Ivy.

Ivy

A tree-like liana of the Araliaceae family, up to 20 m long. The stem is branched, with numerous additional roots. The leaves are petiolate, alternate, leathery, entire.

Blooms in August - September. The inflorescences are umbellate, collected in large clusters of dark purple color. Fruits in October.

In Russia, fruits fully ripen only in the southern regions in the 2nd year.

Common ivy is widespread in the European part of Russia, the Caucasus, Transcaucasia, Crimea and Central Asia. Grows in moderately moist, shady mixed deciduous, especially beech, forests, on rocky places, along ravines, gullies, gorges and among bushes.

Wood is widely used in turning, as a good plastic material for making souvenirs. The leaves are a good repellent for American cockroaches. The liana is widely cultivated as an ornamental plant for creating green gazebos and shading open areas from the sun.

Is a honey plant.

Leaves and bark are used as medicinal raw materials. The leaves are harvested during the flowering period.

Dry in the shade or in a dryer at a temperature of 50-60°C, laying out a layer of 4-5 cm and stirring occasionally. Store in an airtight container for 1-2 years.

The bark is removed in the spring, at the beginning of sap flow, cut into pieces, well dried in the sun and dried in a dryer at a temperature of 50-60°C. Stored in a cardboard box for 4 years.

The leaves are rich in carbohydrates (fructose, sucrose, galactose, etc.), essential oils, steroids, phenylcarboxylic acids, coumarins, flavonoids, B vitamins and mineral salts. The bark contains gum, triterpenoids, polyacetate compounds, vitamins and mineral salts.

Ivy preparations have anti-inflammatory, antitussive, expectorant, antibacterial and antifungal effects. A decoction of the leaves is successfully used for persistent cough due to acute and chronic bronchitis and pneumonia, as an expectorant and antispasmodic. Its use gives good results for inflammation of the digestive organs - acute gastritis, duodenitis, acute and chronic enteritis and colitis.

It is prescribed for douching for inflammation of the genital organs and leucorrhoea. Ivy preparations are used as a tonic and invigorating agent after severe operations, traumatic brain injuries and asthenia after a long illness.

A decoction of the root is used as a wound-healing and antibacterial agent.

They successfully treat burns, multiple boils and streptoderma it is effective for mycoses of the scalp, lice and scabies. To prepare a decoction of leaves or bark, pour 1 tablespoon of crushed raw material into 1 glass of hot water, boil in a water bath for 30 minutes, cool, filter through two or three layers of gauze and bring the volume to the original volume. Take 1 tablespoon 2-3 times a day.

When using ivy preparations, precautions must be taken, since the plant contains a large amount of toxic substances, its fruits are especially toxic.