Coltsfoot: when it blooms, what it looks like, a photo of a plant, what helps

The use of coltsfoot is widely practiced in traditional medicine. Before using a medicinal herb, you need to study its features and composition.

Description of coltsfoot

Coltsfoot (Tussilago) is a perennial herbaceous plant of the Asteraceae family. It has a long branched creeping rhizome. In early spring, upright flower-bearing shoots with ovate-lanceolate brownish leaves appear above the ground. Each develops a single bright yellow basket.

Some time after the buds open, vegetative stems form. They do not bear flowers, but are covered with round-heart-shaped, pubescent below and bare above leaves on long petioles. The fruits of the coltsfoot are elongated achenes with soft tufts. Flowering shoots die off shortly after they ripen.

Coltsfoot is a honey plant, bees collect pollen and nectar from the culture

When coltsfoot blooms

The coltsfoot blooms very early, even before the leaves on the trees. Usually the first yellow baskets appear in early or mid-April when warm weather sets in. Flowering lasts about 45 days.

Where coltsfoot grows in Our Country

The perennial plant is widely distributed throughout Our Country. You can meet culture in the Central regions of the country and in Siberia, in Central Asia and the Far East, in the Murmansk region and even in the Arctic regions.

The curative mother-and-stepmother settles along the roadsides, in the fields, close to human habitation, on the banks of reservoirs. You can meet her in wastelands, vegetable gardens and even in landfills.

The chemical composition of coltsfoot

The properties of the medicinal plant coltsfoot are due to its rich chemical composition. The medicinal herb contains:

• vitamin C;
• glycosides and saponins;
• carotenoids;
• tannins;
• tartaric and malic acids;
• sitosterol and inulin;
• flavonoids;
• stigmasterin and taraxanthin;
• dextran;
• mucus;
• essential oil;
• arnidol and faradiol.

The rich composition gives the medicinal plant strong anti-inflammatory, softening and healing qualities.

Healing properties of coltsfoot

Mother and stepmother is used to treat many ailments. With proper use of plant-based products:

• promote expectoration when coughing and relieve sore throat;
• improve the condition of the digestive system;
• due to diaphoretic properties, reduce the temperature during fever;
• promote healing of wounds and cuts;
• soothe muscle pain;
• normalize the nervous system;
• regulate blood pressure and strengthen blood vessels;
• improve the condition of the skin and hair;
• relieve inflammation of the genitourinary system;
• strengthen general immunity;
• improve the condition of the bronchi and lungs.

Coltsfoot treats gynecological diseases in women, normalizes the menstrual cycle and balances hormonal levels. The use of herbal remedies is useful for inflammation of the appendages.

Men take decoctions and infusions of the plant is recommended for the prevention of prostatitis and adenoma. When applied externally, the medicinal herb protects against early baldness.

Indications for use coltsfoot

The use of coltsfoot in folk medicine is recommended for many diseases. In particular, it is allowed to use decoctions and infusions:

• with cough and runny nose;
• with diseases of the stomach and intestines, loss of appetite;
• with inflammation of the kidneys;
• with varicose veins;
• with chronic headaches;
• with scrofula and dropsy;
• with bronchitis and tuberculosis in the early stages;
• with inflammation of the middle ear;
• with bronchial asthma;
• at high temperature.

Outwardly, the medicinal herb is used to treat the skin with abscesses, boils, wounds and burns. The use of perennial is justified for psoriasis and dermatitis.

Application of the leaves and flowers of coltsfoot

The benefits of coltsfoot flowers are fully revealed with the proper processing of a medicinal plant. Traditional medicine advises preparing several vitamin remedies based on herbs.

Cough coltsfoot for kids

Coltsfoot with bronchitis and catarrhal cough in children promotes sputum discharge and fights the infectious process. The following decoction of a medicinal plant has a good effect when applied:

1. The grass is crushed in a volume of 10 g.
2. Mixed with 3 g of lard.
3. Pour the ingredients with 500 ml of milk.
4. Boil on low heat for ten minutes under the lid.
5. Cool and filter from sediment.

The child should take the drug 50 ml once a day before bedtime.

It is possible to offer a decoction of coltsfoot to a child with a cough from the age of five

Tea

Brewing coltsfoot leaves as a tea is recommended for weakened immunity, colds or beriberi. The drink recipe looks like this:

1. The leaves and inflorescences of the plant are crushed in a volume of 5 g.
2. Pour raw materials with a glass of boiling water.
3. Leave closed for ten minutes.

Ready tea is poured into a cup through a strainer. You can use it with honey, but it is better not to use sugar.

Infusion

Taking coltsfoot in the form of an infusion is useful for respiratory diseases, cholecystitis and intestinal inflammation. The remedy is done like this:

1. Grind raw materials in a volume of 20 g.
2. Pour 200 ml of hot water.
3. Leave covered for half an hour.
4. Strain through gauze.

You need to use the drug in 30 ml up to four times a day.

decoction

A decoction of a perennial is recommended for use in case of problems with the kidneys and stomach, cough and bronchitis, and varicose veins. Prepare a remedy according to the following algorithm:

1. Pour 20 g of dried leaves of the plant into an enameled pan.
2. Pour in a glass of fresh boiling water.
3. Simmer in a water bath for about 15 minutes.
4. Remove from heat and cool the broth.
5. Filter from the sediment and squeeze out the raw materials.
6. Top up with clean water to the initial volume.

