Stinging nettle (stinging nettle) Urtica dioica L.
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Synonyms: big nettle, zhigalka, bonfire, strekavina, strechuchka (Ukrainian zhaliva is great, stinging nettle).
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Description. Perennial dioecious herbaceous plant from the nettle family (Urticaceae), 90120 cm high. The rhizome is long, creeping, underground shoots depart from it. Stems are furrowed, tetrahedral, abundantly covered with sharp burning hairs. Leaves broadly ovate, petiolate, opposite. The flowers are green, small, collected in hanging spike-shaped inflorescences. The fruit is a yellow-gray nut. Blooms from July to late autumn; seeds ripen from August to October.
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Medicinal raw materials: leaves.
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Habitat. Grows in wastelands, waste bins, along roads, near dwellings, in ravines, shady places, clearings, burnt areas, between bushes.
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Spreading. It has a very large distribution area: almost everywhere in the European part of the USSR, in Western Siberia and the Caucasus. Less common in areas of the Far East, Eastern Siberia, Central Asia.
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Composition of active substances. Nettle leaves contain a significant amount of chlorophyll, carotene (provitamin A), vitamins C, Bb K; tannins, lecithin, urticin, sitosterol, histamine, violaxanthin, formic acid, mineral salts, phytosterol.
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Application. Nettle preparations in the form of a liquid extract and infusion are used for all kinds of bleeding, menstrual irregularities in menopause. They help to increase blood clotting, increase the content of hemoglobin and red blood cells in it, and also have vasodilating and toning the muscles of the uterus properties. As an effective hemostatic agent, nettle products can replace ergot products in many cases. For this purpose, an infusion of 1520 g of dry leaves per 200 g of water is used (take a tablespoon three times every day).
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In order to increase blood clotting, nettle extract with yarrow extract is also taken (2530 drops per dose 30 minutes before meals). Nettle is used in the treatment of chronic ulcers and hypovitaminosis.
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Stinging nettle has long been popular in folk medicine as a hemostatic agent. It can be taken as fresh juice (23 teaspoons three times daily). In the treatment of chronic skin diseases, an infusion of its flowers is taken. Nettle extract is part of the Allohol product used for diseases of the liver and biliary tract. Nettle is popularly used as a diuretic for dropsy, kidney disease, gout, anemia, and polyarthritis. Pounded nettle seeds (23 g per dose) with water are taken for shortness of breath and nephrolithiasis.
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A decoction of nettle helps lower blood sugar levels. An infusion of nettle leaves is successfully used to strengthen hair. To do this, a tablespoon of leaves is brewed with a glass of boiling water, insisted and rubbed into the scalp after washing, without wiping. This procedure should be used for a long time with a week break.
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In the treatment of rheumatism, sore spots are pressed with nettles and rubbed with kerosene alternately (one day they press, the other they rub).
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Nettle is the main source of vitamin C in early spring, when there are no fresh vegetables.
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Collection. Collect leaves from June to September. To avoid burning your hands, it is better to collect with gloves or mittens.
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Drying. Nettles are dried in attics, under a canopy, in the shade, in well-ventilated rooms, laying it out in a thin layer. At the end of drying, all yellowed, blackened, browned leaves, flowers and other impurities are removed.
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Pack. Packed in bales, bales or new bast bags of 5075 kg.
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Storage. Store in dry, well-ventilated areas.
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Quality requirement. In accordance with the State Pharmacopoeia IX, the finished leaves should be dark green, thin, brittle, 417 cm long, 3.57 cm wide. The smell is weak, the taste is bitter. Allowed: moisture 14%, total ash 2; brown and blackened leaves 5; other parts of nettle (stems, inflorescences, etc.) 5; organic impurities 2, mineral 1%.