Tsimitsifuga or black cohosh: description, varieties, care and benefits for women

The herbaceous perennial cimicifuga or black cohosh is racemose cultivated since the 18th century. At home, in North America, its anti-inflammatory and healing properties for women have been known since ancient times. In modern pharmacology, herb root extract is used to create dietary supplements. The drug is widely used to treat gynecological diseases.

The second, unappealing name was given as a result of the fact that earlier the leaves of the black cohosh were used as an insecticide, supposedly its unpleasant odor drives the bugs away. This myth was later destroyed.

Description

Black cohosh is a tall plant; during flowering, it can reach 2.5 meters. The peduncle in the slice shows a rectangular cross-section, which allows you to withstand windy weather without damage. The healing root has a fleshy structure, a smooth shoot stretching from it, complemented by leaves of a complex shape of a saturated green hue. The lower leaves, located on the ground at the base of the peduncle, are long and wide, on separate petioles, dissected into two or three parts. The arrangement of the plates is alternate, each of them can reach 12 cm, the total number on the plant reaches 70 pieces, which makes the tsimitsifugu magnificent and beautiful.

The flowering period lasts all summer. In late spring, a brush (inflorescence) of an impressive size, up to a meter, is formed on the stem. A little later, flowers appear, characterized by an unpleasant odor that attracts scavenger insects. White flowers fluffy. Sepals in the amount of 4 pieces quickly crumble, leaving behind multiple stamens of a creamy hue. The petal itself is small up to 0.3 cm in diameter. Pestle with a large flat stigma gives only one ovary.

Of particular interest is the fruit, a box of up to 10 cm in size contains approximately 7-10 seeds. In winter, when the weather is windy, the plant makes a sound associated with a rattle, so the English name of the grass translates as “Rattlesnake weed”.

The plant lives on the slopes of ravines, the banks of streams, bushes, moist shaded areas.

Varieties and types of black cohosh with photos with names

In addition to medicinal properties, tsimitsifuga has high decorative qualities. It is used by landscape designers and summer residents. Today, at least 15 varieties of the plant are known, differing in the size of the bush, the height and shades of flowers.

Wild species:

Breeders have bred new species of plants, some wild cultivated and created popular varieties based on them.

Landscape designers often use black cohosh in combination with other plants, it perfectly complements any composition, quickly takes root. Tall varieties are often used as hedges and as a background for stunted stands. When designing alpine slides, the most convenient are low varieties. A beautiful complex leaf of a bush in itself can serve as a decoration of the garden, a combination of cherry varieties (Elstead) and lettuce (European) looks especially impressive. Decorate with plants and ponds. When planting it near a pond, the design of mosses and other cover crops will complement well.

Black cohosh planting in the ground

The beauty of tsimitsifuga does not reflect in its names, only the Germans were able to express the decorative properties of the plant, calling it "silver candles". Grow them in the open ground. Unpretentious culture does not require special care, is not afraid of shade and dampness.

Planting under trees is undesirable; there should be enough free space around the bush. When choosing a place for a flower bed, pay attention to areas protected from the wind. This is due to the height of the peduncle in most varieties, with strong gusts, the shoot can break.

The best time for planting is spring and autumn. The soil for black cohosh must be fertilized. Dig a hole with a depth of not more than 30 cm, spread organic matter to the bottom, then plant a bush. It is necessary to observe high humidity, the plant does not belong to dry and can die. The wide leaves at the base of the bush interfere with each other at close planting, it is recommended to maintain a distance of about 60 cm. The poisonous properties of the grass are known, so they must wash their hands after contact with it.

A tsimitsifuge transplant is not needed; it feels great in one place for up to 20 years.

