Sweet clover: its properties, cultivation and variety. White Burkun or White Sweet Clover

Sweet clover is found almost everywhere. Many consider it overgrown with weeds. But this plant has, when used correctly, many healing properties. The honey plant successfully cures many diseases.

The herb has gained popularity both among herbal healers and in official medicine. From medicinal plant pharmaceutical industry medicines are produced.

The two-year-old honey plant belongs to the family. Bobovykh. The grass is called wild buckwheat, bottom grass, burkun, and can also be called differently, depending on the area of ​​growth.

Sweet clover has a rod-shaped root. Its stem is straight and branches throughout. The length ranges from half a meter to one and a half meters. The leaves are oblong or elliptical with serrated edges. The leaves are bluish-gray on top and light underneath. The whole plant looks silvery.

Sweet clover has butterfly flowers of yellow color, small, up to 7 mm. They are formed in the sinuses and at the apex by many brushes.

The plant has small fruits (beans) of an oval configuration, brownish in color with a sharp awl-shaped ending. Flowering occurs almost all summer from June to August, ripening - from July and throughout the autumn period.

Grass grows on the sides of the highway, in meadows, in ravines and wastelands. It occurs as a weed in young forest plantings and agricultural fields. The plant spreads in the Urals, throughout Europe, in the West. Siberia, the Caucasus and other regions.

Procurement of raw materials

For medical purposes, flower clusters, side branches no more than 30 cm, and plant tops are suitable. Harvesting is done during the flowering period. You need to choose a time when the weather is dry and sunny and there is no dew, otherwise the raw material will soon darken and become unsuitable for use.

It is prohibited to collect medicinal herbs near the highway, as it collects a large number of dust and toxic substances.

The plant is not dried in the open sun: in attics, under roofs. Good ventilation is necessary. The raw materials are laid out on a paper or fabric bedding in a layer of 5 cm, which must be turned over from time to time.

When drying in a dryer, it is necessary to control the temperature; it should not be more than 40 degrees. After drying, the grass cools and is split into special clean bags.

The plant is ready to eat when it begins to break with a crunch. The finished raw material has a salty-bitter taste. The smell of grass is like fresh hay, or rather the aroma of coumarin.

Chemical composition

The flowers and leaves of the plant contain 0.4 to 0.9 percent coumarin, which gives it a pleasant aroma. In addition, the plant contains many useful substances:

  • melilotin acid;
  • choline;
  • purine derivatives;
  • flavonoids;
  • glycoside melitoside;
  • a small amount of essential oils;
  • protein elements;
  • fat-like elements;
  • dicumarol;
  • amino acids;
  • mucous substances (polysaccharides);
  • phenolcarboxylic acids;
  • carbohydrates;
  • nitrogenous and phenolic compounds;
  • tannins;
  • micro- and macroelements (selenium, molybdenum).

Honey grass also contains vitamins E and C in large quantities.

Medicinal properties

The valuable qualities of the plant are in coumarin. It serves as a sedative for the nervous system and stops seizures.

From medical research It follows that the substance increases blood pressure, increases the power of the heart muscle, and improves blood circulation in the brain and abdominal cavity.

In addition, the substances present in the grass and flowers of sweet clover are biogenic stimulants. The use of medications based on sweet clover increases white blood cells and activates them.

Decoctions, infusions, ointments, lotions are prepared from the plant; it is contained in medicinal fees. Using sweet clover, a patch is produced for the treatment of purulent-inflammatory processes.

Internally, medications are prescribed as anti-convulsants and sedatives, for expectoration of mucus from the bronchi and lungs.

Traditional medicine advises using the herb for constipation and flatulence, gynecological diseases, externally for mastitis.

Sweet clover honey also helps with mastitis and is used to massage joints for arthritis.

Indications for use of sweet clover

Sweet clover stimulates cerebral circulation in coronary and peripheral vessels, is prescribed to patients with atherosclerosis, with vegetative-vascular dystonia, for migraines, hysterical states.

The medicine “Meliocin”, obtained by Bulgarian pharmacologists from sweet clover leaves, has a high biostimulating effect. The plant is successfully used by Bulgarian, Polish, Austrian, German, Indian, and Chinese doctors.

Preparation of products from sweet clover

There are many known varieties of melilot different means for treatment of various purposes. These can be infusions, decoctions, baths and other means.

