Dwarf birch
.Dwarf birch, birch bark - Betula papa. Birch family - Betulaceae.
The dwarf birch (otherwise - ernik, birch) grows a low, strongly branched bush, not outgrowing the height of the snow cover. Even in the tundra this saves it from freezing, and it forms there continuous thickets, the so-called ruff tundras. The leaves of the birdseed are small, round, about the size of a penny. In the fall, before they crumble, they turn bright red, giving the bogs and tundra unique hues.
In the taiga zone, the birch has been displaced from the forest to the bogs by more competitive plants. Dwarf birch does well in lowland and transitional bogs, but prefers places with good drainage. The dwarf birch also grows on the poorest, sphagnum bogs. On different bogs, the birch looks differently: on rich bogs, the bush, reaching 1 m, is strongly branched, and the leaves grow to the size of a three-kopeck coin; on poor sphagnum bogs, the birch is barely visible above the surface of the moss carpet (Fig. 30).
Especially widespread during the glacial epochs in periglacial (glacial) zones. At present, however, it is a typical plant of tundras and forest tundras. In more southerly habitats, in the middle and especially in the southern taiga, it finds refuge in bogs. Often this little birch is referred to as a relic of the Ice Age.
The dwarf birch has adapted so well to the harsh conditions of tundra and bogs that even its breeding biology is different from that of forest tree birches. Thus, while in trees the seeds ripen by August and are then scattered by the wind, in birdseed, ripening also by the end of summer, the seeds remain
Fig1:
in the earrings for the winter. And only in spring with external waters they spread far away from the mother bush. Therefore, the wings on the seeds of the dwarf birch are not necessary, although they are present, as in other species of birch. Seeds of dwarf birch, unlike birch-trees, do not develop every year, and the dwarf birch is propagated mainly by vegetative means. Individual twigs of burr twigs press against the surface of the peat and give adventitious roots, and from the point of their rooting the next year new plants grow. So the dwarf birch "crawls" across the swamp, slowly advancing, meter by meter.
Yernik is known in folk medicine as a medicinal plant. Infusion of leaves of dwarf birch is recommended for diseases of the urogenital system. As an external remedy, dwarf birch is used for skin rashes, and its juice is used for gout and tuberculosis.
And yet, among the useful properties of birdseed, the most significant is fodder. In the tundra, reindeer eat the stalks down to the root. But the next year, new twigs emerge from the dormant buds - and again ready to forage. Hornbills are not neglected either, as they are happy to nibble the buds and earrings of the dwarf birch.
Busina black
.Black elderberry - Sambucus nigra. Honeysuckle family - Caprifoliaceae.
Not only in the undergrowth of broad-leaved dry forests, along the banks of rivers and along roads, but also in black alder forest swamps in the southern regions of our country is common black elderberry. It is also found in Colchis, in forests of bearded alder. In damp forests, black elderberry neighbors with cherry and calamus, and in the herb tier - with tavolga, nettle, yellow iris, reed and other plants.
Black elderberry is a perennial deciduous shrub with a height of 3-6. Elderberry leaves are large, pinnate, of 3-7 lobes. In May-June, black elderberry blooms, covered with small white-cream numerous fragrant flowers collected in umbrella-like inflorescences (Fig. 31). In the fall, September, the "berries" ripen. - black and purple colored bones. They're quite edible. Each "berry" has 2-4 seeds.
Medicinal raw material of black elderberry - flowers, less - berries and bark. There's a glycoside found in the flowers
Fig2:
Sambucinigrin, which has diaphoretic action; there are traces of essential oil, tannins and mucilages, acetic, valerian, chlorogenic and caffeic acids, vitamin C. In the fruits of dwarf birch there are glycosides, sugar, essential oil, aldehydes, tannins, organic acids, vitamins C and E, carotene, anthocyanin.
Antocian creates like Titian! -
He's a master of blazing colors.
Look: purple thyme -
Through the vermilion of these autumn branches.
Here falls a purple-red leaf
On the corolla of the blue-eyed forget-me-not!
Antocian, the great colorist,
Once more at dawn he mixes the colors.
Ю. В. Linnik
As a medicinal plant, black elderberry has been known for a very long time. But in recent times its popularity is gradually declining although it is still used. Infusion of flowers of black elderberry - diaphoretic, anti-inflammatory (for colds, bronchitis) and diuretic. The main effect of elderberry cheronoya berries is a mild laxative and diaphoretic. Black elderberry bark is used as a diuretic. The infusion of flowers is often gargled throat, it is also used to treat burns and wounds. Decoctions of all parts of black elderberry treat rheumatism, joint inflammation, gout, neuralgia, myositis. Sometimes young leaves of black elderberry are recommended for treatment; they are scalded with milk and applied to the places of burns and wounds. Preparations of black elderberry in the form of inhalation treat colds.
Other useful properties of black elderberry are also known. For example, the berries can be used to produce purple dye for the food industry. Black elderberries are also suitable for jams, jams, jams, sours, as a seasoning for soups. Tea made from black elderberry flowers along with nettle leaves, flowers and leaves of labdanum is delicious. Black elderberry flowers are an insecticide against household insects, rats, mice. But if you add black elderflowers to the dough, it takes on an almond flavor.
Elderberry herbaceous also finds uses. Apples harvested for winter storage, sprinkled with its dry color, acquire a particularly pleasant smell..