You need to drink coltsfoot four times a day, 100 ml each.

Fresh Juice

Perennial juice obtained from fresh leaves has strong medicinal properties. Pull it out like this:

1. Young plates of the plant are washed from dirt and dust.
2. The leaves are scalded with boiling water for disinfection and thrown into a colander.
3. After the liquid has drained, the plant mass is scrolled through a meat grinder or crushed in a blender.
4. The resulting slurry is wrapped in folded gauze and squeezed properly.

Fresh juice is diluted with water in equal volumes and taken in 15 ml. It is recommended to use it on a full stomach three times a day. The remedy is recommended for use in various inflammations and bronchitis.

Drinking coltsfoot juice is helpful during the quitting period to reduce cigarette cravings

Alcohol infusion

Coltsfoot is useful for a person in the form of a strong alcohol tincture. A medicinal preparation is prepared according to this recipe:

1. About 100 g of inflorescences and grass leaves fall asleep in a glass jar.
2. Pour 100 ml of high-quality vodka.
3. Close the container with a lid and clean in a dark place for two weeks.
4. After the expiration of the drug is filtered.

The use of tincture is beneficial for colds and sore throats. The agent is diluted in a small amount of water, 30-40 drops each and consumed on an empty stomach three times a day.

Other

The healing properties of coltsfoot flowers are revealed in some other recipes. On the basis of the plant, preparations are prepared for the treatment of colds, as well as for external use.

Syrup

The remedy is good for respiratory ailments. The scheme for creating a syrup looks like this:

1. Fresh leaves and flowers of the perennial are washed, crushed and sprinkled with sugar in a glass container.
2. The vessel is cleaned in a dark cool place for a week.
3. After the expiration of the period, the raw materials, together with the released juice, are transferred to another dish.
4. Add 200 ml of honey and mix well.
5. Cleaned in coolness and darkness for another week.

The finished syrup is filtered from the remnants of raw materials and poured into a glass bottle. You need to store the product in the refrigerator. Use the drug should be 15 ml half an hour before meals up to four times a day.

Powder

The use of perennials is usually carried out externally using plant powder. The remedy is made from dried leaves and flowers – the raw materials are ground manually or using a blender.

The finished powder is diluted with a small amount of water to the state of gruel. The mass is applied to bruises, wounds and cuts, used for compresses for inflammatory skin diseases.

If you mix coltsfoot powder with petroleum jelly, you can get a homemade ointment for external use.

Contraindications and harm coltsfoot

The benefits and harms of coltsfoot depend on the individual characteristics of the body. Avoid using herbs:

• with liver diseases;
• with exacerbation of pancreatitis;
• with individual allergies.

When using medicinal preparations, it is necessary to carefully observe safe dosages. Otherwise, the herb can lead to the development of side effects – migraines, nausea and diarrhea, dizziness. The use of coltsfoot for treatment is practiced for no longer than four weeks in a row.

Is it possible to coltsfoot during pregnancy

The benefits of coltsfoot for women are not always clear-cut. The medicinal plant has a beneficial effect on the immune system, protects against colds and helps to quickly cope with a cough.

However, during pregnancy, it is better to refuse the use of herbs. It contains a large amount of alkaloids that are harmful to the developing fetus and can lead to miscarriage. When breastfeeding, coltsfoot should also be excluded from the diet – it negatively affects the composition of milk.

Use in children

Therapeutic mother-and-stepmother, with careful use, can bring benefits to the child’s body. The plant is recommended to be brewed for cough and runny nose in babies, inflammation of the tonsils, ear diseases and diathesis.

At the same time, for the first time, a child is allowed to offer decoctions and infusions of a plant only after five years. Dosages must be kept to a minimum. If side effects occur, the use of medicinal herbs should be immediately abandoned.

Coltsfoot can cause rashes, itchy skin, and diarrhea in babies

Procurement and storage

For medicinal purposes, all parts of the coltsfoot are suitable – leaves, inflorescences, stems and roots. The timing of procurement depends on what kind of raw material we are talking about.

Flowers and leaves of a medicinal plant are usually harvested in May, at the peak of decorativeness. The green parts are carefully cut with a sharp tool and dried in the fresh air under a canopy. The plates for the workpiece are chosen bright green, without spots and any damage. It is desirable that by the time of collection the leaves have already lost their whitish pubescence. The coltsfoot greens are allowed to be washed before drying, the flowers are not subjected to such a procedure.

The roots of the plant for medicinal purposes are harvested in mid-autumn. After harvesting, the raw materials are washed from soil residues and cut into small pieces, and then dried in a warm room or in an oven at a temperature of no more than 50 ° C.

Keep the coltsfoot in a paper bag or cloth bag in a dark place with a low level of humidity. Roots retain valuable properties for up to a year, inflorescences and leaves – for 2-3 years.

It is necessary to collect a plant for medicinal purposes only in clean areas away from roads, landfills and industrial enterprises. Harvesting is recommended to be done on a dry but cloudy day.

Conclusion

The use of coltsfoot is beneficial in many diseases. The plant has strong medicinal properties, but in some cases it can harm the body.