The healing properties of medicinal chamomile are quite extensive. It is used not only in traditional medicine, but also in official pharmacology. This plant is mainly used as a powerful antiseptic. A decoction of pharmacy chamomile is indispensable for bathing babies, it is drunk during colds, it is taken to treat diseases of the intestines and urogenital area. For those who want to start harvesting raw materials on their own, it is important to know how to dry chamomile at home, where and when to collect it.

Description of chamomile officinalis

Chamomile officinalis is a herbaceous annual belonging to the Astrov family. All parts of the plant are used as medicinal raw materials. The popular names of the flower are camila, blush, Romanov grass, maiden flower, mother grass, peeled chamomile.

Chamomile officinalis

Here is a description of this plant:

  • The root of the plant is thin, slightly branched, light brown in color.
  • Branched erect stems have a hollow structure, their height ranges from 15 to 60 cm.
  • Leaves, cut into linear segments, are arranged alternately on the shoots.
  • The flowers form on long peduncles and are baskets of central tubular yellow flowers and marginal white petals.

The flowering period of pharmaceutical chamomile lasts from May to September. In nature, the plant can be found in the Caucasus and Central Asia, in the northern regions and the European part of Russia. Chamomile grows near roads, in quarries, in crops, on forest outskirts. The maiden flower has found wide application in a wide variety of diseases. The decoction of the plant is also used in cosmetic procedures for the skin and hair.

Differences between pharmacy and field chamomile

Calendula - how to collect and dry

Before you start collecting raw materials, you should make sure that this is the same medicinal chamomile. To distinguish it from its fellows, you need to carefully examine the plant. The flowers of the field chamomile are located on the peduncles singly, while the medicinal variety on one branch can have several baskets at once. The plant, which has medicinal properties, has a characteristic pleasant smell, which other varieties lack.

Field chamomile

While the leaves of chamomile are similar to dill, the field species has leaves that are more like wormwood shoots. And finally, unlike its relatives, the pharmacy variety has a hollow stem. Other representatives of chamomile do not have this feature. If you need exactly pharmaceutical chamomile, how to collect and dry it is of no small importance.

When and how to properly collect raw materials

Some people prefer not to buy medicinal chamomile, but to harvest it themselves. The advantage of the plant is that its use has no age restrictions, it can support human health from a very young age to old age. How to properly collect chamomile medicinal?

You need to search for a plant in ecologically clean places, far from busy roads and industrial enterprises.Collecting and harvesting chamomile must be carried out during the flowering period, since most recipes use flowers. In open sunny areas, inflorescences appear earlier. Chamomile is collected by hand.

Chamomile

The baskets are pinched off or cut with small scissors. You can also use a sharpened pruner. Collect only fully blooming flowers. Faded, wilting buds are not suitable for medicinal purposes. If chamomile is harvested for taking baths, then the herbaceous part of the plant is also used.

The flower is cut at the level of the lower leaves, and it is better to collect individual branches from nearby plants so that each of them can subsequently recover. Since chamomile blooms all summer, it can be harvested in June, July and August. Collection must be carried out without fail in dry weather. It is good if the sun is shining and it is hot outside - under such conditions, essential oils are preserved as much as possible in the flowers of chamomile.

The herbalist needs to have a canvas bag for herbaceous materials and a small wicker basket for flowers. It is best not to use plastic bags. Inflorescences can lose petals, crumple, steam up. Polyethylene is not the best material for carrying and storing herbs.

On a note! When to harvest chamomile? To prepare the plant, it is better to go in search early in the morning, as soon as the sun has risen. If abundant dew falls on that day, the collection will have to be postponed until a more suitable moment, the grass must be dry at the time of cutting.

How to properly dry chamomile at home

After the chamomile was brought home, the next crucial moment comes - drying it. In nature, plants continuously absorb nutrients from the soil, gas exchange with the environment occurs. In order for the grass to retain all the useful components, it is necessary to stop the transforming processes in the plant tissues as quickly as possible. Only then will it be possible to keep the nutrients in high concentration. But it was for them that the collection was carried out.

pharmaceutical camomile

Grass and flowers are sorted out and laid out in the shade on a newspaper, a piece of cloth or a special lattice. The storage area for raw materials should be well-ventilated and dry. For those who live in a private house, you can use the attic or veranda. The top of the grass is covered with gauze to protect it from dust and insects attracted by the smell.

Every day, the raw materials are agitated and turned over several times so that the drying process takes place more evenly. At a temperature of 25-35 ° C, the grass can be completely dried in about 10-14 days.

Important! It is categorically impossible to dry pharmacy chamomile in the sun. With this approach, the herb will lose all its beneficial properties.

Features of harvesting pharmacy chamomile at home

How to dry chamomile in an urban setting? You can use the oven for drying. The flame is reduced to a minimum and the door should remain ajar. But this forced method is not the best option. Some of the nutrients contained in medicinal chamomile are lost. From a plant that has been harvested as a whole, you can collect bunches and hang them with their heads down at some distance from each other, attaching them to a rope.

Field chamomile

It is also permissible to use a special electric dryer designed for drying vegetables and fruits. The herb is placed in the device and brought to condition at a temperature of 35-40 ° C. If such a temperature regime is not provided in the device, it is better to refuse this method.

