Prickly

Onopordum acanthium L.

Татарник колючий Татарник колючий

Botanical characteristics. Family Compositae. Two-year herbaceous plant with upright ribbed stem up to 2 m high. The whole plant is very prickly. Leaves are jagged, petiolate or sessile, oblong-oval. Red-violet flowers are collected in large bright, more often solitary, baskets sitting on the tops of stems. Blooms in June in August. Fruits are numerous achenes, carried by the wind.

Spread. It occurs as a solitary plant or in small groups in the middle and southern regions of Russia. It grows on vacant lots, at fences, at the road, on the slopes of hills and ravines, like a weed in the gardens.

Used parts of the plant. Grass.
The plant is practically not studied, a small number of alkaloids (0.5%) and sesquiterpene lactone arcciopicrin are found in the leaves.

Application. The plant is currently used only in folk medicine. Tatarnik has tonic, cardiotonic, hypertensive, diuretic, hemostatic and bactericidal action.
It is used for arterial hypotension, cardiac weakness, with astheno-neurotic syndrome.
Tatarnik appointed with prolonged cough, bronchial asthma, diarrhea, hemorrhoids, scrofululosis, rheumatism and as a diuretic - with diseases of the bladder.
For external use, sometimes used as a lotion for allergic skin diseases.
In folk medicine, the Tartar has long been used to treat various neoplasms and with a preventive purpose - in the postoperative period after oncological operations.

Preparation. Infusion: 2-3 tablespoons of herbs are insisted with 2 cups of boiling water (in a thermos). The next day, drink infusion in 3 divided doses for 20-40 minutes before meals.
For the preparation of powder dried grass is pounded in a mortar or passed through a meat grinder. The spines are pre-removed. Powder is taken 1 teaspoon 3-4 times a day before meals, washed down with water.