Black cohosh care

Unpretentious culture gives gardeners joy:

• Maintaining a well-moistened soil is not a problem. In hot and dry periods, watering is more frequent, closer to the end of the season, in October - it is reduced.
• Black cohosh is recommended to cover at the base of the roots with a layer of leaves, this helps to keep the soil moist and prevents the appearance of weeds.
• If there is no purpose to collect seeds, then dried inflorescences must be cut off.
• Varieties with high peduncles are recommended to be tied. Gardeners use neat, thin base pins that are almost invisible in the overall composition.
• Preparation for wintering begins with trimming the stems. Then the growth site is covered with a dense layer of needles or fallen leaves.

Top dressing

Well-fertilized soil is what this type of plant needs. When planting in the hole, compost and sand are necessarily driven in a ratio of 7: 3. During the season, black cohosh can be fed only once more and do it 3 years after planting; at earlier stages, the plant does not need help.

Fertilizer is administered in early spring. Complex compositions with a high content of nitrogen, potassium and phosphorus are best suited.

Breeding

There are three methods by which a tsimitsifugu is bred: sowing seeds, cuttings, dividing the bush. Each method has its own characteristics, but the result is always positive due to the fact that this species is closer to weeds than to cultivated plants.

The simplest method is called division. In the spring, they dig a bush that is at least 6 years old. The shoot is carefully separated from the main plant, the source of material is planted in its place. The sprout is installed in a container with a growth stimulator and after a while it is transferred to a pot with universal soil. The seedling is kept warm until it begins to grow. Then they transfer it to a permanent place in the flowerbed.

Cutting is also easy. The bottom leaf is taken from the mother plant, it is important that there is a piece of adult bark on the petiole. The sprout is dripped with soil on a well-moistened area and covered with a plastic bottle.

Sowing black cohosh requires some knowledge. Seeds must be used immediately after collection, then germination will be good. If they are left from last season, they are prepared 6 months before sowing:

• 3 months kept at a temperature of +20 ° C;
• the rest of the period at +4 ° C.

Regardless of the place, open ground or flowerpot, the first shoots can be expected no earlier than six months later. When planting, you do not need to moisten the soil much, the seeds can rot. Young growth grown in this way will bloom for the first time for 3 years.

Disease

The weed plant in nature and in the garden has retained its characteristics. The high immunity of tsimitsifugi makes the culture almost invulnerable. But sometimes she can get sick.

Pests that infect the bush are removed by insecticide treatment. What kind of drug to take will be prompted in the store, starting from the type of parasite.

Diseases of the roots occur with excessive moisture in the soil. In this case, remove the protective layer of foliage covering the root area, and reduce watering.

Mr. Dachnik recommends: the healing properties of tsimitsifugi

Since ancient times, the rhizome of the plant has been used for medicinal purposes. Its use has the best results in reducing labor pain and, if necessary, adjusting the cycle in women.

Today, the spectrum of diseases treated by cimicifuga is much wider, the beneficial properties are studied more deeply. In China, the herb is prescribed as an anti-inflammatory, to eliminate pain of various kinds and reduce temperature. Known antitussive and antirheumatoid properties of the roots of this plant. Prescribe the drug and with diabetes, kidney disease, patients with nervous excitability are prescribed as a sedative. In the field of hormone therapy, the drug is used to normalize the balance of estrogens and stimulate their production.

Using black cohosh as a medicine, you must remember that the stems and leaves are poisonous. The use of drugs that include plant extracts is permissible only as directed by the attending physician and under strict control. There are a number of contraindications that you need to know about:

• sensitivity to components or an allergic reaction;
• pregnancy and lactation periods:
• tumors of various nature with a direct dependence on the content of estrogen;
• liver disease.

There are various pharmacy forms based on tsimitsifugi: liquid and dry extracts, powders, tablets, capsules.

Self-administration of drugs for therapeutic purposes is strictly prohibited. Medical consultation required.

Cases of overdose and side effects are known. Exceeding the dose is fraught with headaches and nausea. There is an increase in body weight in patients taking the medicine on an ongoing basis. Allergic reactions and disorders of the gastrointestinal tract are frequent.

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