Cornflower blue - a poison or a panacea?

The history of the origin of the elegant charming flower, the faithful companion of the rye field - the blue cornflower, is completely covered with legends as diamonds. One of them says that on the spot where the Savior was buried, these amazing flowers grew in the morning. And from another, Greek myth, you can find out that the legendary centaur, depicted as a mythological being with a horse figure and body of a man with a beard and a lit torch in his hand, healed the cornflower's juice with his battle wounds from the poisoned arrow of Hercules. Cornflower blue has since received the Latin name Centaurea - centaur.

The ancient Romans claimed that the second part of the name in Latin - cyanus, this flower found thanks to the name of a beautiful young man, in love with cornflower, his unique fairy-tale beauty. All his time was devoted to weaving wreaths and garlands of cornflowers. The young man from June to the late autumn, while these plants bloomed, did not leave the places of their growth. Flora, the Roman goddess, finding him dead among the corn fields, turned the young man's body into a cornflower. And the flower itself has since been called cyanosis. (Centaurea cyanus l.)

The tomb of Tutankhamun surprised archaeologists not only with the presence of many items of gold and precious stones, but also a small wreath of cornflowers. And these flowers, dried up, have preserved their shape and color in centuries.

Slavic legends have brought to our days the story of Vasil - a young guy, bewitched by a mythical creature - a mermaid. Falling in love with a plowman, she tried to draw him to her native element - water. But Vasil did not agree, and then she turned it into a beautiful blue flower. Since then, cornflower blue has firmly established itself in native plowland.

Since ancient times this plant was famous not only for its rich history, but also for its miraculous healing power. Initially, folk, and then official medicine, recognized its disinfectant and anti-inflammatory, powerful diuretic and mild cholagogue, as well as an antispasmodic effect.

Cornflower blue in broths and infusions of its flowers is used as a diuretic for diseases of the cardiovascular and urinary systems, accompanied by edema.

In folk medicine the cornflower field is known as the "eye healer": decoctions from this miracle plant relieve eye fatigue, heal inflammation in blepharitis and conjunctivitis.

Cornflower blue has an antispasmodic effect. It relaxes smooth muscles and can relieve spasms in headaches.

The wound healing property of the infusions of cornflower blue and its ability to heal such skin diseases as eczema, dermatitis, furunculosis and trophic ulcers has been known to our medicine for a long time. Also cornflower blue effectively helps get rid of sore throat, cough, and laryngitis. Visibly removes fever with fever.

Harvest bright blue flowers of a cornflower in the summer, from July to August. First, they tear off the flower baskets as a whole, and then pull out the corollas of the blue flowers, but without the inner tubular ones. Faded coronals as raw materials for the manufacture of infusions and medicines are unsuitable. Dry the prepared petals in a shaded, well-ventilated area, spreading a thin layer on paper or clean cloth. They must also be frequently shaken to preserve their blue color. If the raw materials are exposed to direct sunlight, it decolorizes and loses all the healing properties. In this case, faded copies are removed. Flowers, well dried, must be stored in a dark dry place, in a container with a tightly closed lid.

Tincture of cornflower: 15g (1 tsp) of dry petals is filled with a glass of boiling water, we insist for half an hour, filter, cool, then use 50 g for 15 minutes before meals three times a day. Such infusion has beneficial effects in liver diseases, as well as urinary (cystitis, nephritis, urethritis) and bile excretory systems. It can also be used as an antimicrobial agent for coughing, for problems with gastrointestinal and nerve diseases, for uterine bleeding.

If the same tincture is tightly covered with a lid and insisted for an hour, then you can drink it three times a day, 20-30 minutes before eating half the glass. Such treatment is good for removing puffiness from diseases of the cardiovascular and urinary system.

Cornflower blue contains strong active compounds with cyan components, so you should be extremely careful, be sure to consult a doctor and do not give tincture from this flower to pregnant women and children.