Other names: Red grass, Youth blood, Bloodworm, Ailment, Healthy grass.
Diseases and effects: chronic gastritis, enteritis, colitis, functional diarrhea, chronic pyelonephritis, catarrhal tonsillitis, stomatitis, trophic ulcers, burns, gingivitis, paradontosis, simple vaginitis, acne, chronic suppurative otitis media, mastitis, anemia, hemorrhoids, jaundice, migraine , hypertension, cough.
Active substances: hyperoside, quercetin, quercitrin, rutin, isoquercitrin, hypericinol, pseudohypericin, tannins, carotene, essential oil, resins, ascorbic and nicotinic acids, traces of alkaloids and phytoncides.
Because of the numerous glands on the leaves, St. John’s wort is called perforated or pierced. In this he differs from his relatives.\r
Hypericum perforatum is a perennial herbaceous plant from the St. John’s wort family, up to 1 m high, with a taproot, strongly branched rhizome. Stem erect, glabrous, 2-sided, branched in the upper part. The leaves are small, sessile, opposite, oblong-ovate or elliptical, entire with scattered, translucent dots. The flowers are golden yellow, collected in a corymbose-paniculate inflorescence.\r
The fruit is a numerous, oblong-ovoid capsule. Blossoms in July-August, bears fruit in September.\r
Spreading
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The plant is found throughout Ukraine. It grows along forest edges, glades, grassy slopes, roadsides, among shrubs. Stocks of raw materials are large, but there are lean years.\r
Significant thickets are located along the banks of the rivers in the Odessa, Nikolaev, Kherson, Zaporozhye, Luhansk and in the steppe zone of the Donetsk regions. Here harvesting is possible within the range of 5-8 tons. In the Crimea, thickets of St. John’s wort are small, but in frequent groups located on small lawns, clearings, along river banks, in mountainous and foothill zones. Here harvesting of 2-4 tons annually is possible. The flowering tops of St. John’s wort are cut off before the fruit appears with knives or sickles.\r
Procurement rules
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Plants cannot be uprooted. Dry grass in attics, under sheds or in dryers at a temperature of 40 ° C.\r
The raw material consists of the upper (up to 30 cm) part of the stem with leaves, flowers, buds and unripe fruits. The color of the stems is greenish-yellow or grayish-green, the leaves are grayish-green, dark green, the petals are bright yellow, the fruits are greenish-brown. The smell is weak, peculiar. The taste is bitter, slightly astringent.\r
Raw materials should contain the amount of flavopoids in terms of rutin not less than 1.5%, moisture content – not more than 13%, total ash – not more than 1%, mineral impurities – not more than 1%. The shelf life of raw materials is 3 years.\r
When harvesting St. John’s wort, undesirable impurities of other types of St. John’s wort and plants similar to St. John’s wort are possible. A number of external signs makes it possible to distinguish these plants. So, St. John’s wort tetrahedral differs from St. John’s wort in a hollow tetrahedral stem and more blunt and wide sepals. Translucent receptacles are much rarer or completely absent.\r
St. John’s wort stiff-haired (rough) is distinguished by the presence of pubescence on stems, leaves and peduncles. St. John’s wort is distinguished by lanceolate sepals, which are not bare at the edges, but with iron hairs.\r
medical significance
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From the herb St. John’s wort, flavonoids were isolated: hyperoside, quercetin, quercitrin, rutin, isoquercitrin. The herb is rich in fluorescent dyes: hypericinol, pseudohypericin, etc. It also contains tannins, carotene, essential oil, resins, ascorbic and nicotinic acids, traces of alkaloids and phytoncides.\r
It has anti-inflammatory, astringent, diuretic, antiseptic effect and stimulates tissue regeneration.\r
Due to the presence of hypericin, St. John’s wort has a photosensitizing effect – it increases the skin’s susceptibility to ultraviolet rays. Hypericum preparations relieve spasms of blood vessels, have a capillary-strengthening effect, improve venous circulation and blood supply to internal organs. The bitter substance contained in St. John’s wort stimulates the secretion of the stomach.\r
It is used orally for chronic gastritis, enteritis, colitis, functional diarrhea, chronic pyelonephritis. Externally used for catarrhal sore throat, stomatitis, wounds, trophic ulcers, burns, gingivitis, paradontosis, simple vaginitis, acne vulgaris, and chronic purulent otitis media.\r
