Name: Hemp sidach – common sapling
Hemp plant (Eupatorium cannabinum); sedum, horse mane, hemp plant, water hemp, dog hemp; the ordinary follower
A perennial herbaceous plant of the asteraceae (complex-flowered) family. The stem is erect, simple or branched at the top, brown-carmine, 50-170 cm tall. The leaves are opposite, short-petiolate (the upper ones are sessile), a little fluffy, divided into 3-5 lanceolate, pointed lobes, unevenly large-toothed along the edge; the upper ones are entire edges. The flowers are bisexual, with a honey smell, in small (b mm long and 2 mm wide) 4-7-flowered numerous baskets that form a dense corymbose- paniculate inflorescence; corolla tubular, purple, dirty pink or almost white. The fruit is an achene. Blooms in June – August.
Spread. Hemp plant grows almost throughout the territory of Ukraine on the banks of rivers and reservoirs, in wet forests and shrubs.
Procurement and storage . Herbs (Herba Eupatorii cannabini, synonym — Herba Cannabis aquaticae) and roots (Radix Eupatorii cannabini), less often — leaves (Folia Eupatorii cannabini) are used to make medicines. Grass (the tops of the plants are 30 cm long) and leaves are collected during the flowering period of the plant. Dry under a tent or in well-ventilated rooms. 25% of dry grass is obtained. Roots are harvested in autumn or early spring. The finished raw material is stored in a dry place.
The plant is unofficial .
Chemical composition . The herb of the plant contains the sesquiterpene lactone eupatoriopicrin, euparin, a-lac gucerol, 1-inositol, essential oil (up to 0.3%), rutin, hyperoside, tannins, saponins, vitamin C, resin, choline, inulin, astragalin, isoquercitrin, coumaric and ferulic acids and aromatic oxyacids (caffeic, chlorogenic, isochlorogenic). The root contains essential oil, euperin and carbohydrates, including inulin.
Pharmacological properties and use . Hemp plant has a choleretic, laxative, diuretic, diaphoretic, choleretic and wound-healing effect, lowers blood pressure and cholesterol in the blood, and stimulates appetite. The choleretic effect of the plant has been confirmed experimentally. It is also believed that the plant is a good blood-purifying and metabolic-stimulating agent.
Medicinal forms and applications.
Internally – infusion of leaves (25 g of raw material per 1 liter of boiling water, infuse for 10 minutes) 1 cup in the morning on an empty stomach and in the evening before going to bed to speed up recovery after a serious illness;
herbal infusion (3 tablespoons of raw material per 600 ml of boiling water, infuse overnight) 1 cup three times a day before meals for hypertension, high cholesterol in the blood (cholesterolemia) and as a choleretic agent for constipation;
decoction of roots (60 g of raw material per 1 liter of boiling water, boil for 10 minutes) drink one glass in the morning before meals in case of hypertension and cholesterolemia;
infusion of roots in wine (chop 40 g of fresh roots, dry, pour 1 liter of red wine, infuse for 12 hours, strain) 50 g after dinner for three weeks as a means of reducing cholesterol in the blood;
root powder is taken 5 g in a small amount of boiled water before going to bed as a choleretic and laxative.
Externally , freshly crushed leaves are used in the form of compresses when dilating the capillaries of the nose and cheeks (the procedure is repeated every other day).