Edible wild plants. Stinging nettle: description, beneficial properties

Nettle (lat. Urtica) is a large genus of annual or perennial herbaceous plants that belong to the dicotyledonous class, order Rosaceae, nettle family.

When creating botanical nomenclature, Carl Linnaeus left a generic name for this plant, received from Pliny the Elder. The etymology of the name is associated with the Latin words “uro” and “ussi”, meaning “to burn” or “to be burned”, eloquently speaking about the ability of the plant to cause noticeable painful burns to a person when its stems or leaves are touched. Russian definition comes from two Old Slavonic words: “krapat” - meaning “to splash” and “okrop” - corresponding to the concept of “boiling water”. Thus, it turns out that nettle is a plant that burns like boiling water and leaves burns in the form of drops or splashes.

Nettle - description and characteristics.

Depending on the species, nettle can be either a monoecious or dioecious erect plant with one stem and several lateral shoots. The height of nettle varies from 0.55 m to 2 m. The edges of nettle leaves, located opposite each other, are solid, with light or deep serrations, and also deeply dissected into 3-5 parts. The stipules located at the base of the petiole are paired and quite often fused together.

The stems and leaves of nettle are colored in various shades of green, and their surface is in most cases covered with a huge number of stinging hairs. Each of them is a kind of ampoule containing acetylcholine, serotonin, histamine, as well as formic acid, tartaric and oxalic acid. When it comes into contact with the body of a person or animal, the siliceous tip of the hair breaks off and penetrates under the skin, and along with it the contents of the “ampoule,” causing a chemical burn at the point of contact. Histamine, serotonin and acetylcholine cause pain and redness, while tartaric and oxalic acids, found in some types of nettles, are responsible for the duration of pain.

The branching inflorescences of nettle of the false-spike-shaped or paniculate type consist of small unisexual, less often bisexual, flowers.

Classification of nettles.

The genus Urtica consists of more than 50 species of nettles, some of which are recognized modern science as subspecies and synonyms. Below are the types of nettles with an indication of their growing area according to data from the website (www.theplantlist.org/tpl1.1/search?q=urtica):

• Urtica andicola
• Urtica angustifolia – Nettle leaf. Russia, China, Japan, Korea
• Urtica aquatica
• Urtica ardens. China.
• Urtica atrichocaulis. Himalayas, southwest China
• Urtica atrovirens. Western Mediterranean
• Urtica ballotifolia
• Urtica berteroana
• Urtica cannabina - Hemp nettle. Russia and Western Asia from Siberia to Iran
• Urtica chamaedryoides. Southeast North America
• Urtica circularis
• Urtica dioica - . Europe, Russia, Asia, North America
• Urtica echinata
• Urtica ferox – Ongaonga nettle tree. New Zealand
• Urtica fissa. China.
• Urtica flabellata
• Urtica galeopsifolia – Nettle. Central and Eastern Europe, Russia
• Urtica glomeruliflora
• Urtica gracilenta. USA (Arizona, New Mexico, western Texas), northern Mexico
• Urtica haussknechtii
• Urtica hyperborea. Himalayas from Pakistan to Bhutan, Mongolia and Tibet
• Urtica kioviensis - Kyiv nettle. Eastern Europe
• Urtica laetevirens – Light green nettle. Russia, Japan, Manchuria, Korea
• Urtica leptophylla
• Urtica lilloi
• Urtica longispica
• Urtica macbridei
• Urtica magellanica
• Urtica mairei. Himalayas, southwest China, northeast India, Myanmar
• Urtica masafuerae
• Urtica massaica
• Urtica membranacea. Mediterranean, Azores
• Urtica Mexicana
• Urtica minutifolia
• Urtica mollis
• Urtica morifolia. Canary Islands (endemic)
• Urtica orizabae
• Urtica parviflora. Himalayas
• Urtica pilulifera – Ball nettle. Southern Europe, Russia
• Urtica platyphylla – Flat-leaved nettle. China, Japan, Russia
• Urtica praetermissa
• Urtica pseudomagellanica. Bolivia
• Urtica pubescens – Hairy nettle. Northern Russia, central Asia
• Urtica purpurascens
• Urtica rupestris. Sicily (endemic)
• Urtica sondenii – Sonden's nettle. Northeastern Europe, northern Asia
• Urtica spiralis
• Urtica stachyoides
• Urtica subincisa
• Urtica taiwaniana. Taiwan
• Urtica thunbergiana - Thunberg nettle. Japan, Taiwan
• Urtica triangularis

• • Urtica triangularis subsp. pinnatifida

• Urtica trichantha
• Urtica urens - Stinging nettle. Europe, Russia, North America

Types of nettles that grow in Russia:

• Urtica angustifolia – Nettle leaf
• Urtica cannabina - Hemp nettle
• Urtica dioica - Stinging nettle
• Urtica galeopsifolia – Stinging nettle
• Urtica kioviensis - Kyiv nettle
• Urtica laetevirens – Light green nettle
• Urtica pilulifera – Ball nettle
• Urtica platyphylla – Flat-leaved nettle
• Urtica sondenii – Sonden's nettle
• Urtica urens - Stinging nettle

Types of nettles, names and photos.

Below is a description of several varieties of nettles:

• - it's perennial herbaceous plant with a well-developed creeping root system. The erect, hollow inside stem, having a tetrahedral cross-section, is abundantly covered with simple and stinging hairs. There is an abundant amount of burning hairs in the nodes. The height of the stem ranges from 0.6 to 2 m. At the beginning of the growing season, the nettle stem has a simple structure, however, starting from mid-summer, numerous axillary shoots form on it. The leaves of stinging nettle, painted dark green, have an elongated ovate-lanceolate or oval-heart-shaped shape. Their length can reach 5-17 cm, while the width of the leaves is 3-7 cm. The edges of the leaf blade are cut with rather deep teeth. The length of the petiole is 1-6 cm. Paniculate inflorescences consist of small unisexual flowers of pale green color. Nettle fruits are elliptical or ovoid in shape, their length is 1-1.3 mm, width - 0.8-1 mm. The flowering period of this type of nettle begins in the first ten days of May and ends in late autumn. widespread throughout almost the entire territory of Eurasia, as well as in most countries of North Africa, China, South-West and Central Asia. Also introduced to the North American continent and Australia. In Russia, nettle grows in forest and forest-steppe zones, ranging from the European part to the Caucasus, Eastern Siberia and the Far East. Thanks to its horizontal branching root system, dioecious nettle is capable of forming extensive thickets in damp meadows, along the banks of rivers and reservoirs, on deserted abandoned lands, along roads and fences.

