Pure-white lily - Nymphaea Candida. Family Lily of the Sea Lilies - Nymphaeaceae.
♪ With a strong determination ♪
To live the dream and reach the heights,
♪ The white lilies bloom with pride ♪
The white lilies' silent flowers.
Blossom and fade impassive,
Far from the excitement of humanity
And blossom again, beautiful,
And no one will know it...
К. Balmont
In terms of its popularity, the lily knows no equal. There is hardly a person who is not familiar with the large snow-white, as if porcelain, flowers of the water lily. Nymphaea is the name given to it by botanists. Even the ancient Greeks believed that the beautiful goddess Nymph, who personified the life-giving power of nature, turned into a lily.
In the shallow waters of lakes, in quiet backwaters of rivers, in old rivers the pure-white lily forms entire thickets. The lily of the valley covers almost the entire Asian part of the USSR. But the pure-white lily is more common in the European part, where it reaches up to 68 degrees C. ш. Individual locations of pure-white lily are also in the Caucasus and Central Asia.
The pure-white lily is a perennial herbaceous plant with long, thick rhizomes. In the soft silt of the lake, they extend for many meters, and from them rise long (up to 2.5 m) leaf petioles. The lily leaves themselves, prostrate on the water, reach 30 cm in diameter. "The lily leaf is a splendid specimen of perfection in nature. On the surface, it's simple. Heart-shaped. Thick as a tortilla: air-bearing cavities inside. That is why it does not sink" (A. Smirnoff). The flowers of this lily reach up to 12 cm in diameter. 'The pure-white lily flower is set on a quadrangular base; turning it over, one sees at once the square plinth. In the center of the lily flower is a sun-like snout; it looks like a graceful toothed gear... The first eyelet of the lily is the rings of stamens... Beyond the orbits of the stamens of the lily the orbit of the petals begins; they are connected by remarkable transitions: the petals gradually turn into stamens" (Yu. Linnick). Surprisingly, the lily flowers are like a living clock: every morning, at 6-7 h, they appear above the water and open, and in the evening, also at 6-7 h, fold their petals and sink into the water.
Not only that, lilies also predict the weather: flowers will not appear on the surface of the water in the morning or rose but did not open - wait for rain.
The sunset is shimmering with mist,
Everything clings to the shimmering lake of the forest,
And the lilies close their eyes
As if they were afraid of the waterman.
М. Sukhorukova
Rhizomes of pure-white lily are directly "stuffed" with starch: up to 20% of their weight; and in seeds it is even more: up to 47%. The rhizomes of the pure-white lily also contain glucose, alkaloids, and tannins, and the flowers contain coumarins.
Pure-white lily can form a very large mass, but it is dominated by rhizomes: up to 5 tons/ha. The rhizomes of the pure-white lily are used most of all in folk medicine, although the leaves, flowers and seeds are also used. For example, infusions and decoctions of rhizomes of lily of the valley are used for arthritis, rheumatism, kidney disease, bladder, jaundice. Infusions of lily-of-the-valley flowers are recommended for anemia, diseases of the heart and nervous system, as well as antipyretic and sedative. The leaves and petioles of lily of the valley are considered an anti-jaundice and laxative. In ancient times, the pure-white lily was called mermaid flower or odoleni herb, able to overcome any disease. "The mother of the raw earth with living water that flower gave birth - that's why he has equal power on vodunitsa (uncleanness in the waters) and on polyanitsa (unclean force in the field and in general on Earth)," - says an old legend, written down still N. Annenkov. And in folk herbalists wrote: "The root of the herb is good for dental disease, and the shepherd, so that the flock did not disperse, or who will not love you and want to stick it - give yasti root.
:fig1:
Pure-white lily of the valley is also used in scientific medicine. The alkaloid nymphaeine extracted from the plant is included in the famous M. collect. И. Zdrenko, which is used to treat bladder disease and gastritis.
The rhizomes of the pure-white lily are eagerly eaten by muskrats, water rats and even pigs. They are not spared by moose either. And in boiled and fried form, they are quite edible for humans as well. They can be made into flour and mixed into various baked goods or used to feed livestock. In Western Siberia, the seeds of the pure-white lily are also considered edible, and they are called water poppy. The rhizomes of the pure-white lily are an excellent raw material for tanning leathers, and its infusions dye fabrics black and brown.
Two more species are no less widespread in our country: white lily and small lily (Fig. 15). The former is closely related to the pure white lily. But the second freely feels itself not only in shallow lakes, but also in deep lochs, and in the lakes of aapa marshes. The practical importance of these two lilies is the same as the pure white lily, but some other recommendations are given for the lesser lily. Thus, its rhizome is used in bronchial asthma, and flowers - as an antipyretic, sedative and in the treatment of swelling. In addition, due to its relatively small size (flowers are 3-5 cm and leaves are 6-9 cm), this lily is cultivated. Since 1805. it was used to decorate aquariums..
