Aconite

Aconite flower: photo of a plant

Aconite is a perennial herb of the buttercup family. This unpretentious plant is ideal for growing in the shade somewhere under the trees. This amazing plant is of great benefit to people.

Aconite: flower description

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Aconite has long been an ornamental plant. It has large, beautiful flowers, which is why gardeners like it, and palmate-divided leaves. Aconite blooms in July - August. It is a highly poisonous plant. You can even get poisoned by inhaling its aroma. In areas where the climate is warm and mild, aconite is more poisonous than in the northern cold latitudes. A flower that has been growing on fertile soil in the garden for many years and receiving proper care may lose its poisonous properties.

Reproduction of Aconite

Most often propagated by vegetative methods, because they are very reliable. The most popular way to reproduce aconite is by dividing the bush. This is usually done in early spring or in August. It can also be propagated by cuttings. For reproduction, cuttings must be cut in May, until a cavity has formed inside them. The plant is planted in a greenhouse or under a film to protect it from direct sunlight. In general, the technique of propagation of aconite by cuttings is similar to the propagation of delphinium. You can also propagate aconite by seeds, a lot of them are formed. Often, aconite multiplies by self-seeding.

The plant can be propagated by seed. To do this, after the flowering of the plant, you need to leave a certain amount of inflorescences and not cut them off. When the seeds are ripe, they can be harvested.

Aconite is a poisonous plant, the most poisonous is its underground part, therefore, after manipulating the aconite bush and carrying out various kinds of work, you must thoroughly wash your hands. After working with aconite, do not touch your mouth and eyes with your hands. It is best to work with this plant with gloves. Poisonous substances acquire the greatest activity in the fall. In no case should children be allowed to touch aconite, and you also need to protect it from pets.

Aconite care

Caring for aconite is simple, everyone can grow this amazingly beautiful flower. When planting this plant, it is worth remembering that it is better to plant different types of aconite separately. The point is that each species has its own growth rate, and one species can drown out the other. You can plant aconite in the sun or in the shade. If we are talking about curly aconite, then this type of aconite must be planted in the shade. It tolerates direct sunlight very poorly, and burns can form on its leaves. For planting, you should choose a place where moisture does not accumulate. Excessive soil moisture can lead to decay of plant roots.

This plant is not demanding on the soil, it can grow well even on the most scarce soil. The exception is sandy and stony soil. In such soils, the plant will not be able to develop its root system. Of course, this will not go unnoticed by the flower's appearance. In order for the aconite to have enough of all the necessary substances, peat, compost, and organic fertilizers can be added to the soil. The soil around the bush must be loosened regularly to enrich it with oxygen. Before planting the plant in the ground, you need to make a hole, inside which to put expanded clay or crushed stone for drainage.

Large aconite bushes are not afraid of weeds or pests, they are able to resist them. This cannot be said about small young bushes; regular weeding is simply necessary for them.In order for our flower to grow and develop well, it needs to be watered regularly. This plant does not tolerate drought very well. Aconite, as already mentioned, is poisonous, so parasites practically do not attack it. But if suddenly it did happen, then the plant must be treated with copper sulfate before flowering.

In order for the bush to retain its attractive appearance, one must remember to cut off all dried leaves and wilted inflorescences. Aconite blooms for a very short time, so after pruning it can bloom again.

The plant tolerates frost well, but it still needs to be covered for the winter. In autumn, it is cut short, and the roots are covered with dry peat and foliage. When spring comes, they get rid of the shelter.

Varieties of aconite

There are many varieties of aconite. The most famous are the following: bearded aconite, curly aconite, steppe aconite, Altai aconite, high aconite. All types of aconite contain strong poisonous alkaloids.

• Curly aconite has curly stems that can be up to 4 meters long. Its flowers are blue. This plant blooms in late summer, the flowering period is a month. In nature, it can be found in Siberia, China, Japan.
• Homeland Altai Aconite, as you might guess from the name, is Altai. Altai aconite prefers to grow on the shores of lakes and rivers. It has long stems and tall blue inflorescences.
• High aconite grows in Siberia and Central Asia. This plant has a thickened stem, which reaches two meters in height, and large inflorescences of dark blue color. The flowering of tall aconite occurs in the middle of summer.
• Bearded aconite reaches a height of 50-120 cm. It prefers to grow in the steppes and forest-steppe, on forest edges. Aconite flowers are bearded gray-yellow in color. This type of aconite blooms in July-August.
• Aconite dzungarian it is a herbaceous flowering shrub. It reaches 150 cm in height. It has large dark blue inflorescences and blooms in mid-summer.
• Aconite Klobuchkovy a very popular variety of this plant. It reaches a height of 30 to 130 cm. It blooms in June in small flowers that have a blue or blue tint.
• A distinctive feature of aconite bicolor is a very unusual color. Its inflorescences are blue-white. Aconite bicolor blooms in the middle of summer. The height of this plant can be 150 cm.
• Aconite oak grows in the north of Russia. It can be found on the forest edges, for which it got its name. The plant can reach a height of 1 meter. Aconite oak has medium-sized leaves and yellow flowers, collected in tall inflorescences. Flowering occurs in mid-summer.

Aconite: application in medicine

This plant is actively used in medicine, despite the presence of alkaloids in its composition. It has many beneficial properties. The most commonly used in medicine is Dzungarian aconite. Most phytotherapists prefer it. Dzhungarian aconite is a very rare type of aconite that can be found in Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan. Dzhungarian aconite contains the largest amount of nutrients, and their ratio is the most optimal.

Aconite is used in the development of anticancer drugs, despite the content of alkaloids in it. It is able to prevent the development of malignant tumors. Alkaloids act on the tumor at the cellular level. They prevent nutrients from reaching the cancer cell, thereby preventing it from dividing and the formation of metastases. In addition, it has analgesic properties. For people with oncology, tinctures based on aconite help relieve pain symptoms, in some cases, their intake makes it unnecessary to use narcotic painkillers.

Also, aconite is able to have a positive effect on immunity.If you regularly take tincture of aconite, immunity increases markedly, the body begins to more successfully fight all diseases.

Aconite is used to combat many diseases. It is used as a diuretic and diaphoretic, used to treat tonsillitis, pneumonia and other diseases.

Precautions in the use of aconite

Since all types of aconite are poisonous, you cannot self-medicate with it. All medicines based on aconite should be used with great care. It is advisable to contact this plant with gloves; after contact, you must wash your hands well.

Aconite poisoning can cause death. Symptoms of poisoning are: nausea, vomiting, numbness of the tongue, weak, sometimes disappearing pulse. After poisoning, death can occur in less than four hours. In case of poisoning, you must immediately call an ambulance. The poisoned person must be provided with emergency assistance. He needs to be given as much water to drink as possible to induce vomiting, to drink activated charcoal, you can also do an enema or take a laxative.

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