The complex product peflavit from the herb St. John’s wort has P-vitamin activity. The antibacterial product Novoimanin is recommended for the treatment of abscesses, cellulitis, infected wounds, II and III degree burns, various ulcers, pyoderma, mastitis, rhinitis, pharyngitis, sinusitis. The hyperforin contained in it inhibits the growth of Staphylococcus aureus.\r
St. John’s wort is used in the food industry and alcoholic beverage production, for the preparation of drinks, and is also part of the Russian balsam.\r
The plant is widely used in traditional medicine as a hemostatic and anti-inflammatory agent, in the treatment of mastitis, anemia, hemorrhoids, jaundice, migraine, hypertension, cough, gastric and pulmonary diseases, as well as diseases of the liver, kidneys, and respiratory tract. St. John’s wort is also prescribed as an external agent in the treatment of wounds, bedsores, allergies, rashes.\r
St. John’s wort products are used in the form of decoctions of herbs, tinctures, infusions and oils.\r
Crushed raw materials 10 g (1.5 tablespoons) are poured into 200 ml of water, heated in a boiling water bath for 15 minutes (in an enamel bowl), cooled for 45 minutes, filtered and boiled water is added to the original volume. Take 1/3 cup 3 times every day before meals. The drug is also used for lotions, washings, etc. The broth is stored in a cool place for no more than 2 days. St. John’s wort tea helps to stimulate the function of the endocrine glands, regulates the functioning of the gastrointestinal tract, enhances the protective functions of the body.\r
A tablespoon of chopped herbs (dry) is poured with a glass of boiling water, insisted for 30 minutes and filtered. Used for rinsing the mouth and throat (with catarrhal sore throat), stomatitis, periodontal disease, gingivitis.\r
A tincture produced by the medical industry is prescribed 30-40 drops per 1/2 glass of water for rinsing the mouth and throat, also for instillation into the ear 6-8 drops 3 times every day (for chronic, purulent otitis media).\r
Two tablespoons of crushed raw materials are poured into 200 ml of boiling water and filtered after cooling. The resulting infusion is diluted in 1 liter of boiled water and used warm for douching 1-2 times every day (for simple, acute vaginitis).\r
To obtain oil, it is necessary to insist 2-3 tablespoons of flowers in 22 grams of linseed or sunflower oil for 2 weeks in a dark place at room temperature.\r
Brief recommendations for growing in home gardens
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Despite the fact that the area of growth of St. John’s wort is quite wide, natural reserves have sharply decreased due to an unreasonable approach to harvesting. Therefore, it is recommended to grow it in personal plots. For these purposes, you can collect the seeds of wild plants. Sow seeds before winter (October) or early spring.\r
First, they dig up the soil, then hoe it 2 times and level it with a rake. For digging, it will be necessary to make 3-4 kg / m 2 of rotted manure and peat compost or 2-3 kg / m 2 of nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium. In the absence of organic fertilizers, the number of mineral fertilizers is doubled.\r
During spring sowing, the seeds are stratified: mixed with sand, slightly moistened and kept in the refrigerator at a temperature of +5 degrees C for 1-2 months. The best results are achieved with winter sowing, which allows you to get earlier shoots. Seeds are sown superficially, without incorporation into the soil. The seeding rate is 0.3-0.4 g/m 2 with a row spacing of 45 cm. However, with this method of sowing, it is not always possible to obtain seedlings, especially in hot and dry spring. Therefore, it is better to grow seedlings of St. John’s wort in warm or cold greenhouses, ridges. Best results are obtained with potted seedlings. Plants tolerate transplanting well and can be harvested much earlier.\r
In the first month, seedlings need careful care, because they are tender and develop very slowly. After 1.5-2 months after the emergence of seedlings, they are fed with nitroammophos at the rate of 2 g / m 2 . During the growing season, it will be necessary to carry out 3-4 manual weeding.\r
Already by the end of the first year, some specimens bloom, but abundant flowering is observed only at 2-3 years of age. From 1 m 2 of crops of St. John’s wort, 30-40 g of seeds can be collected. In the phase of the beginning of flowering, the upper parts of the shoots, 25-30 cm long, are cut off for raw materials and dried.\r
With a good development of plants in a month, they grow back and begin to bloom, which makes it possible to harvest St. John’s wort for raw materials twice a season. In the second year, more than 200 g/m 2 of dry raw material can be collected. With age, development and growth of plants, the yield also increases.