Infusion

  1. At 2 tsp. 2 cups of chopped plant are poured hot water. The mixture is infused for 4 hours and filtered. Use 2/3 cup 3 times a day. half an hour before meals.
  2. 2 tbsp. l. dry plants are placed in an enamel container and filled with a glass of boiling water. The mixture is covered with a lid and heated in a steam bath for 15 minutes. Then the infusion is left for 45 minutes and filtered. The volume of the resulting infusion is added boiled water to the original volume. Take half a glass 2-3 times a day.

The infusion is used as an expectorant and for inflammation of various nature, lowers arterial pressure.

Infusions are stored for no more than 2 days on the bottom shelf of the refrigerator.

Decoction

  1. Take 10 g of dried crushed raw materials and pour one glass of cold water. Within 30 min. simmer over low heat, then cool and strain.
  2. Pour 2 tbsp into 250 ml of water at room temperature. l. dry shoots of the plant and bring to a boil. Cook on low heat for 30 minutes. After this, strain the broth.

Both decoctions are used 1 tbsp. l. 3 rubles/day for liver diseases, colds accompanied by cough, sleep disorders, bronchitis.

Ointment

  1. An ointment is prepared from the flowers of the plant. Take 2 tablespoons of raw materials, 2-3 teaspoons of butter or some fat. Raw materials of small fractions are thoroughly ground with fat or oil, and can be brought to a boil.
  2. 2 tbsp. l. Grind the powder of the plant's flowers with 50 g of petroleum jelly.

Used for boils, rotting wounds, skin rashes of various types, for burns ultraviolet rays. Has the property of drawing out pus.

Compresses and baths

  1. An infusion is prepared for external use. 2 tbsp. l. raw materials are poured with 2 glasses of boiling water and infused for 2 hours. Then apply to sore areas.
  2. For local baths, 40 g of dry plant is poured with 400 ml of boiling water. Then the infusion is left for 30 minutes and filtered. Used to heal wounds, including purulent and non-healing ones.

If small and large joints, cloth bags with warm grass should be applied to the sore spots for about 20 minutes. Treatment lasts 10 days.

Tincture

  1. Take 100 g of dried raw materials, add a bottle (0.5) of vodka and leave for 2 weeks. Then strain and leave in a cool place. Can be stored for up to 2 years. Use 10-15 drops 3 times a day. before eating. Drink with water.
  2. 50 g of fresh raw material is poured into a bottle of vodka (0.5) and left for 2 weeks in a dark place. Then it is filtered and stored in the refrigerator. Reception - 15 drops 2 times a day.

Both tinctures are used for infertility, endometriosis, normalization hormonal imbalances, menopause, diseases of the lungs and bronchi, to increase systolic pressure.

Application on the farm

It is a fragrance in the manufacture of tobacco and soap accessories, and is used to get rid of moths and add fragrance to linen. The leaves of the plant can be used to dye fabrics.

Sweet clover honey is one of the first-class honeys. Honey is amber, transparent, and has a pleasant smell.

The grass is used for animal feed in agriculture, nutritionally similar to alfalfa. It is a fertilizer that enriches the soil with nitrogen.

Contraindications

When used in large doses the plant has an adverse effect on the nervous system and negatively affects smooth muscles. With long-term use or use in doses exceeding the norm, dizziness, nausea, vomiting, drowsiness, and pain in the head occur. Occasionally causes liver damage and even central nervous system paralysis.

It is forbidden to use sweet clover during pregnancy, low blood clotting, or bleeding. The plant is used strictly according to the recommendation and under the supervision of the attending physician. For children under 2 years of age, medications plant origin It is not advisable to use it.

An inconspicuous plant, the fragrant sweet clover will help with many diseases, alleviate chronic ailments, and relieve suffering. It is important to prepare the plant on time and correctly and consume it correctly in accordance with recipes.

We bring to your attention a video describing the medicinal properties of sweet clover and recipes for preparing the infusion:

In contact with

Treatment experience has accumulated over many centuries various diseases medicinal herbs. In witchcraft, sweet clover (yellow berkun), lat. Melilotus officinalis. This can be found in temperate latitudes, in different areas: in a field, in a meadow, along the road. Beneficial features sweet clover are numerous due to its chemical composition.