• widespread in the Russian Federation, Germany, Poland, Romania, France and other European countries, as well as in North America. This annual plant with a powerful but rather short vertical root and a tetrahedral erect stem 15-50 cm high, the surface of which is covered with shallow vertical grooves. The small leaves of stinging nettle are dark green in color, reaching 1-6 cm in length and 1-4 cm in width, with a serrated edge, like the trunk, covered with numerous stinging hairs and a small number of simple hairs. The shape of the leaf blade can be oval or ovoid with a pointed nose. Unisexual small greenish nettle flowers can be either solitary or collected in spike-shaped inflorescences. The length of the petiole is 0.5-4 cm. Nettle fruits are ovoid in shape, their length is 1.5-2 mm, width - 1.1-1.3 mm. Ripe fruits usually have red-brown glands. Stinging nettle blooms from mid-May to late autumn.

• grows in Germany, Poland, France, Spain, Italy, in other European countries, as well as in Palestine. It is listed in the Red Book and is distributed in the European part of Russia, Belarus and Ukraine. This is a perennial monoecious plant with numerous lodging herbaceous stems no more than 1.2 m high. The leaf blades are dark green in color and have an oblong-ovate shape with a jagged edge. The surface of nettle leaves and stems is covered with sparse, stinging hairs. The paniculate inflorescence bears male and female flowers. The growing season of this type of nettle continues until the onset of stable frosts, down to -5 o C. Kiev nettle grows on swampy soils, in deciduous forests, along the banks of lakes, rivers and streams. Flowering lasts from early June to late July.

• grows in East Asian countries, China and Japan, in the Russian Far East, the Commander and Kuril Islands, Sakhalin and Kamchatka. It is a perennial plant with a short vertical root and a rather tall, erect stem and numerous thin side shoots. The height of the stem varies from 50 cm to 1.5 meters. The shape of the leaf blades can be ovoid or elongated-ovoid, their length varies from 4 to 20 cm, the width reaches 12 cm. The surface of the leaves, stem and side shoots of nettle is covered with stinging hairs. Paniculate or spike-shaped inflorescences, appearing in July-August, consist of very small flowers of a grayish-green color. Flat-leaved nettle blooms from July to October.

• found in mixed mountain and riverine forests, along roads and in populated areas of China, Korea, Japan, and Mongolia. On the territory of Russia it grows in the Chita and Irkutsk regions, Krasnoyarsk Territory, in Altai, Buryatia and Far East. This is a perennial herbaceous plant with a height of 15 cm to 1.2 meters with creeping rhizomes and an erect stem with sparse side shoots. The leaf blades are elongated-lanceolate or lanceolate (sometimes ovate-lanceolate), 4-12 cm long, 1-4 cm wide, with a serrate edge, painted in various shades of green. Inflorescences are paniculate, strongly branched. The whole plant is covered with many simple hairs, among which there are a few stinging ones. Nettle fruits are elliptical, ovoid or rounded-ovoid, fruit length 0.8-1 mm, fruit width 0.7-1 mm. Flowering of angustifolia nettle begins in June and, depending on the place of growth, can last until October. Can form hybrids with stinging nettle and flat-leaved nettle.

• – grows throughout almost the entire territory of the Russian Federation, Central Asia, Mongolia and China. It is mainly found along roads, in vacant lots, railway embankments, and in populated areas. This is a perennial plant with a powerful, horizontal, non-creeping root system and an erect tetrahedral stem with vertical ribs. The height of the nettle stem can reach 70-150 cm. Quite large leaves are dark green, up to 15 cm long, three-dissected or tripartite (with pinnately dissected segments). The stems and leaves are densely covered with clusters of fine stinging hairs and a small number of simple hairs. Inflorescences consist of many small unisexual flowers. The length of the petiole is 3-8 cm, which is 2-3 times shorter than the blade. Nettle fruits are ovoid or elliptical in shape, fruit length is 1.9-2.5 mm, fruit width is 1.2-2.8 mm. The flowering period of this type of nettle lasts from early June to mid-August.

• grows in European countries, in the south of Russia (in the Caucasus). This is a perennial plant with a creeping root system. The height of the tetrahedral erect stem, densely pubescent with simple hairs and a few stinging hairs, can reach 2 meters. Nettle leaves are arranged oppositely and have an elliptical or oblong-ovate shape. The leaf length is 6-14 cm with a width of 2.5 to 5 cm. The nettle leaf has a round or heart-shaped base, as well as a pointed tip. There are usually no burning hairs on the leaf blade. The length of the petiole is 1.5-5 cm. Nettle fruits are ovoid or elliptical in shape, their length varies from 1 to 1.3 mm, and their width is 0.7-1 mm. This type of nettle can be found in wet marshy areas, in lowlands and near rivers, in forests and bushes.

• - a perennial plant with a creeping root system, grows up to 1 meter in height. The nodes usually contain both burning and simple hairs. There are no hairs in the internodes. Nettle leaves have a narrow-ovate or oblong-ovate shape. The length of the leaf varies between 4 and 12 cm with a width of 1.5 to 4.5 cm. The apex of the leaf is pointed, the base is rounded, wedge-shaped. The leaf has 12-25 pairs of teeth. On the leaf blade only occasionally there are a few simple and stinging hairs, mainly located in large veins. The length of the petiole is from 1 to 6 cm. The nettle fruit has the shape of an ellipse or egg, the length of the fruit is 1-1.3 mm, the width is 0.6-1 mm. Sonden nettle grows in northern Europe, eastern Central Asia, and Russia. Usually this plant grows in forests and floodplains, meadows and near water bodies. It is very rare to find this type of nettle in cities or near roads.

• Nettle light green (lat.Urtica laetevirens) is a perennial herbaceous plant that blooms from June to August. The stem, whose height is 40-100 cm, has stinging hairs. The pointed nettle leaves, serrated along the edges, have a broadly ovate shape. The upper inflorescences are long, staminate, the lower ones are short and intermittent pistillate. The fruit of nettle is an egg-shaped nut. Light green nettle grows in the Russian Far East, found at the foot of cliffs and in the shade of forests. Prefers broad-leaved, coniferous-deciduous and poplar forests.

