Thyme: where it grows and what it looks like
Thyme is a perennial plant that has many beneficial properties: treating colds, intestinal inflammation, skin rashes, and fighting depression. In addition to medicinal purposes, the plant is also used in cooking. If you know what the thyme looks like and where it grows, you can quickly find and collect it.
Thyme, or thyme, is a medium-sized shrub. The height of an adult plant ranges from 5 to 30 cm, depending on how favorable the growing conditions are.
The hill is one of the favorable places where thyme grows
Thyme is easily recognized by its rough, dark red stem that rises above the ground. Thin branches are abundantly covered with small oval leaves edged with white villi. At the base of the foliage it has a light gray tint, while the top is the leaves of a rich dark green or green-blue color. The fluffy top in the shape of a cylinder is studded with pink or lilac-pink small flowers.
The peculiarity of the plant is a strong oily-spicy smell with a slight bitterness, spreading at least 3 meters.
Where does thyme grow and how is it harvested?
Thyme is an unpretentious plant. He grows:
- in dry sparse forests;
- on sub-sandy and sandy lands;
- in the pine sands;
- in the steppe areas;
- on forest edges;
- on dry open slopes;
- on the hills and at the foot of the mountains;
- in the fields and meadows.
Thyme is quite widespread in the south of France, Western Europe, Spain, the CIS countries: in the European part of Russia, Western Siberia, Transbaikalia, Moldova, Belarus and Ukraine.
In Russia, thyme is found in all regions. However, it is most common in the Urals, Caucasus, Krasnodar Territory and Crimea. It grows well on sod-podzolic soil, you can find it in the Moscow region, in its northern part near the cities of Klin, Sergiev Posad, Dmitrov.
Thyme can be harvested twice: during flowering in July and after the appearance of fruits in late August. However, it is best to collect it when flowers appear: during this period, thyme has the most effective healing properties. On large areas, you can use a mower, and for individual harvesting, scissors, pruners and knives. Competent collection will preserve the future harvest.
You need to cut branches with flowers above 15 cm from the surface of the earth. Leaving shorter trunks or pulling out the plant by the roots will result in no harvest next year.
Thyme is listed in the Red Book due to the fact that its distribution area is narrowing. However, herbalists still regularly collect it for medicinal purposes.