Chemical composition

Chemical composition Sweet clover is very rich and contains:

  • coumarins and their derivatives;
  • protein (17.6%);
  • Sahara;
  • vitamin C (up to 389 mg), vitamin E (more than 45 mg), carotene (up to 84 mg);
  • lactone;
  • glycoside;
  • flavonoids (robinin, flovin, kaempferol);
  • melilotin;
  • essential oil (0.01%);
  • polysaccharides (mucus);
  • saponins;
  • allantoin;
  • hydroxycinnamic, coumaric, melilotic acids;
  • phenolic triterpene compounds;
  • carbohydrate compounds;
  • nitrogenous bases;
  • amino acids;
  • tannins;
  • fat-like substances (up to 4.3%);
  • macro- and microelements (accumulates molybdenum, selenium);
  • fatty acid(contained in seeds).

Beneficial features

The herb sweet clover has numerous benefits, but do not forget about contraindications. It lowers blood pressure and has an antispasmodic effect in patients with angina pectoris and atherosclerosis.

It has a calming effect on cardiospasms, anxiety, excitability, insomnia, headaches, and menopause. It is used as a mucolytic agent for coughs, bronchitis, and is included in the ingredients of laxative tea.
It is used externally for healing wounds, treating boils, joint tumors, and inflammation of the ENT organs. The beneficial properties of sweet clover “work” even if not medical contraindications. The main ones are allergies to, as well as individual intolerance to its components.

Medicinal properties of sweet clover honey:
  • increases immunity;
  • restores the body in the postoperative period;
  • useful for shortness of breath, dizziness, headaches;
  • promotes lactation in lactating women, etc.

Did you know? In total, there are 22 species of sweet clover in nature. Not all of them have beneficial properties.

Collection and storage of medicinal raw materials

Collect side shoots and flowering flowers top part plants in the summer months. Thick stems are of no value; it is better to throw them away.
It is recommended to collect grass in meadows, fields, forest edges, away from highways, settlements, enterprises, treatment facilities etc.

Dry collected material in a shaded place, spread out in a layer of 3-5 cm at a temperature not exceeding 32 °C. After drying, crush the dried flowers and leaves (without stems).

Important! Do not dry healing herbs in the open sun.If stored improperly, mold appears on the grass, and instead of a plant with healing properties sweet clover becomes poison.

Store in closed containers in a dry place for up to 2 years.

Traditional medicine recipes

For treatment, tinctures, ointments, tea are made from harvested or pharmaceutical burkun, and clover honey and steamed herbs are used.

  1. Infusion for internal use: 2 tsp. dry sweet clover pour 1.5 tbsp. distilled water, leave for 4 hours and drink 0.5 cups 40 minutes before meals. Has a sedative, analgesic, and antitussive effect.
  2. For rubbing, compresses: 2 tbsp. l. herbs are poured with 2 cups of boiling water. Leave for 20 minutes.
  3. For baths: 2 tbsp. l. dry raw materials are poured with 1 cup of boiling water. Leave for 10 minutes (sciatica, rheumatism, sprain).
  4. Preparation of ointment: 2 tbsp. l. fresh flowers mixed with 2 tbsp. l. butter and heat over very low heat for 7-10 minutes. Use for furunculosis, ulcers, sprains.
  5. Tincture: Pour 100 g of dried yellow burkun into a bottle (0.5 l) of vodka and leave for 2-3 weeks. Drink 10-12 drops before meals 3 times a day. Heals frequent migraines, hormonal imbalances, infertility, endometriosis.
  6. For pain and swelling joints, wrap bags of steamed grass for 15-20 minutes before bed for 8-10 days.
  7. Sweet clover honey is necessary for nursing mothers. Take 1 dessert spoon after each meal.
  8. For cough, tracheobronchitis, pneumonia honey mixed with juice black radish and consume 1 dessert spoon 20 minutes before meals.

Did you know? Sweet clover honey accounts for 50-70% of the US honey market.

Use in cooking

Sweet clover is used in cooking as a seasoning for fish dishes and soups; salads with this plant, sweet clover tea, etc. are also eaten.

  • Salad recipe:
4 -5 fresh cucumbers, 2 boiled eggs, green onions, a pinch of sweet clover leaves, salt. Season with sour cream or sunflower oil. If desired, cut the young boiled.
  • Sweet clover tea:
3 dec. l. dry herbs, 3 tablespoons or juice, 3 tbsp. l. pour 1.1 liters of water. Boil and let it brew. Be sure to strain.

