Pine cones: a brief description, photo. The use of pine cones in folk medicine

Pine is the most valuable coniferous species on the territory of the Russian state. Its height reaches up to 40 meters. The trunk is strong, noticeable among other woody plants in its brown color. The base of the pine is covered with thicker bark. It is not accidental that nature conceived.

The density of the cortex fulfills the protective function of the plant. Thus, the coniferous beauty is saved in the summer from overheating and from the arising fires. Externally, the pine looks like a really chic tree. Its needles attract attention with its luscious green color.

It is collected in numerous bundles of 2-3 needles and reaches a length of 4 to 7 centimeters. Themselves, the needles are elegant, have a noticeable longitudinal strip. In the autumn period, some of the coniferous needles fall off.

The remainder is covered with a layer of wood wax. Stomach needles close, thus stopping breathing. This allows you to save the tree of power for the entire winter period. What else is interesting about a coniferous beauty?

Cones of pine. Photo of interesting fruits

It is difficult to find a person who does not know that pine cones grow. Their value can be compared with a large walnut. If the bump is old, then it is brown. The touch is woody, and its scales are loose and frayed in different directions.

Few people know that among the most ancient trees is the pine. An ordinary cone with seeds inside is the co-occurrence of an evergreen plant. Female pine fruit is called megastrobile, male - microstrobile.

How the cone is born

It all starts with a small red ball. This pine bud, which appears in May, when young shoots begin to make their way on the pine from the kidneys. At the beginning of their development they are not covered with pine needles.

Instead of them you can see the light processes. In their midst young growths begin to develop. Female pine cone develops on the top of the coniferous shoot.

Usually by autumn, the stems become green and slightly exceed the size of a pea. Approximately in this position the fruits are all winter. In spring, when nature awakens, cones of pine continue to develop.

Their size in length reaches from 3 to 7 centimeters. By August, the fertilizer reaches its usual size - 10 centimeters in length and 4 centimeters in width. In spring the fruits actively continue their development.

By the end of the summer pine cones have acquired their adult color - brown. But despite its maturity, the copulation is not yet revealed. Seeds can not yet be poured out due to strongly pressed scales. But already in this period the density of pine cone is higher than that of other coniferous trees.

Male and female pine cones

The fruit of the coniferous tree, which is located at the base of the young shoot, is called the male pine cone. Female, as already mentioned, is at the top of a pine branch. The structure of the knob is simple - an axis with numerous scales. They have seeds, from which appear eggs. Fruiting pine pine begins to 20-30 years.

The male pine cone has the same structure as the female pine. The only thing on the bottom scales of the fetus are two pollen sacs. It is in them that the pollen ripens and the formation of sperm.

Fertilization occurs when pollen from male fruits falls on female pine cones of the first year. Until then, the pollen is at rest. Only a year later, it forms a pollen tube, through which the spermatozoa tend to archegonies.

One spermatozoon merges with the egg, resulting in a zygote. Then the embryo begins its development. It is in a tissue in which a lot of nutrients are accumulated. The tissue itself is called the primary endospermia.

Adult Fruits

The mature fruit of the coniferous tree is ovate-conical in shape. They are heavier than the female pine cones of the first year. If you push apart the adhesive scales of mature copulations, you can find noticeable thickening of earthy color.

These are scutes with bent edges. Seeds pine cones have transparent wings, with which they are carried by the wind. At first glance, all the fruits of coniferous trees are the same.

But if you look closely, there are differences between the cones. For example, if you compare pine and spruce, the shape of the first one is more rounded. The length of the pine fruit is less than the spruce. The density of pine cone is different from that of other conifers. They are heavier than the fruits of spruce or larch.

Where to use pine fruits

The most valuable thing that can give fruit of a coniferous tree is medicinal raw materials. In the circle of folk healers of pine cones, balsams and tinctures are prepared. They cook fragrant jam. To do this, collect small green pine cones no longer than 4 centimeters.

It is recommended to store pine fruits from May to June. During collection, attention should be paid to the condition of the tree itself. If it is affected by insects, it is best not to collect cones from such a pine.

Make jam

In fact, there are several recipes for the preparation of sweet and curative dainties from cones of pine. We will consider the most common option. So, first we prepare the ingredients for work.

We need 1 kg of sugar, 10 glasses of water and 1 kg of cones. Rinse the fruit in cold water. Then add them to a deep container, fill it with water. It should cover the fruit by 2 centimeters from the top.

Be sure to close the lid with dishes and boil the contents for half an hour. Then leave the brew in a dark place for 12 hours. After the mass has been infused, the cones should be separated from the solution.

At this point it will be green. Mix the liquid with sugar in equal proportions. This mass should be cooked on low heat until it begins to spread.

Finally, add a few shishechek and cook a lot for 5 more minutes. A beautiful and useful jam is ready! It has a juicy crimson color. It remains to pour the mass over the jars and enjoy delicious delicacies throughout the cold season!

Jam from pine cones is useful in diseases of the gastrointestinal tract and inflammation of the respiratory tract. Also recommended to people with general exhaustion of the body.

Useful properties of pine cones

In folk medicine, raw materials are used from conifers of coniferous trees with low hemoglobin, polyarthritis, pneumonia, beriberi, acute respiratory diseases.

In the pollen pollen contains essential oil, carotene, ascorbic and resin acids. Thanks to their medicinal properties, the fruit of pine is dedicated to a large number of medicinal recipes.

For example, with bronchitis and other colds, you should take one tablespoon of chopped cones and pour half a liter of hot water. This tincture should be kept for 12 hours, then drink a little during the day before eating.

Another drug, rich in medicinal properties, is used for diseases of bones, joints and broncho-pulmonary inflammations. Here's how to prepare this tincture: in a suitable container cut 10 pieces of green cones, pour 1 liter of vodka and close tightly.

