St. John’s wort (common) – hypericum perforatum l.
Popular names: birch, raven, bloody, bloody, dyuravets, Ivanovo grass, hare blood, ailment, tears of the Mother of God, sevenfold blood, etc.
Botanical characteristic. St. John’s family. Perennial herbaceous plant up to 60 cm high. Stem erect, branched with two ribs. Leaves and branches are opposite. The leaves are oblong-oval, obtuse, whole-cut, smooth. They appear to be within the needle, hence the name “perforated”. The flowers are bright yellow, arranged in the form of a shield. The fruit is a box. Blooms in June – July. The fruits ripen in September (color table VI – 1).
Spreading. It occurs in the steppe and forest-steppe zones of the European part of the Soviet Union, in the Caucasus, in Western Siberia, Central Asia, and in the Urals. It grows traditionally in strips, in patches, without forming large thickets, in dry meadows, forest clearings, in sparse birch forests, along roadsides, in fallows.
Medicinal raw materials. The flowering tops of the plant (grass) are harvested by cutting off the upper part of the stems with leaves and flowers 25-30 cm long with a secateurs, knife or sickle, during the period of mass flowering. Dry in bunches or lay out on a clean bedding in the shade in the open air or in attics, sheds and other ventilated areas. Raw materials will need to be spread in a thin layer (5 cm) and periodically turned over. Sometimes the plants are tied into small bunches and dried in the shade in a suspended state. Ready raw materials are stored in cardboard or plywood boxes, paper 2-layer bags in a dry place.
Chemical composition. The grass contains tannins of the pyrocatechin group (up to 12%), anthrocene derivatives – hypericin and pseudohypericin (up to 0.5%), flavonoids, saponins, resinous substances, vitamin C and carotene, essential oil (0.2 – 0.3% ).
pharmacological properties. St. John’s wort was known as a medicinal plant in ancient Greece and Rome. It is mentioned by Hippocrates, Dioscorides and Pliny the Elder. Since ancient times, there has been a saying: “Just as bread cannot be baked without flour, so many diseases of people and animals cannot be treated without St. John’s wort.” St. John’s wort preparations have astringent, anti-inflammatory, hemostatic and antimicrobial properties, promote rapid regeneration of damaged tissues. Animal experiments have shown that the infusion and extract of St. John’s wort have low toxicity, stimulate cardiac activity, constrict blood vessels and increase blood pressure. In addition, their anthelmintic, hemostatic, disinfectant and choleretic effects have been established.
Application. St. John’s wort is recommended as an astringent, anti-inflammatory, hemostatic and antimicrobial agent. Imanin and Novoimanin were obtained from the plant.
Novoimanin is an antibiotic in the form of a reddish-yellow mass, with a pleasant specific odor, soluble in alcohol. It acts mainly on gram-positive microbes, including penicillin-resistant staphylococci. The main treatment form is a 1% alcohol solution – a yellow liquid, packaged in 10 ml bottles of orange glass. For treatment, an antibiotic solution is prepared 1:1000 by diluting a 1% alcohol solution with distilled water, isotonic sodium chloride solution or І0% glucose solution (use solutions throughout the day!). For burns, a 0.25% solution of anesthesin can be used as a diluent, and for pneumonia, inhalation of a 0.1% antibiotic solution in 10% glucose solution. Imanin and Novoimanin are used to treat wounds, II and III degree burns, ulcers, abscesses, mastitis, cracked nipples,
In folk veterinary medicine, St. John’s wort is recommended for catarrh of the stomach and intestines, diarrhea, liver disease, peptic ulcer of the stomach and duodenum, bloating, heart weakness, kidney disease and inflammation of the bladder, as a choleretic agent, and externally as a wound healing agent. In veterinary practice, infusion of St. John’s wort (1:10-1:20) is used orally as an astringent and antiseptic for dyspepsia, gastritis, acute and chronic colitis. Dose inside: horses and cattle 20-60 g, sheep and pigs 10-20, dogs 3-8, chickens 1-2 g 2-3 times a day (Galyshenkov, Mochinsky, Yakunin).
In case of dyspepsia, it is recommended to drink St. To prepare an infusion, 200 g of dry grass in an enameled saucepan are poured with 10 liters of boiling water and 100 g of table salt are added. The pan is tightly closed with a lid and put in a warm place for 8-10 hours. Then the contents are mixed and filtered through gauze. With the appearance of the first signs of the disease (dyspepsia), the calves stop drinking colostrum and give a warm infusion of St. John’s wort, camphor oil is injected under the skin. After several doses of the product, the condition of the calf improves, and then it is already possible to prescribe colostrum, adhering to the following scheme.
St. John’s wort infusion does not stop drinking 500 ml each, bringing the colostrum (milk) to the full norm. After recovery, the infusion is replaced with a 1% solution of table salt, and subsequently with clean water. Externally, infusion of St. John’s wort (1:10-1:20) is used in the form of rinses for stomatitis, pharyngitis, gingivitis. St. John’s wort oil is obtained by infusing the flowers of the plant in some kind of vegetable oil. It is used as an antibacterial agent, it dries the wound surface and promotes tissue regeneration.
Sheep
Rp.: Infusi herbae Hyperici – 30.0-600.0
DS Inside, one glass in the morning and evening (for diseases of the intestines and liver).
St. John’s wort herb briquettes – a rectangle weighing 75 g, divided into ten equal slices of 7.5 g each.
St. John’s wort tincture 1:5 on 40% alcohol is a clear dark brown liquid, stored in a cool, dark place.