On a note! You can check the condition of the raw material by rubbing the leaves or flowers between your fingers. A properly dried chamomile should crumble. The stems of a dry plant will become brittle, which can be easily identified when broken.

Storage of pharmacy chamomile

Dried herb should be stored in cardboard boxes or natural cloth bags.It is better not to use a sealed container, medicinal raw materials must have air access to avoid spoilage. If you plan to use glass jars for storage, they should not be closed with sealed metal and plastic lids. Better to tie the neck with parchment paper.

On a note! Pharmacy chamomile retain its beneficial properties for 1.5 years. Then they gradually weaken.

The composition and healing properties of the plant

The medicinal properties of chamomile are due to its chemical composition. In the dried flowers and leaves of the plant, during the study, a whole storehouse of useful components was found:

  • unbound organic acids;
  • tannins;
  • coumarins;
  • bioflavonoids;
  • polysaccharides;
  • vitamins;
  • phytosterols;
  • protein compounds;
  • carotenoids;
  • mucus;
  • gum.

In dry raw materials 0.1-0.8% of essential chamomile oil is preserved, which has a pronounced bacteriostatic, anti-inflammatory, anti-allergenic effect. Today in medicine, dried flowers are widely used for the preparation of infusions and decoctions, essential oil. Flower baskets have a disinfectant, analgesic, choleretic, sedative, antispasmodic, anticonvulsant, hemostatic effect.

Decoction with chamomile

Chamomile essential oil also disinfects, reduces gas formation, gives a diaphoretic effect, improves digestion, reduces pain, stops inflammation, dilates cerebral vessels, stimulates the central nervous system, and eliminates spasms of smooth muscles. All these properties of the plant have been proven by scientists as a result of multiple studies. The plant has been studied in laboratories around the world.

Indications and contraindications for use

Due to its wide range of medicinal properties, chamomile is used for a variety of diseases and disorders in the body. Inside take infusion and decoction of chamomile flowers, prepared according to the instructions.

The infusion is prepared from 4 tbsp. tablespoons of dry raw materials and a glass of freshly boiled water. The components are placed in a thermos and infused for 3 hours. The resulting infusion is filtered, divided into 4 equal parts and drunk during the day before each meal.

To prepare the broth, 4 tbsp is also taken. spoons of dried flowers. They are poured with 300 ml of hot water and kept in a water bath for 30 minutes. The finished broth should be filtered, cooled, top up with boiled water to the original volume. The remedy is drunk half a glass 3 times a day, after adding honey to the broth.

Chamomile tea

A decoction and infusion are used for the following problems:

  • diseases of the digestive organs;
  • uterine bleeding;
  • colds in autumn and winter;
  • severe overwork;
  • liver disease;
  • stomach cramps;
  • bronchitis;
  • pneumonia;
  • insomnia;
  • poor appetite.

Chamomile infusion is also used externally. It is used to rinse the mouth for gum disease, stomatitis, sore throat. Compresses with infusion are indicated for skin ulcers, eczema, abscesses, acne, frostbite and burns, hard-to-heal wounds. Chamomile is used for microclysters for hemorrhoids. Infusion is used to wipe palms and feet with severe sweating. They wash the mucous membrane of the eye for inflammatory diseases. A hot compress with chamomile infusion will be a good addition to medication for exacerbation of rheumatism, arthritis, gout, and the consequences of a bruise.

Chamomile bath

Excitable and irritable people are advised to take soothing chamomile tea. For 3 parts of chamomile, 2 parts of valerian root are taken, the components are mixed, and then 2 teaspoons of the mixture are brewed with two glasses of boiling water. Tea should be infused for 20 minutes, after which it is filtered and drunk in the evening, one glass at a time. You can use this drink from time to time or no more than 2 weeks in a row.

To prepare a bath, he uses the entire aerial part of the plant.To do this, 0.5 kg of raw materials are poured with 2 liters of water and boiled for 10-15 minutes. After that, the broth is filtered and poured into a bath of warm water. The duration of the procedure should be 30 minutes. Take a bath every other day for 2 weeks. The indications for the procedure are skin diseases, leg muscle cramps, poor liver function, severe fatigue, increased nervousness and insomnia.

In gynecology, chamomile infusion is used for douching. To prepare it, pour 1 teaspoon of dried flowers with a glass of boiling water and leave for 30 minutes. The finished solution is filtered and vaginal douching is done. The procedure should be performed daily at bedtime for 7 days. It is indicated for chronic inflammation in remission, cervical erosion, thrush, cystitis, vaginosis. Pregnant women should not douche with chamomile, immediately after childbirth, abortion, miscarriage, with exacerbations of inflammatory diseases, after 40 years (chamomile aggravates the dryness of the vaginal mucosa, which occurs at this age).

Important! Sometimes an individual intolerance arises on the grass.

Taking chamomile inside is not recommended for pregnant women during lactation. It must be used with caution by people who are constantly taking any medications. In this case, it is necessary to coordinate the simultaneous intake of chamomile and other medications with the attending physician.

Self-collection and drying of chamomile medicinal will take some time and effort, but at the same time it will give you the opportunity to use the natural power of this medicinal plant completely free of charge. You just need to observe the correct technology for harvesting grass and store it in suitable conditions.