Insist should be 40 days, not forgetting to shake. If you do this regularly, then the beneficial properties of cones quickly saturate the fluid. At the end of the term, the drug is filtered.

The tincture should turn out to be a reddish-brown color. The use of such a medicine is possible not only to take in, but also for local rubbing.

Preparations from coniferous fruits - the first assistants

Tincture of pine cones - an excellent remedy for coughing. If you have not yet completed their course of treatment, then it's time to do it. To make the tincture, you need to take 50 grams of green pine cones in 2 cups of boiling water.

First pour the fruit with water, then insist for 2-3 hours in a warm place. Strain the resulting infusion through the gauze filter. If the medicine is prepared for the child, then to improve the taste, you can add 500 grams of sugar to the infusion and cook until a thick syrup is obtained. Delicious and medicinal preparation is ready! It is recommended to take 5-6 table spoons daily.

Those patients who were coughing, folk healers are advised to pour 5 pine cones with a glass of boiling water, cover the infusion with a warm cloth and insist for 40-45 minutes. Take 2-3 gulps with a beginning cough.

Also, the healing effect can be obtained by inhalation. To do this, take a spacious dish, boil in it 1 liter of water and add 5-6 pre-washed pine cones.

Boil them for 5 minutes over low heat with the lid closed. Then turn off the gas, slightly open the lid, slightly release the steam. Then you have to bend over the dishes, taking cover with a towel.

Inhalation should be taken within 10 minutes. This method works perfectly with nasal congestion, has anti-inflammatory and bactericidal properties.

Healing infusions

For prevention or recovery after a stroke, infusion from pine gifts perfectly helps: five mature cones, pour 250 g of alcohol (70%). Infuse for 10 days at room temperature, strain and add to the infusion obtained 1 teaspoon of apple cider vinegar.

This drug is recommended to be consumed once after a meal for six months. To remove puffiness of the joints with polyarthritis, you can prepare a bath solution. Take in equal proportions bumps, water and boil in a deep container for about half an hour.

Then remove from heat, let it brew for 12 hours, drain. You should get a brown liquid with a wonderful pine flavor! The full volume of a standard bath will require 2 liters of miraculous infusion. It is recommended to take a warm bath for 15 to 20 minutes. Such treatment should be continued until the pain syndrome has subsided.

The immune system and pine cones

Unfortunately, with age, the human immune system weakens. Increasingly, it is difficult to overcome infectious diseases. The body grows old.

However, scientists believe that it is possible to stop the degradation of the immune system. It is proved that the extract and decoction of pine cones are able to perfectly resist the influence of harmful viruses and bacteria.

Consequently, these drugs can update the human immune system, allowing him to maintain his body in a tone. Therefore, it is recommended that at least once a year to prevent the use of drugs made from pine cones.

Despite their wide application in folk medicine, preliminary consultation with a doctor is still necessary. Contraindications: treatment with pine cones should be taken with caution to those people who suffer from kidney disease, allergic reactions, pregnant and lactating mothers.

Balsam from pine fruits

It is unfair to bypass this medicinal alcohol-containing beverage. It is valued as a soothing and tonic. Usually, the balsam formulation includes a mixture of different medicinal raw materials.

In this case, we consider the preparation of the preparation from pine cones and needles. It should be noted that the manufacture of balsam - a laborious process and requires a meticulous implementation of all requirements. However, if desired, balm from coniferous gifts of nature is quite possible to obtain at home.

So, you should take 3 tablespoons of the crushed raw pine cones and 1.5 tablespoons of needles. Mix the ingredients, place them in a glass jar and pour 70% alcohol with a volume of 500 milliliters.

Close the container with a tight lid and put it in a dark place. After 30 days, the resulting infusion strain, add 2-3 tablespoons of any berry syrup and press for about 3 more days.

Ideally, you should get an infusion of brown color with a tart taste and pleasant aroma. It should be noted that all balsams are used in a small dosage. Most often they are added 1-2 teaspoons in coffee, tea, mineral water. These are immunodefining drugs that have a prophylactic property against inflammatory and viral diseases.

Interesting about bumps

Fans of esotericism attribute the fruits of coniferous trees to unusual properties. For example, it is believed that if you keep pine cones in a residential building, then the energy of the house is cleared.

Domestic residents are not threatened with evil eye and other negative phenomena. Along with this, the bactericidal properties of coniferous fruits prevent the development of respiratory diseases in humans.

And holding the pine cone in your hands for several minutes, you can get rid of the negative energy that has accumulated over the whole day. After this, the pine fruit should be discarded.

It is also not bad to apply wonderful coniferous gifts to the bruised places. They excel in pain. Few suspect that pine needles are an excellent natural massager for the back and feet.

Make it accessible to everyone! To do this, you need to collect a slightly open a mature pine cones, dry well. Put them in a box and step on them with their feet, sitting on a chair.

By the same principle, you can massage your back. Only the cones should be spread out on the rug, and then lie down on them with a sine. Those whose skin is very sensitive, it is recommended to cover the fruits of pine with a medium-density cloth.

Pine cones not only in medicine

What beautiful ornaments and crafts can be made from pine cones! Nature has given this fruit a beautiful form. It remains only to fantasize a bit and discover a great element of decor Pine forests!

The photo clearly demonstrates that the gift of a needle A tree can be covered with a golden artistic varnish. Or to amaze the imagination of others by dyeing cones with bright acrylic paints. If you make beautiful products for such products, you will get unusual toys on the tree for H New Year.

Original frames for paintings, candlesticks, children's compositions from pine cones retain their texture and original appearance for a long time. Such creative products give the surrounding people the aroma of coniferous trees and an upbeat mood!