A perennial herbaceous liana of the passionflower family. The stem is climbing with tendrils or slender (in the absence of a support), smooth, round, leafy, woody at the base, up to 6 m long. The leaves are simple, alternate, hilikotripartite, leathery, green above, grayish below, fine-serrated on the edge, on long petioles. The flowers are regular, bisexual, large (about 5 cm or more in diameter), consist of a five-lobed calyx and a five-leaf corolla, and between the corolla and the stamens there are 2 rings of long thread-like lilac ends, which gives the flowers a unique beauty. The fruit is berry-like, oval, juicy, edible, yellow-orange in color. In the conditions of Adjara, it blooms in July-September.
Spread. The homeland of passionflower is Brazil. On the territory of the former USSR, it is cultivated as a medicinal plant on the Black Sea coast of the Caucasus.
Procurement and storage . Dried grass (Herba Passiflorae incarnatae) of passionflower is used for the manufacture of medicines, which is collected several times during the growing season: in the phase of budding, flowering and the beginning of fruiting of the plant. The finished raw material is a mixture of grass shoots, leaves, flowers and unripe fruits. The shelf life is 2 years. Store in a dry, ventilated room.
Chemical composition . Passionflower grass contains up to 0.05% of alkaloids, the main of which are the indole derivatives harman, harmin and harmol. In addition to alkaloids, the herb contains phenolic compounds (flavonoids, coumarins, quinones), pectin substances, saponins, and ascorbic acid.
Pharmacological properties and use . Passionflower preparations are used as a sedative for neurasthenia, insomnia, chronic alcoholism, hyperkinesis, post-influenza arachnoiditis, menopausal disorders and other pathologies of the central nervous system. Passionflower preparations are contraindicated for myocardial infarction, angina pectoris, and atherosclerosis of brain and heart vessels.
Medicinal forms and applications. Internally – liquid extract of passionflower (Extractum Passiflorae fluidum) – 20-30 drops 3 times a day (course of treatment – 20-30 days);
Passit is a combined product (contains extracts of passionflower, valerian, common St. John’s wort, blood-red hawthorn and common hops) produced in the Czech Republic.
Take 1 teaspoon 3-4 times a day as a sedative; before going to bed – 2 teaspoons each.