(Chenopodium aristatum); mar spinous
An annual herbaceous plant of the quinoa family. The plant is green, but often turns red in autumn. The stem is straight, forked and branched from the base, branched, short-pubescent, 5-30 cm tall. The leaves are alternate, lanceolate or linear, entire, obtuse, narrowed to the base. The flowers are sessile, 5-membered, single, located in the branches of the inflorescence, the terminal branches of which end in a thorn-like spike; in the lower part of the inflorescence bisexual, in the upper part – pistillate; perianth – from elliptical, bare at the top blunt leaves. The fruit is a one-seeded nut with a thin membranous integument; the seed is spherical. Blooms in July – August.
Spread. The plant occurs on rocky outcrops, on sands and on weedy places in the south-east of Ukraine.
Raw material . Herbs collected during the flowering of the plant are used to make medicines.
The plant is unofficial .
Chemical composition. Spiny quinoa grass contains saponins and alkaloids (0.02-0.08%). The seeds contain flavonoids. There is also evidence that the plant contains cardenolides, but some authors consider them doubtful.
Pharmacological properties and use . In terms of pharmacological properties, the spiny quinoa is considered close to the white quinoa. The use of this plant is known for neurasthenia, hyperhidrosis, cough, pulmonary tuberculosis, uterine bleeding and cessation of menstruation and as a remedy with anti-trichomonad and antiviral properties.