• nettle tree or ongaonga (lat. Urtica ferox - “fierce nettle”) grows exclusively in New Zealand. This is perhaps the only nettle with a woody stem, the height of which can reach 5 meters and a thickness of 12 cm. The stem with numerous branched side shoots and large leaves, 8-12 cm long and 3-5 cm wide, is densely covered with stinging hairs up to 6 mm long. The light green leaves have an elongated triangular shape.

• grows in southwest China, northeast India, the Himalayas, Myanmar, Nepal and Bhutan, where it is found in partially shaded moist forests, along the banks of streams, on roadsides and mountain slopes, and also near human habitation. It is a perennial herbaceous monoecious plant with a stolon-like root system and an erect stem with sparse lateral branches. The height of individual specimens rarely exceeds 1 m. The leaf blades, painted dark green, have a heart-shaped, ovoid, sometimes oblong shape. The length of nettle leaves is 10-15 cm, width - 3-6 cm. Petiole length is 3-8 mm. Inflorescences are unisexual, paniculate type, 4-10 cm long, with small flowers of grayish-green color. The fruits are light brown in color and have an oblong-spherical or spherical shape. The flowering period of nettle lasts from May to August.

• - a perennial plant with a straight or ascending stem, covered with a bluish coating, height from 20 to 75 cm. The leaves of ball-bearing nettle are quite wide (up to 9 cm), ovoid in shape, with a rounded base and a pointed apex. The inflorescences are collected in a spherical head. The fruit is a heart-shaped nut, no more than 3 mm long. This type of nettle is widespread in Crimea and the East Transcaucasian region. The plant loves landfills, roadsides, and is often found as a weed in cultivated crops.

Stinging nettle is known to many people. As soon as the spring sun begins to warm up, this grass appears. There are only three types of nettle: stinging nettle, hemp nettle and stinging nettle. The first has long been known for its characteristics. Next, we will learn more about this plant, find out what stinging nettle has beneficial features. The article will also tell you how this herb is used.

Stinging nettle: description

The botanical name of the herb is Urtica dióica. The plant belongs to the Nettle family. People call it strakiva, strekava, zhigalka, zhigachka, strekuchka, zhuchka. Stinging nettle is a perennial plant. The stem can reach 60-200 cm. Grass grows up to two meters in ideal climatic conditions, with a high height and density of plants in the area around it. The entire stem of the grass is covered with stinging hairs. They are densely distributed over all surfaces. The plant is distinguished by a powerful root and horizontal long branched rhizomes.

Stem

Stinging nettle has an elongated shoot. The stem of the plant is hollow, ascending or straight. Its consistency is grassy. On the surface, in addition to burning ones, there are also simple hairs. The cross-sectional structure is ribbed (tetrahedral). The plant is distinguished by a crosswise opposite leaf arrangement. On initial stage growing season, the grass has a simple stem. By the second half of summer, axillary shoots form on the grass.

Stinging nettle leaves

These parts of the plant are equilateral, opposite, whole. Nettle leaves are simple, long-petiolate, and dark green in color. The plate has an oblong ovoid-lanceolate or heart-shaped shape. The length of the leaf can reach 8-17 cm, and the width - from 2 to 8 cm. The bases of the plates are deeply heart-shaped. The recess reaches a depth of up to 5 mm. The leaf has a pointed, elongated tip. The edges of the plates are coarsely serrated or coarsely toothed. The venation is palmate. The stipules are narrowly triangular or oblong, free, stem-like. Their width is up to 4 mm. Leaf blades with pointed cystoliths. Simple hairs are mainly located along the veins. There are also plants with bare leaves. The grass blooms from May to October.

Burning hairs

These plant elements contain special stinging cells. They contain a very caustic liquid with a complex chemical composition. When you touch your fingers, for example, the tip of the hair breaks off, piercing the skin. The liquid from it penetrates deep into the wound. The result is mild inflammation and itching. Stinging nettle differs from annual nettle. Plants are often confused. Non-specialists usually call stinging nettle stinging nettle. This is how they distinguish it from the white claret. In India and on the island. Java grows species whose burns are as dangerous as a snake bite.

Spreading

Stinging nettle, the properties of which will be presented below, grows throughout the temperate climate zone of both hemispheres. The grass can be found in Asia Minor and Western Asia, Europe, China, and Transcaucasia. The plant is also common in the Indian subcontinent. Moreover, in the mountains of Nepal, the grass is found at altitudes of up to 3500-4500 m. Stinging nettle also grows in the northern part of Africa between Morocco and Libya. The grass has been brought to both Australia and the North. America. In Russia, the plant is found in the European part, in Western Siberia and included in Eastern. The grass also grows in the Far East. As a rule, it is found in forest-steppe and forest zones. The plant prefers moist and oily soil most of all.

Collection

The optimal period is May-July (sometimes August). At this time, the collection of nettle leaves begins. Working with gloves, they are carefully torn off from the stem. Drying is carried out in air. The whole plant is used to prepare juice. The rhizome is dug up in spring or autumn. This part of the plant is cleaned of adhering soil and dried in air or using artificial heating up to 40 degrees. Usually the grass is mowed with scythes and the leaves are picked off after it wilts, when they stop stinging. Seeds are collected when they are fully ripe. These plant elements are also widely used for therapeutic and preventive purposes.

Blank

Drying of raw materials is carried out in attics with iron roof or under well-ventilated canopies. The grass is spread in a thin layer of 3-5 cm on fabric or paper. Leaves should not be dried in the open sun. Otherwise they will become discolored. When overdried, the leaves lend themselves well to crushing. The preparation of raw materials is completed when the petioles and central veins begin to break. Dried leaves are pressed and packed into 50 kg bales, cut leaves into 20 kg bags. Raw materials are stored in a well-ventilated area on racks or stockpiles. Places must be protected from direct light. The shelf life of the herb is up to two years.