Contraindications and side effects

Yellow clover has not only medicinal properties, but also medical contraindications. Contraindications: pregnancy, lactation, decreased blood clotting, bleeding, kidney disease. Allergy sufferers should not use sweet clover honey.
Before starting treatment, a doctor's consultation is necessary. When using, strictly adhere to the dosage. In large doses it has a depressant effect on nervous system. Side effects may have insomnia, headache, nausea, vomiting, bleeding of mucous membranes.

Possesses popular names such as: “yellow sweet clover”, “Italian grass”, “meadow burkun”, “wild buckwheat”, “bottom grass”, “burkunets”, “female clover”, “wild hop”, “grasswort”, “sweet clover” , "chill".

The flowers are small, yellow in color, collected in brushes. The flowering period occurs throughout the summer (from June to September). The seed can be collected in August. The leaves are green, more saturated color on top and pale below. Petiolate, trifoliate, which is why it was popularly called trefoil.

The fruit is an ovoid bean with one or two seeds inside. It is blunt at the top and is located on a short stalk. The seeds are smooth, green-yellow in color, oval.

You can meet the flower in garden plots, near the house. Grows in the area Russian Federation, Ukraine, Kazakhstan, Asia. Denets is considered a valuable and culinary plant. The plant forms mixed thickets and is cultivated on farm and garden plots.

Growing sweet clover

It mainly grows along the road, in a ravine, a weedy place, on the edge of a meadow. The culture is light-loving, undemanding, winter-hardy. Like all other plants, it is better to sow sweet clover in early spring (March-April). It can be propagated using seeds. After planting, the plant germinates in 14–30 days. When two leaves appear, the crop is loosened, watered, thinned out at a distance of 30 cm from each other. In the first year of life, the flower only blooms, but does not bear fruit.

Chills are harvested during the flowering period, but only the inflorescence and leaves. Trefoil is used as a seasoning for preparing meat and fish dishes, soups, salads, and pickling vegetables (cucumbers, tomatoes). Due to its pleasant aroma, the herb is widely used in cooking.

It has a hypotensive, anti-inflammatory, antiseptic, diaphoretic, soothing, wound-healing effect. A drug based on sweet clover helps with bronchitis, cough, atherosclerosis, as well as constipation, migraines, arthritis, flatulence, and hysteria.

Composition of sweet clover


The herb contains coumaric, melilotic acid, flavonoid, protein, essential oil. In addition, coumarin, which gives the plant a spicy smell. The seeds contain fatty acids such as: arachidic, behenic, linoleic, stearic, palmitic. The grass also contains polysaccharide, saponin, tannin, vitamin C, E, carotene, and a macroelement.

Preparing the drug


Flower brushes, leaves, young shoots serve as raw materials. They need to be harvested in warm, sunny weather, after the dew from the flowers has disappeared. Because wet raw materials soon deteriorate.

Drying should be done under cover, for example in the attic, where there is a constant flow of air. Lay out the collected medicine thin layer on paper or fabric. Herbals are also dried in a dryer with a temperature of no more than 40 degrees. The raw material has a strong aroma similar to fresh hay, and tastes bitter.

After drying is completed, the raw materials are threshed and large, long stems are discarded. The product should not be stored for more than two years. The drug consists of shoots, leaves and flowers.

Pharmacological properties of sweet clover


A drug based on sweet clover is used as a cardiovascular remedy. Has an anti-inflammatory, expectorant effect. Due to the coumarin enzyme, the medicine has a narcotic, anticonvulsant effect, but is also capable of depressing the central nervous system. But the component dicumarol prevents the formation of blood clots and improves blood clotting. Denets has cardiotropic, anti-ischemic, antihypoxic activity.

Sweet clover has been known since past times. About him healing properties wrote the ancient doctors Galen and Dioscrides, famous at that time.


The herb has emollient, analgesic, hypotensive, and anticonvulsant properties. The substance coumarin increases blood pressure, relieves pain, cramps, and increases the concentration of leukocytes in the blood. Promotes cerebral, coronary, peripheral blood supply, improves blood flow in the abdominal cavity.

The medicine of sweet clover is used to treat flatulence, cough, boil, inflammation of the female genital organs, abscess, goiter, VSD (neuropirculatory). Poland, France, Germany, China are famous widespread use burkun in medicine.

