Dandelion officinalis – kulbaba likarska (harvesting and storage)

ex Wigg. The Ukrainian name is kulbaba likarska, popular names are flyers, bagels, grandmothers, padivolos, wild euphorbia, wolf’s tooth, chichik, malainitsya.

 

Compositae family – Asteraceae (Compositae).

For medicinal purposes, dandelion root is used.

It occurs throughout Ukraine, especially in large numbers in forest-steppe regions. Grows on roadsides, streets, yards, parks, gardens, meadows near villages.

Stocks of raw materials are large, tens of tons of roots can be harvested annually. The main blanks are produced in Khmelnitsky, Vinnytsia, Kyiv, Cherkasy, Poltava, Sumy, Kharkiv regions. The average annual procurement of dandelion cakes in the republic for three years (1974-1976) amounted to 2.1 tons.

Dandelion officinalis is a perennial. The roots are vertical, 20-60 cm long and 1-2 cm thick, reddish-brown above, white inside. The leaves in the rosette are slightly cobwebbed, up to 20 cm long. Flower stems (arrows) are fistulate, leafless, arachnoid at the top, ending in single inflorescences-baskets. The flowers in the basket are all reed, yellow. The fruits are achenes at the top with long noses of dandelion species bearing a tuft of simple hairs. Blooms in April – May. The fruits ripen in May – June.

The roots of other dandelion species, which often grow in the same places as the medicinal dandelion, should not be harvested. Therefore, when harvesting raw materials, attention should be paid to the external signs of plants.

The roots are harvested in autumn (September-October) or early spring at the beginning of regrowth (April). The roots of summer harvesting are flabby, they give low-quality raw materials. They dig them with shovels, shake off the ground, cut off the aerial parts with a root neck and thin lateral roots with knives, and then wash them in cold water.

After drying for several days in the open air, they are dried in attics under an iron roof or under sheds with good ventilation, spreading out in a thin layer (3-5 cm) on paper or cloth. Can be dried in ovens or dryers at a temperature of 40-50 °. The yield of dry raw materials is 33-35%.

According to GOST 2397-75, the raw material consists of slightly branched roots 2-15 cm long and 3 cm thick in a thin part, without a root collar, longitudinally wrinkled, sometimes twisted, brown or dark brown on the outside. Inside, at a break, grayish-white or white bark, and yellow wood in the center. There is no smell. The taste is sweetish-bitter with a slimy feeling. Humidity is not higher than 14%. In raw materials, no more than (percent) is allowed: roots poorly cleaned of aerial parts – 4, flabby roots and roots with lagging bark – 2, browned and blackened roots at a break (less than 2 cm long) – 10, organic 0.5 and mineral impurities – 2.

The ash content should not exceed 8%, including ash soluble in 10% hydrochloric acid – 4%. Extractive substances extracted by water should be at least 40%.

Dry roots are packed in bales weighing 50-100 kg. Store in dry, well-ventilated areas on pallets or racks. Storage period up to 5 years. Not subject to control.

The roots contain the bitter glycoside taraxacin, mucus, resins, inulin, etc. They are used as a choleretic, appetite stimulant and digestive aid in infusions. The root is part of the gastric, appetizing and diuretic fees.

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