Stinging nettle: beneficial properties

The characteristics of a plant are determined by its chemical composition. The leaves contain various vitamins: B2 and B6, C, K. They also contain a lot of chlorophyll, carotene, tannins, and the glycoside urticin. Nettle is widely used in cooking. Silicon, calcium, iron, magnesium, and A-vitamin were found in the grass. Chlorophyll is used in cosmetology. The plant also contains protein. Due to this, the grass is also used in agriculture. There is a significant increase in the egg production of chickens and the milk yield of cows if stinging nettle is added to animal feed. The medicinal properties of the plant are also widely known. In particular, the herb has anti-inflammatory and hemostatic effects. The plant has an antipruritic, immunotropic and multivitamin effect. Nettle helps accelerate regeneration (healing), normalize general metabolism, and enhance hematopoiesis (blood formation). Stinging nettle is also used as a hepatoprotective, urinary and choleretic agent. The properties of the herb are used in the treatment of bronchopulmonary pathologies. The plant has an expectorant, antiseptic and analgesic effect. The herb has an anticonvulsant effect and also helps restore the sense of smell.

The drug "Allohol"

This product contains stinging nettle as an active ingredient. The medicinal properties of the plant in the preparation are combined with the therapeutic effect of dried garlic, dry bile and activated carbon. This remedy is used to enhance bile production. The drug "Allohol" normalizes the secretory activity of the liver. In addition, the mechanism of activity of the drug is due to the reflex function of the intestines. The drug can be used as replacement therapy for endogenous bile deficiency. The product "Allohol" reduces putrefactive processes in the intestines. Indications for the use of the drug include chronic cholangitis, constipation associated with atony, cholecystitis, hepatitis.

Dosage regimen for "Allohol"

The drug is taken orally, 2 tablets. Frequency of administration: 3 times a day. As a rule, the therapeutic course is 3-4 weeks. Children under seven years of age are recommended to take a tablet orally three times a day. The drug is taken before meals. Patients over the age of seven are prescribed the drug after meals, 2 tablets/3 times/day. The course of therapy is also 3-4 weeks. Improvement is observed on the fifth to eighth days after the start of therapy.

additional information

The drug "Allohol" is not prescribed for liver dystrophy and hepatitis in the acute stage. Contraindications include obstructive jaundice. Among negative consequences When taking the product, allergies and diarrhea should be noted. If side effects recur frequently, the drug is discontinued. In case of an overdose, diarrhea worsens, itching and nausea appear. There is also an increase in blood transaminase.

Use of the plant in ancient times

The medicinal properties of stinging nettle have been known since ancient times. For example, Dioscrides mentions this herb as a remedy used for a variety of diseases. Avicenna also spoke a lot about nettles. His notes contain indications that in ancient times people also took the plant for food. The grass was boiled with meat, consumed with eggs and onions. A decoction of stinging nettle in barley water was also popular. A drink was also prepared from herbs and honey.

The use of herbs in different areas of life

In terms of its nutritional properties, the plant is close to legumes. In this regard, grass is widely used in the preparation of feed for farm animals. Since the plant is not toxic, it is eaten by some peoples in Transcaucasia. A green dye for confectionery is made from nettle leaves. The lower underground part of the grass is used to create the yellow pigment. Nettle has also been used in weaving for hundreds of years. Canvas was made from the plant, which was subsequently used for sewing outerwear. Fishing gear was also woven from it, sails, ropes, and ropes were made. Nettle was also used to make valuable types of paper, and the ash was used as fertilizer. Stinging nettle flowers make an excellent infusion.

Health drinks

The leaves of the plant are used to normalize metabolism. These parts of the herb are a mandatory component of many collections for autumn and spring health courses. Young shoots and leaves are used mainly for vitamin deficiencies, for their prevention and elimination. The method of application is quite simple - the powder of crushed dry raw materials is added to the second and first courses. Almost all parts of the plant are used for therapeutic purposes. However, preparations in which the main component is stinging nettle root are considered more effective.

Recipe 1

Nettle root tincture is used to relieve joint pain, treat furunculosis, and rheumatism. The product is effective for diarrhea, pathologies of the gastrointestinal tract, and fever. The tincture is used as a hemostatic and regulating agent for disorders in the menstrual cycle. For preparation you need 2 tbsp of raw materials. The crushed root is poured with vodka (0.5 l). The mixture is infused for 7-10 days in a cool and dark place. The product is taken three times a day, 30-40 drops. You can enhance the effect by adding half a head of garlic (chopped) to the tincture. An infusion of the roots with sugar is used as an expectorant.

Recipe 2

Tincture of leaves is used as a hemostatic agent for myositis and rheumatic pain. To prepare, you need to place 10 grams (2 tablespoons) in an enamel container. The raw materials are poured into a glass of boiled hot water. Then the mixture is heated using a water bath for 45 minutes. Then the infusion is filtered and squeezed out. Add water up to 200 ml. The prepared product can be stored for no more than two days in a cool place. It is recommended to use melt water for preparation. Take half to a quarter glass of infusion before meals. Frequency of administration: 3-5 times per day. (as a hemostatic agent).

Water infusion

You can prepare an aqueous infusion of leaves by pouring a glass of boiling water over a tablespoon of the raw material. The mixture is kept for 10 minutes. Then the infusion is filtered. The drug is taken three times a day, 1 tbsp. l. The juice is taken orally for acne, rashes, and furunculosis. Stinging nettle is used for hair. To strengthen them and in case of baldness, it is recommended to rinse your hair after washing with an aqueous infusion of the plant. With active hair loss, the effect can be enhanced. For this, an infusion of nettle and burdock roots is used. The ingredients are taken equally. A tablespoon of raw materials is poured with boiling water (1 cup). The mixture should be boiled for five minutes over low heat, then left for 45 minutes. The strained infusion is rubbed into the scalp.

Genitourinary system

Stinging nettle is useful for potency. Good stimulation is observed when taking a tablespoon of plant seeds, ground with a ripe banana, during the day. You can increase your sex drive by mixing a teaspoon of crushed herb with onions and egg yolk. This mixture is taken three times a day, 1 tsp. Consuming 1-3 grams of seeds orally daily helps prevent ectopic pregnancy. The product improves the expansion of the lumen of the fallopian tubes. For cervical erosion, fresh herb juice is recommended. A bunch of nettles is twisted or finely chopped. The resulting pulp is wrapped in gauze and the juice is squeezed out of it. The tampon is soaked in juice and inserted into the vagina overnight. The product is used for a month. Nettle decoction is recommended for pyelonephritis and nephritis. A tablespoon of leaves (crushed) is poured with boiling water (1 cup). The mixture is simmered in a water bath for 10 minutes. The strained product is taken orally 1/3 cup before meals three times a day. For hemorrhagic metroendometritis and uterine fibroids, nettle accelerates the resorption of tumors.

