of tarragon without a smell. The aroma is due to the presence of essential oils in the composition. Leaves of wormwood contain vitamin C and carotene, as well as mineral salts such as manganese, cobalt, copper.

Special conditions of breeding does not require. But for better growth and the accumulation of essential oils, it is necessary to plant wormwood in non-dark areas with loose, light soil. Propagates both in seeds and vegetatively. Care for planting consists of several stages: loosening, weeding, watering, fertilizing with mineral fertilizers. Growing grass almost everywhere - Mongolia, India, Pakistan, China, Alaska, North America and Russia do not suffer from a shortage of this useful plant.

Features of planting tarragon

An ideal place for plant life is a site with direct sunlight. It is better to use sandy loam soil. Heavy soil is broken by sand and organic fertilizers. In case the soil is acidic, wood ash is added before planting. Tarragon does not like clay soil, too moist. Fertilize in autumn, before digging a site. Plant the plant in both spring and autumn. Over time, the leaves become hard, because of this, taste qualities are lost, so it is better to update the beds every four years.

Cut the plant before flowering. Dry in a warm, well-ventilated place. Well, if in the first half of the day on the grass will be scattered sun rays. After drying, tarragon is poured into containers with a sealed lid, which allows for a long time to preserve the aroma of the grass.

The workpiece is carried out in the first year of planting. Cut the tops with leaves in plants that have reached a height of 20 cm Thanks to this action, the stems become more powerful. The second time they cut off already at the very base of the shoot. For the winter, the stems can be cut, and this action is better in the first months of autumn. And you can leave, then in the spring they are already removed dry. If there is a threat of freezing, then the plant can be covered with humus.

Varieties of tarragon

The plant can distinguish odorless species and those that have a smell. For example:

1. "French" has a delicate, spicy flavor. The plant does not give seeds, has an average size and dark green leaves.

2. "Volkovsky" is considered one of the ancient species of tarragon. The smell is barely audible. Leaves are matted.

3. "Russian" has a weak, spicy flavor. The bushes are tall and powerful.

4. "Zhulebinskaya semko" is a rather universal kind. Can grow in one place up to seven years. The average size of the bush is up to 150 cm. The leaves are green, and the flowers are small, yellow in color. It is frost-resistant.

5. "Monarch" is a perennial plant. It has a lot of lateral shoots and has large leaves with short pubescence.

Lemon wormwood

This plant variety is rich in vitamin C, and its essential oil is the basis for the synthesis of vitamin A. The species under natural conditions grows only in Turkmenistan, and in cultivated plants it is found in Moldova and the Crimea. Lemon wormwood is practically not subject to the action of pests. The plant tolerates the drought well. The perennial shrub has gray, woody shoots. Baskets of flowers form a panicle. Seeds are light gray in color, small in size. It has a pleasant lemon scent.

In one place the plant can live up to 15 years, giving birth to many shoots. To increase the number at the end of summer, they are cut at an altitude of 20-30 cm from the soil. This action also increases the frost resistance of wormwood. In Russia, the plant is propagated by cuttings and by dividing the bush. Shoots cut into a length of 10 cm and planted under a film. In the water cuttings quickly give birth to roots, and then they can be planted from spring to autumn. Seedlings are planted at a distance of one meter from each other. Seeds of lemon wormwood do not form in our territory. As care of the plant, it is enough to feed it, cultivate and loosen the soil. Harvesting is carried out during the active flowering period by cutting off the above-ground part at a height of 12 cm from the ground.

A plant of wormwood in all its diversity is a universal remedy for many diseases. In addition to medicinal properties, varieties differ in appearance. Due to its unpretentiousness, the plant can be grown in almost any area, and it will please its unusual beauty. The ancient Slavs considered wormwood capable of purifying the physical and spiritual world. The essential oil of Buddhist grass was used in meditations for better concentration. The pagans believed that the scent of the plant repels evil spirits and protects them from spoilage.