Spring primrose

Guarded. Primroses - Primulaceae. Common names: ears, heavenly keys, flowers of St. Peter, rams, golden keys. Parts used: rhizome and flowers. Pharmacy name: primrose root - Primulae radix (formerly: Radix Primulae), primrose flowers - Primulae flos (formerly: Flores Primulae).

Botanical description.

These beloved spring flowers have an erect, leafless stem and rhizome, from which numerous fibrous roots arise. The leaves in the basal rosette are elongated to ovate, generally tapering downwards, and pubescent on both sides. At the end of a more or less long stem there are flowers collected in an umbrella.

The calyx is whitish-green, ribbed, the corolla is tube-shaped, expanding at the top, yellow, bright golden in the middle. Blooms in March-April. Grows in dry meadows.

Collection and preparation. The rhizomes are collected in September and, after clearing them from the soil, dried in the shade; flowers are collected in spring.

Active ingredients.

The main active ingredient is saponin; In addition, primrose contains flavones and essential oil. Silicic acid and tannins should also be mentioned. In flowers the amount of active substances is much less than in rhizomes.

Healing action and application. Saponin-containing medicinal plants are used primarily for coughs, especially dry and persistent ones, when there are difficulties with coughing. Primrose is best for the so-called senile cough.

The latter often occurs when the contractile force of the heart decreases, as a result of which the blood supply to the lungs deteriorates. This leads to a constant cough. To help in such cases, you need not only to facilitate coughing, but also to simultaneously influence blood circulation, for which you need to take care of increased removal of water from the body.

This is exactly how spring primrose works: it facilitates coughing and acts as a diuretic. Mixing primrose rhizome with fennel and anise makes an excellent cough tea. If you also add mallow leaves, this tea helps with almost all forms of cold cough.

Blended tea:
Primrose rhizome 30.0
Powdered anise 10.0
Mallow leaves 10.0
Pounded fennel 10.0

Pour two teaspoons of the mixture into 1/4 liter of boiling water and strain after 10 minutes of infusion. Sweeten with honey and drink hot.

Use in folk medicine.

In folk medicine, primrose is also used as a cough remedy. They take tea, but often prepare syrup: 1 teaspoon with the top of crushed primrose rhizome is boiled for about 5 minutes in a small amount of water, the liquid is drained and mixed with honey until it reaches a syrupy consistency. Take in teaspoons.

o Primrose tea: Heat 1 teaspoon of the rhizome or 2 teaspoons with the top of the flowers to a boil in 1/4 liter of water. Leave for 5 minutes. Drink 2-3 cups of tea a day.

In addition to helping with coughs, traditional medicine recommends spring primrose tea as a good remedy for migraines, neuralgia, gout and rheumatism, as well as insomnia.

The German National Health Service recognizes primrose as having an expectorant and emollient effect on catarrhs ​​of the upper respiratory tract.

Side effects.

In the absence of an overdose, there is no need to worry about side effects. Only those who are allergic to it should avoid using primrose.