Other pathologies

Plant juice with milk is recommended for stomach discomfort and vomiting. For toothache, drink a decoction from the underground part of the herb. It is also used as a mouth rinse for stomatitis, gingivitis, and periodontal disease. A decoction is recommended for epilepsy, exhaustion, and hysteria. In Romania, an ointment is prepared that is used for diseases caused by Staphylococcus aureus and other viruses that are resistant to antibiotics. Nettle is used as an anticancer agent, as well as for gangrene, leucorrhoea, and asthma. It has also been established that the use of the plant helps regulate the acid-base balance. Nettle is also an antidote.

Use in cooking

As a multivitamin, the plant is especially valuable in the spring. As a bulk, nettle is added to vegetable salads. Pickles, borscht, and cabbage soup are cooked with it. The antimicrobial (phytoncidal) properties of the plant make it possible to use it to increase the shelf life of various perishable products.

You can make a nettle salad. To do this you need 150 g of grass, an egg (1), sour cream (20 g). You will also need vinegar and salt. Leaves young plant should be boiled and crushed. The mixture is seasoned with vinegar, egg and sour cream are added on top.

There is a recipe for nettle sauce. For this, 200-300 gr. The plants are passed through a meat grinder. To the resulting mixture you need to add salt, onion (finely chopped), allspice and toasted flour. The mass is diluted with meat broth or hot milk. The sauce is usually served with potatoes, cutlets, and pasta.

The recipe for cabbage soup made from nettles is quite popular. To prepare them, the plant must be washed and sorted. Then it is filled with salted hot water and boil for 2 minutes. Next, you need to grind the mass through a sieve, add the onion (pre-chopped and fried in oil), a hard-boiled chopped egg. Cabbage soup is seasoned with grated cheese or sour cream. The dish is served with croutons.

In Poland and Scandinavia, a recipe for nettle sauce and puree is common. Young shoots are eaten as a seasoning for green borscht. They are also dried, pickled and fermented.

Not every person is allowed to take stinging nettle. Contraindications for the plant are similar to those that increase clotting. It is not recommended to use the plant for people with a tendency to thrombophlebitis or thrombosis. A relative contraindication is an increased prothrombin time index. People with this deviation are advised to limit their consumption of the plant. Pregnant women should not eat the plant. Contraindications also include hypertension.

The medicinal properties of stinging nettle have a wide range of applications. Urtica dioica is a wild herbaceous plant belonging to the nettle family (Urticaceae).

Stinging nettle (Urtica dioica) is a wild herbaceous plant.

Stinging nettle as medicinal plant included in the State Pharmacopoeia of the USSR XI edition. The medicinal raw materials are the leaves, which are a source of vitamin K and have hemostatic properties.

The grass is widespread everywhere, except in the Far North. Grows luxuriantly on fertile soils, rich in nitrogen. Solid thickets of nettle can be found in shady places, on the edges of forests, near housing and livestock farms, as well as in places where groundwater flows. It is a typical ruderal or weed plant that prefers landfills and cluttered areas. It is extremely rare in perennial grass crops.

Urtica dioica - perennial dioecious plant up to 1.5-2 m high, with a straight, unbranched, tetrahedral stem. Male and female flowers are located on different plants. The leaves are petiolate, ovate-broadly lanceolate with a simple coarsely toothed edge. The leaf venation is pinnate. The upper and lower parts of the leaf blade are differently pubescent.

The inflorescence is represented by a simple axillary spike with small green flowers. Male inflorescences are erect on short peduncles, female inflorescences are drooping.

The leaves and stems are covered with many hairs - long, stinging and short, simple. Stinging hairs, similar to hollow capillaries, have a unicellular structure and contain stinging cells filled with a stinging liquid. The stinging mixture contains formic acid, acetylcholine, and histamine. When a stinging hair damages the skin, the contents of the stinging cells enter the puncture, and a nettle burn occurs. In this way the plant protects itself from enemies.

The main location of stinging hairs is the underside of the leaf blade, large leaf veins, petiole and stem.

The fruits are ovoid nuts with a high fatty oil content.

Stinging nettle as a medicinal plant is included in the State Pharmacopoeia of the USSR, XI edition

Gallery: stinging nettle (25 photos)

Medicinal properties

There are historical facts that nettle in medicinal purposes was used back in the Bronze Age.

In folk medicine, the plant's stimulating abilities, medicinal properties and contraindications, such as use during pregnancy and breastfeeding, have long been known. At diabetes mellitus, varicose veins and thrombophlebitis, treatment with nettle preparations is also contraindicated.

In Europe, positive experience has been accumulated in the use of plant rhizomes as a source for drugs with antitumor activity. Such drugs are used in the treatment of prostatic hyperplasia using conservative treatment methods.

In Russia, rhizomes are not represented as medicinal raw materials in pharmacopoeias.

Stinging nettle leaves are part of the drug Allochol, a choleretic agent.

Medicines based on nettle leaves have hemostatic, hypotensive, analgesic, choleretic and diuretic properties. They are used in official and folk medicine in the treatment of skin, bronchopulmonary, neurological and gynecological diseases.

Enhances blood clotting. Helps increase hemoglobin content and the formation of red blood cells.

The leaves are part of herbal preparations or single-component preparations.

In folk medicine, the stimulating abilities of the plant, medicinal properties and contraindications, such as use during pregnancy and breastfeeding, have long been known.

Stinging nettle (video)

Chemical composition

Systematic study of the properties of stinging nettle began in the 20th century.

