Anise Common.

Anise

An annual herbaceous plant of the Umbellaceae family, 30–60 cm high. The root is thin, spindle-shaped. The stem is straight, round, bearded, short-haired, branched at the top.

The leaves are shiny, simply pinnate, basal - petiolate, ovate or oblong, lobed, pointed at the end. Blooms in June - July. The flowers are small, collected in complex umbels.

The fruit is an ovoid or heart-shaped brown-gray two-seed with an aromatic odor, consisting of two parts (semi-fruits). Ripens in August.

Anise is common in Ukraine, the North Caucasus and Central Asia.

It is cultivated in Bashkiria, Voronezh and Belgorod regions.

Fresh anise leaves are used for salads and side dishes. The fruits are used as a spice in the preparation of sauces for meat dishes, kvass, fermented milk, and bakery products.

After processing, the cake and grass are fed to livestock. Fatty anise seed oil is used to make ammonia-anise drops, breast elixir, toilet soap, tooth powder and paste. A solution of oil in alcohol or other solvents (1:100) kills bird mites, lice, lice and fleas.

It is used in paint and varnish production.

Fruits serve as medicinal raw materials. They are harvested in August - September, when the first umbrellas turn brown.

Dry in the open air or in a dryer at a temperature of 50-60°C. Store in a closed container for 3 years.

The fruits contain essential oil, which includes anethole, anisaldehyde, anise ketone, methylavicol and anisic acid.

Anise preparations have anti-inflammatory, moderate diuretic and expectorant effects, and can relax the smooth muscles of internal organs. They are widely used for inflammation of the mucous membrane of the respiratory tract, acute bronchitis, pneumonia, cough with difficult to separate sputum and to enhance the secretion of gastric juice.

A decoction of the fruit increases the motor activity of the gastrointestinal tract. It is used for indigestion and inflammation of the small and large intestines. The anti-inflammatory and diuretic effect of the plant allows it to be used for kidney and bladder diseases, stones and sand in the urinary tract.

In nursing women, anise preparations increase milk production. They are recommended for painful menstruation, diarrhea and intestinal bleeding. Anise helps normalize the secretion of gastric contents, liver and pancreas.

While taking it, bloating disappears. Mixed with egg white, anise is used externally to treat burns.

To prepare the decoction, pour 1 teaspoon of crushed anise fruit into 1 glass of hot water, boil in a water bath in a closed enamel container for 30 minutes, strain hot through two or three layers of gauze and bring the volume to the original volume.

Take 1/4 cup 3-4 times a day before meals.

To improve skin function, pour 1 teaspoon of anise fruit into 0.5 liters of boiling water, leave for 1 hour and filter. Take 1/2 cup 4 times a day before meals.