Althaea officinalis.

Althaea officinalis

A perennial grayish-green herbaceous plant of the malvaceae family, up to 150 cm high. There can be one or several stems. The leaves are three- and five-lobed, long-petiolate, alternate.

The rhizome is short, thick, multi-headed, with powerful lateral branches, woody in the upper part. Blooms from June to August. The flowers are pale pink, five-lobed, located in the axils of the leaves at the top of the stem.

The fruits ripen in late July - September.

Althaea officinalis is widespread in Ukraine, in the southern regions of Belarus, the Caucasus, the Volga region, Central Asia, Eastern and Western Siberia. Prefers damp meadows, ravines, river and lake banks, and sea coasts.

Grows in light, moist soils with shallow groundwater. Predecessors are fallow, fodder and vegetable crops. When cultivating it, the soil is dug up to a depth of 25-28 cm.

For sowing, 1-2 year old seeds are used, previously dried to a free-flowing state. They can be scarified before sowing. Sow with row spacing of 60-70 cm.

They are buried to a depth of 1-2 cm and sprinkled with rotted manure. Sometimes marshmallows are propagated by seedlings or by dividing perennial rhizomes. Plant care begins 7-8 days after sowing.

The soil is constantly maintained in a loose state, free from weeds. The seedlings are thinned out, leaving 8-10 plants per 1 m. In autumn, the above-ground mass is mowed and removed.

The medicinal raw materials are the roots and rhizomes. They are collected in the fall or early spring, digging to a depth of 25-30 cm. After being freed from the soil, they are quickly washed, cut into pieces 20-25 cm long and freed from lignified and rotten parts.

Thick rhizomes are cut lengthwise and dried at a temperature not exceeding 40°C. Store in a closed container for 3 years.

The roots of marshmallow contain galactose, glucose, arabinose, rhamnose, starch, fatty oils, asparagine, betaine, lecithin, phytosterol, pectins, vitamins, carotene, mineral salts and a large amount of mucilage.

Thanks to mucus and starch, the plant has anti-inflammatory, expectorant and analgesic effects. Mucus envelops the mucous membranes, protecting them from irritation during inflammatory processes.

Marshmallow is used for inflammation of the lungs and upper respiratory tract, acute gastritis, enterocolitis and peptic ulcer of the stomach and duodenum, for sore throat, flu, jaundice, diarrhea (enemas), hemoptysis, stones in the bladder, difficulty urinating and for leucorrhoea (douching with the addition of oak bark and cuff grass), for washing the eyes and for inflammation of the eyelids.

Syrup is made at home for children. Mallow can be used as a substitute for marshmallow. Decoctions, infusions, liquid extracts and powders are prepared from marshmallow.

It is part of the breast collection. To prepare the decoction, pour 2 tablespoons of crushed raw materials into 1 glass of hot water, boil for 30 minutes over low heat, cool for 10 minutes, filter and squeeze.

The industry produces dry marshmallow root extract in powder form and a liquid extract of dark amber color, odorless, and sweet taste. Mukaltin tablets contain dry marshmallow mucus.