Aboveground and underground organs of the plant are rich in various useful substances:

1. Ascorbic acid - fresh leaves contain from 177 to 600 mg%, dry leaves up to 48 mg%.
2. Vitamin K in an amount of 1.5-4 mg%, which is involved in the synthesis of prothrombin, necessary for blood clotting.
3. Carotenoids (betacarotene and xanthophyll) - 50 mg%, have antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties. Carotenoids influence the formation of bones and teeth, especially in childhood. Their important role in stimulating the immune system and in the prevention of cancer has been noted.
4. Carotene - 10-20 mg%.
5. Chlorophyll - 5-8 mg%.
6. Tannins (tannins) have pronounced astringent, antioxidant, radioprotective and anti-inflammatory effects. Strengthens capillaries.
7. Flavonoids are plant aromatic phenolic compounds that have a wide spectrum of action: hemostatic, choleretic, diuretic, bactericidal, hypotensive.
8. Steroids were found in the rhizomes - sitosterol and ergosterol, which are part of the extracts used abroad for the treatment of prostate adenoma.
9. Isoprenoids are natural hydrocarbons that stimulate digestion and have a sedative effect.
10. Coumarins are phenolic compounds that exhibit antitumor and antimicrobial activity.
11. Organic acids (caffeic, malic, formic, oxalic, succinic) stimulate the secretory function of the stomach.
12. Lignans have stimulating, antimicrobial and hepatoprotective effects.
13. Phytoestrogens have a hormone-regulating effect. Nettle preparations can be used for the prevention and treatment of pathological menopause due to estrogen deficiency.
14. The seeds contain fatty oil - up to 33%.

• proteins - 20%;
• fat - 3-7%;
• sugars - 25%;

The inclusion of nettle in the diet of animals increases their productivity and resistance to infectious diseases. To treat hypovitaminosis and diseases of the gastrointestinal tract, calves are given nettle infusions. Eating nettle seed increases egg production in chickens.

Nettle for prostatitis (video)

Herbal medicines from nettle

The procurement of raw materials is carried out during the period of greatest accumulation of biologically active substances:

• leaves are collected shortly before flowering or at the beginning of flowering: when up to 45% of plants bloom;
• shoots are cut to a height of 8 cm from the ground at the beginning of flowering;
• rhizomes are dug up in early spring or autumn;
• The fruits are harvested at full ripening.

The collection of leaves continues throughout the flowering period.

The raw materials are laid out loosely in a thin layer and dried with good ventilation. Store dried herbs in paper or fabric bags, cardboard boxes in cool, dry rooms. The shelf life of grass and leaves is up to 2 years, roots and rhizomes - up to 4 years.

The color of the leaf powder is dark green.

The aqueous extract of the leaves has antiulcer, antibacterial, and analgesic effects.

Juice and infusion of leaves reduce alcohol intoxication, stimulate performance, and increase immunity.

Preparing and drinking juice:

• Grind fresh leaves and squeeze out the juice;
• take 20 drops per 100 ml of water three times a day before meals.

The decoction is prepared in a water bath for 30 minutes. Pour hot water (250 ml) into 20 g of dry leaves or 300 g of fresh leaves. Take 3 times a day before meals.

Infusion of 2 tbsp. l. fresh herbs and 400 ml of boiling water are cooked in a water bath for 15 minutes. Consume as a drink or apply externally to treat skin diseases.

Making nettle oil for hair at home:

• immerse dry or fresh leaves in vegetable oil;
• leave for 10 days in a dark place at room temperature;
• filter through cheesecloth and rub into hair roots.

Oil extracts or hydroalcoholic infusions from nettle leaves are used in cosmetic products. They are added to care products for oily and normal skin: shampoos, lotions, bath foams, tonics.

Young nettles are used for food: they are made into salads or added to green cabbage soup. Peasants mixed dry powder from nettle leaves with flour when baking bread in lean years at the rate of 4 parts cereal to 1 part nettle.

Fishermen store their catch in fresh nettle leaves: the fish does not spoil within a few hours.

Nettle fibers (bast) are located between the epidermis and the pith, forming bundles connected by pectin. Elastic and durable, they have natural antimicrobial and fire retardant properties. In the old days, ropes, yarn, and fishing gear were made from nettle fibers. Currently, stinging nettle is used as a raw material for the production of highly effective dressings.

An organic dye is obtained: yellow from the roots, and green from the leaves.

Nettle is a popular medicinal plant that has long been used in folk medicine. Plant raw materials, freshly collected or dried, are promising for use in medicine, the cosmetic industry, veterinary medicine and for animal feeding.

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Rice. 4.9. Stinging nettle – Urtica dioica L.

nettle leaves- folia urticae
Stinging nettle— Urtica dioica L.
Sem. nettles—Urticaceae
Other names: burning, kostrika, kostyrka, zhaluga, goad, slorekusha

A perennial herbaceous dioecious plant 60-170 cm high, densely covered with stinging hairs.

Rhizome creeping, branchy.

Stems erect, tetrahedral, unbranched.

Leaves opposite, long-petiolate, 7-17 cm long, 2-8 cm wide, broadly or narrowly ovate, coarsely toothed along the edge.

Flowers small, unisexual, with a simple four-part greenish perianth, collected in apical leafy inflorescences - thyrsus (Fig. 4.9).

Fetus- nut.

It blooms in June - August, the fruits ripen in August - September.

Composition of nettle

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Chemical composition of nettle

• Nettle leaves have a rich multivitamin composition. They contain vitamins:
  • K 1 (200 mg%),
  • ascorbic acid (270 mg%),
  • pantothenic acid (vitamin B 5),
  • carotenoids (50 mg%),
• glycoside urticin,
• tannins,
• organic acids,
• nitrogenous substances,
• chlorophyll (2-5%),
• sitosterol,
• choline,
• betaine,
• phytoncides,
• iron salts,
• silicon and other substances.

Properties and uses of nettle

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Pharmacotherapeutic group. K-vitamin, hemostatic agent.

Pharmacological properties of nettle

Preparations of nettle leaves have

• hemostatic properties, which are associated with the presence of vitamin K and chlorophyll in the plant.

Galenic preparations of nettle provide

• stimulating effect on contractile activity of the uterus.

Nettle preparations

• enhance the activity of the digestive glands,
• reduce flatulence,
• have choleretic properties,
• reduce blood cholesterol levels.

Vitamins, chlorophyll and iron salts

• stimulate erythropoiesis,
• increase hemoglobin levels and basal metabolism,
• improve the regeneration of mucous membranes,
• activate the cardiovascular system and gas exchange.

Nettle has a general tonic effect.

Biologically active substances from nettle roots

• influence metabolic processes,
• reduce the proliferation of prostate cells,
• inhibit the progression of prostate enlargement, thereby preventing inflammation.

Uses of nettle

Hemostatic effect nettle leaves are used for

• uterine,
• pulmonary,
• renal,
• gastrointestinal and
• hemorrhoidal bleeding.

Nettle is indicated for overdoses of anticoagulants indirect action.

Nettle leaves are included in medicinal fees.

Recently, they have found widespread use preparations from nettle roots for the treatment of non-infectious chronic prostatitis, prostate adenoma.

Spreading

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Spreading. Throughout the country, with the exception of the Far North, as a ruderal and weed plant; is almost cosmopolitan and actively reproduces.

Habitat. On fertile, nitrogen-rich soils, in shady places, near housing, along river banks, in littered places, in camps, in damp forests. In some places it forms continuous commercial thickets.

Procurement and storage of raw materials

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Collection. Leaves are collected during the flowering phase. The above-ground part is cut off with a sickle or knife, dried for 2-3 hours, then the leaves are torn off. In clean thickets, nettles are mowed down. Collection and processing of raw materials is carried out in canvas gloves.

Species considered unacceptable for harvesting are: stinging nettle and hemp nettle.
Stinging nettle(Urtica urens L.) is a weedy and ruderal annual, monoecious plant 40-50 cm high. The leaves are elliptical or ovate, 4-5 cm long, with a rounded wedge-shaped base.

Hemp nettle(Urtica cannabina L.) is a perennial herbaceous plant 50-150 cm high. The leaves are deeply 3-5 dissected with pinnately toothed cuts.

Rice. 4.11. Stinging nettle(s)
possible impurities: b – stinging nettle; c – white yam.

Very similar to the leaves of stinging nettle, but do not have stinging hairs, leaves of white nettle, or dead nettle (Lamium album L.), plants from the family. Lamiaceae – Lamiaceae. The flowers of the clasp are bisexual, white, with a two-lipped corolla 2 cm long (Fig. 4.11).

Security measures. Due to the enormous resources of stinging nettle, no special measures are required; it is necessary to alternate harvesting sites.

Drying. Nettle leaves are dried in dryers at a temperature of 40-50 ºС or in attics, under awnings, spread out in a 3-5 cm layer on fabric or paper. After drying, remove blackened and browned leaves, stems, and flowers. The leaves are thin and easily crushed. The end of drying is determined by the fragility of the petioles.

Storage. In a dry and dark place, packed in bales or bags. Shelf life up to 2 years.

External signs of raw materials

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Whole raw materials

Leaves whole or partially crushed, simple, petiolate, up to 10 (12) cm long and up to 6 cm wide, broadly or narrowly ovoid, pointed, usually heart-shaped at the base, edges sharply and coarsely serrated, with teeth curved towards the apex.
Leaf surface rough hairy, especially many hairs along the leaf veins.
Leaf petioles round or semi-circular in cross-section, with a groove on the upper side of the petiole, covered with hairs.
Leaf color dark green, petioles green. The smell is weak.
Taste bitter.

Crushed raw materials

Leaf pieces various shapes passing through a sieve with holes with a diameter of 7 mm.
Color raw material dark green.
Smell weak.
Taste bitter.

Microscopy of a nettle leaf

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When examining a leaf from the surface, epidermal cells are visible:

• the upper ones are polygonal, with straight walls or slightly tortuous, the lower ones are with strongly tortuous walls.
• The stomata are surrounded by 3-5 epidermal cells (anomocytic type) and are found mainly on the underside of the leaf. In the cells of the epidermis, cystoliths are often found in the form of oblong-round formations with a granular structure and a small spot in the center - a stalk.
• Hairs on both sides of the leaf, of three types: retort-shaped, stinging and capitate.
  • Retort-shaped hairs are unicellular, have an expanded base and an elongated pointed apex.
  • Stinging hairs consist of a multicellular base and a large terminal cell, which ends in an easily broken off head.
  • The capitate hairs are small with a two-, less often three-celled head on a one-celled stalk.
• Along the large veins there are cells with small drusen of calcium oxalate, forming characteristic chains (Fig. 4.10).

Rice. 4.11. Microscopy of a nettle leaf

Rice. 4.10. Microscopy of a nettle leaf: mineral impurity no more than 1%.

Crushed raw materials

• Humidity no more than 14%;
• total ash no more than 20%;
• ash, insoluble in a 10% solution of hydrochloric acid, no more than 2%;
• pieces of blackened and browned leaves no more than 5%;
• other parts of the plant (pieces of stems, inflorescences, etc.) no more than 5%;
• particles that do not pass through a sieve with holes with a diameter of 7 mm, no more than 10%;
• particles passing through a sieve with holes measuring 0.5 mm, no more than 15%;
• organic impurity no more than 2%;
• mineral impurity no more than 1%.

Medicines based on nettle

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1. Nettle leaves, crushed raw materials. Hemostatic agent.
2. Includes collections (gastric No. 3; laxative No. 1; multivitamin; “Mirfazin”, hypoglycemic, hypolipidemic collection; collection for the preparation of medicine according to the prescription of M.N. Zdrenko).
3. Nettle extract liquid. Hemostatic agent.
4. "Allohol", tablets p.o. (component – ​​thick leaf extract or powder). Choleretic agent.
5. The extract is included in general strengthening elixirs (“Pervoprestolny”, “Vivaton”, “Cardiotron”, etc.).
6. Prostavern Urtica liquid, solution for oral administration (liquid extract from nettle roots). Improves bladder emptying and reduces residual urine in it.
7. Prostavit, capsules (component – ​​extract from nettle roots). Antidisuric agent.
8. Urtiron, capsules (extract from nettle roots). Reduces the proliferation of prostate cells, has an anti-inflammatory, diuretic effect.

Nettle family - Urticaceae.

Stinging nettle (lat.Urtica dioica ) is a perennial dioecious herbaceous plant with a long rhizome. The stems are erect, bluntly tetrahedral, grooved, with hard, stinging hairs. The leaves are opposite, ovate-lanceolate, large-fingered, covered with stinging hairs. The flowers are small, unisexual, green, with a simple four-parted perianth. Male flowers have four stamens, female flowers have one pistil, sessile stigma. The inflorescences are axillary, long, spike-shaped, pendulous. The fruit of stinging nettle is an ovoid nut. Plant height 30-150 cm.

Stinging nettle (lat.Urtica urens ) is a monoecious annual herbaceous plant with a branched stem. The leaves are ovate-elliptical, sharp, incised-serrate, covered with stinging hairs. The flowers are small, green, with a simple perianth, staminate and pistillate. The flowers are collected in a spike-shaped inflorescence, which is equal in length to the leaf petioles or shorter than them. In stinging nettle, unlike stinging nettle, the spike-shaped inflorescences are pendulous and longer than the leaf petioles. Plant height 15-60 cm.

Common names: zhaliva, zhguchka, zhegala (Tver region), strekava (Pskov, Tver region), seri-palax (Mordovia), wind (Chuvashia), seizir, kirtken (Kyrgyzstan), eginj (Armenia), tchintchari (Georgia).

Flowering time: June August.

Spreading: Nettle is found almost throughout Russia.

Place of growth: Nettle grows along the edges of forests, gardens, bushes, river banks, ravines, wastelands, near housing and roads.

Applicable part: leaves and roots with rhizomes.

Collection time: leaves are collected in June - August, roots - in late autumn.

Chemical composition: stinging nettle leaves contain up to 269 mg% vitamin C, carotene and other carotenoids (up to 50 mg%), vitamins B and K, formic, pantothenic and other organic acids. up to 5% chlorophyll, more than 2% tannins, gum, protoporphyrin, coproporphyrin, sitosterol, glycoside urticin, iron, phytoncides, quercetin, caffeic, p-coumaric, ferulic acids were found in the leaves.

Stinging nettle leaves contain carotene, vitamins, pantothenic acid, iron and calcium salts, tannins, carotenoids, tannins, and the glycoside urticin.

Collection and preparation: Nettle leaves are collected when the plant is in flower. They do this with protective gloves, as fresh leaves sting to the point of burns. The leaves are dried under shelters, scattered in a layer of 3-5 cm and stirred periodically. Shelf life - 2 years. Rhizomes are dug up in early spring or autumn, cleared of soil and dried under shelters or in dryers at a temperature of 40°C. Shelf life - 2 years.

Contraindications: Since the plant enhances blood clotting, nettle has contraindications for use: if you have varicose veins, thrombophlebitis and simply thick blood - in order to avoid the appearance of blood clots. Nettle should not be used for hypertension or kidney disease. Use very carefully for atherosclerosis.

Application:

Nettle is widely used in folk medicine in various countries.

Russian medicine used it back in the 17th century and highly valued it as a good hemostatic and wound healing agent.

Nettle has a diuretic, weak laxative, expectorant, anticonvulsant, anti-inflammatory, antiseptic, analgesic, “blood purifying”, hemostatic and wound healing effect. It enhances the activity of the digestive glands and the secretion of milk in nursing women. Nettle increases the percentage of hemoglobin and the number of red blood cells in the blood. There are indications that a decoction of the leaves can lower blood sugar.

In Russian folk medicine and folk medicine of other countries, water infusion and decoction of nettles are used for diseases of the liver and biliary tract, kidney stones, dysentery, dropsy, chronic persistent constipation, colds, diseases of the respiratory organs, hemorrhoids, acute articular and muscular rheumatism, gout. Nettle infusion is also used as an internal “blood purifier” that improves blood composition in the treatment of various skin diseases (lichen, acne, boils). A decoction of the leaves with barley flour is drunk for chest pain.

In a mixture with other herbs, nettle is used for pulmonary tuberculosis. Nettle leaves are included in various gastric, laxative and multivitamin preparations.

A water infusion of nettle has long been used in folk medicine for hemorrhoidal, uterine, pulmonary and intestinal bleeding.

IN last years Nettle began to be used in scientific medicine for uterine and intestinal bleeding in the form of a liquid extract. Clinical testing has shown that it does not cause any harmful effects. The liquid extract also has diuretic, antifever and anti-inflammatory effects. Nettle extract regulates menstruation and reduces blood loss from it. To increase blood clotting, it is recommended to use a mixture of liquid extracts of nettle and yarrow. The hemostatic effect of nettle is explained by the presence in it of a special antihemorrhagic vitamin K, as well as vitamin C and tannins.

In folk medicine, a decoction of the rhizomes and roots of stinging nettle is used internally for furunculosis, hemorrhoids and swelling of the legs, and an infusion of the roots is used as a heart remedy. Sugared nettle rhizomes are also used for coughs.

An infusion of stinging nettle roots is used to treat pulmonary tuberculosis. An infusion of stinging nettle flowers in the form of tea is drunk for choking and coughing for expectoration and resorption of sputum.

Nettle is also used as an external hemostatic and wound healing agent. Infected wounds are more quickly freed from pus and heal faster if they are sprinkled with nettle powder or fresh leaves are applied to them. A decoction of the whole plant is used externally for washes and compresses for tumors. Dried and crushed leaves are used for nosebleeds, and fresh leaves are used to destroy warts.

Nettle infusion is rubbed into the scalp to grow and strengthen hair in case of hair loss.

Even in ancient times, nettle was used in folk medicine as a skin irritant (that is, a factor in reflex therapy).

Nettle has a multifaceted effect on the human body and deserves wide use in scientific medicine.

Mode of application:

1) Infuse 1 tablespoon of dry nettle leaves for 1 hour in 1 glass of boiling water, strain. Take 1 tablespoon 3-4 times a day 1/2 hour before meals.

2) Infuse 1 tablespoon of dried nettle leaves for 1 hour in 1 glass of boiling water, strain. Wet your hair with the infusion after washing and lightly rub it into the skin, but do not wipe your head. Apply rubbing for several months, repeating them every week.

Powder from dried nettle leaves is sprinkled on weeping and festering wounds.

Briquettes are produced from crushed nettle leaves weighing 75 g, divided into 10 segments. One slice is poured into a glass of boiling water, left for 10 minutes, filtered, and cooled. Prescribe 1 tablespoon 3 times a day.

Stinging nettle Urtica urens 2X-3X is used in homeopathy. Prescribed for allergic diseases: angioedema of the skin and mucous membranes, urticaria and hay fever.