Application of sweet clover

  1. Alcohol tincture from sweet clover: dried raw material is poured alcoholic drink(alcohol, vodka). It is infused for 14 days, and only after that you can drink 15 drops before meals, washed down with another drink. The tincture helps with infertility, migraines, malfunctions hormonal levels. Store the prepared infusion in the refrigerator.
  2. Herbal decoction: Finely chopped herb is poured into a glass of boiling water, boiled for 30 minutes, strained, infused and only then drunk one tablespoon before meals. Helps with insomnia, bronchitis, liver dysfunction.
  3. Burkun ointment: a small amount of raw material is ground into powder, then Vaseline is added and mixed thoroughly. An ointment is used for rapid healing of boils and purulent wounds. You can prepare the ointment in another way. For example, instead of Vaseline, use butter, which is connected to grass. This ointment also relieves inflammation and pain in the affected area.
  4. Burkun is a honey plant from which it is obtained honey. It helps with rheumatism, dropsy, hypertension, migraine, insomnia. The plant produces a lot of honey and pollen. Sweet clover honey is healthy, tasty, rich in useful material. It is transparent, sweet, with a very pleasant aroma.
  5. : fresh potion is poured with vodka and infused for two weeks. Take the prepared infusion, 20 drops before meals, twice a day.
  6. Leaves and flowers are very popular in cooking, used as a flavoring for meat and fish dishes, sauce, side dish, snack, drink. Burkun is also used to make cheese, canned food, and soft drinks.
  7. Widely used in tobacco, dairy, fish and meat industry . To prepare the salad you will need young fresh leaves, add a cucumber, a boiled egg, mix everything and add salt. Season with mayonnaise or olive oil.
  8. Sweet clover drink: Place a vessel with water on the fire and bring to a boil, immediately add the sweet clover inflorescence, cherry, cranberry or strawberry juice (to your taste). Cool and enjoy this delicious thirst quencher.
  9. Burkun is used to repel moths, acquisitions clean linen and so that folded clothes in the closet do not have bad smell. In addition, they are used in the process of making soap and tobacco.
  10. Sown sweet clover grass enriches the soil with nitrogen, acts as a fertilizer. Grass is fed to domestic animals (cows, horses), because it is no worse than alfalfa.
  11. Cold infusion: raw materials are soaked in cold water, leave for 4 hours, filter. Drink half a glass before meals. For dandruff, it is recommended to rinse your hair with a decoction. But people suffering from skin diseases need to take a bath with herbs added to it.
The healing decoction is used for:
  • pain in the bladder;
  • respiratory system disease;
  • hypertension;
  • bronchitis, cough, atherosclerosis;
  • cystitis, menopause;
  • constipation, flatulence;
  • dystonia, gout, goiter;
  • painful menstruation;
  • inflammation of the female genital organs;
  • respiratory diseases.
Burkun ointment helps with:
  • hemorrhoids;
  • mastitis;
  • stretching;
  • bruise;
  • abscess and abscess;
  • ulcer;
  • malignant tumor;
  • rheumatism;
  • boil.

Sweet clover contraindications


Sweet clover is contraindicated in the following cases: An overdose can adversely affect the functioning of the nervous system. From irregular use of the drug may appear side effects: drowsiness, vomiting, dizziness, headache, nausea, central nervous system paralysis.

Sweet clover is a strong product that contains a large number of active enzymes. So it has both a positive side of application and a negative one. It is important to follow the rules for taking the drug and follow the instructions. Be sure to visit a doctor before starting treatment, as well as in cases where symptoms of side effects appear.


Side effects of sweet clover are:
  • increased heart rate, increased heart rate;
  • abdominal pain, diarrhea;
  • increased blood pressure;
  • depressed state;
  • skin hemorrhage;
  • itching, burning;
  • intoxication;
  • poisoning;
  • rash;
  • apathy;
  • drowsiness.

Sweet clover recipes

  1. Infusion: chopped grass is poured cold water, stands for 4 hours and is filtered. You need to drink a third of a glass a day 25 minutes before meals. A decoction may be used in the form of a lotion, compress, or bath.
  2. Decoction: Place the raw material in a glass of water (hot), cook over low heat for about half an hour, then strain. Use a tablespoon if there is a spicy respiratory disease, as well as sleep disturbances.
  3. Alcohol tincture: Buy a bottle of vodka and fill it with dry potion. Leave in a dark place for two weeks, shaking occasionally. You need to take from 5 to 15 drops. For joint pain, it is best to apply a lotion of medicine. The procedure must be done throughout the week.
  4. Oil extract is done on the basis sunflower oil. To do this, you need to mix the herb with oil and keep it in a water bath for about 25 minutes. The mixture is then filtered and taken depending on the need.
  5. To increase lactation It is advisable to pour boiling water over the collected raw materials and leave for 4 hours. Drink the product three times before eating.
  6. As a carminative prepare an infusion of chilli and chamomile. The extract is consumed in 2 tbsp. l. for a day. It helps relieve inflammation of the ovaries ( female organ). But the course of treatment is long, it lasts from 2 to 4 weeks. During this time, you should refrain from sexual (sexual) contact with your partner.
For more information about the beneficial properties of sweet clover, watch this video:

Sweet clover (Melilotus in Latin) is a herbaceous plant of the Legume family. Its Russian name is related to the word “donnoy,” which was once used to describe gout. Latin name derived from the Greek words “chalk” and “lotus”, meaning honey and fodder grass.

The plant is also called bottom grass, barkun, bottom grass, vargun, hare's chill, ragwort, sticky, burkun, wild hop, horseweed, sweet clover and wild buckwheat.

Titles in other languages:

  • English Sweet clover, field melilot;
  • German Honigklee.


The sweet clover plant is commonly called bottom grass, bottom grass and sweet clover.

Appearance

The height of the sweet clover is up to two meters. The plant has a branched stem, a taproot, trefoil leaves with stipules, and white or yellow pendulous long flowers. The plant blooms in summer - from June to August.

Kinds

Many types of this plant are known - jagged, Sicilian, Italian, fragrant, Volga, rough, beautiful, Polish and others.

People's and official medicine uses only two types of sweet clover, which we will consider.

An annual or biennial plant with a straight stem up to 170 cm in height. The leaf plate is divided into three parts. Tiny white flowers are collected in elongated racemes. Flowering occurs in summer period, lasting one month. Its delicate, pleasant aroma is similar to coumarin, but not close. This species is the best honey plant.


White sweet clover does not have strong aroma, but is an outstanding honey plant

Biennial plant up to one and a half meters in height. The stem is bare, the leaves are trifoliate. The flowers are yellow, very small in long racemes. The aroma is strong, coumarin. It blooms all summer and the first month of autumn.


Medicinal clover stands out with bright yellow flowers with a strong coumarin aroma

Where does it grow

You can find sweet clover in both Asia and Europe. The plant has spread widely across the planet. It is often found in meadows, forest-steppe zones, ravines, forest edges and steppes.


Sweet clover grows almost everywhere and mainly in wastelands

Blank

  1. Harvesting is carried out during the flowering period.
  2. The tops of the sweet clover are cut off with a knife, obtaining raw materials up to thirty centimeters long. Thick and too coarse stems, as well as plants on the roadsides, are not cut off. The collection of sweet clover is carried out only in dry weather, since a wet plant quickly deteriorates.
  3. After cutting, the plant is immediately sent to dry. It is laid out outside, hidden under a canopy, or in an attic with excellent ventilation (it is important that the temperature is up to +40 degrees).
  4. You need to lay out the raw materials on fabric or paper in a layer of up to seven centimeters. It is turned over periodically.
  5. When the stems break easily, drying is completed. You need to make sure that the raw materials do not dry out, otherwise the leaves will fall off.
  6. Dried sweet clover can be stored for up to two years.


Sweet clover is collected only in dry weather, during the flowering period, and dried until the stems begin to break easily.

Peculiarities

  • Dried sweet clover has a bitter-salty taste.
  • The smell of the dried plant is reminiscent of fresh hay (it is called coumarin).
  • Sweet clover is used to improve the soil and restore soil fertility.
  • The plant is also medicinal, melliferous and fodder.


Nutritional value and calorie content

For 100 g of sweet clover:

Chemical composition

The sweet clover contains:

  • glycosides (one of them is coumarin, which provides the aroma of the plant);
  • essential oil;
  • cymarin;
  • protein;
  • acids – coumaric, ascorbic, melilotic;
  • fat-like substances;
  • purine derivatives;
  • melilotol;
  • flavonoids;
  • tannins;
  • Sahara;
  • choline;
  • slime.

When sweet clover begins to rot, dicoumarin is formed in it.


Beneficial features

The plant has the following effects:

  • expectorant;
  • lactogonic;
  • painkillers;
  • antiseptic;
  • laxative;
  • promotes wound healing;
  • helps with fever.


Sweet clover is a good laxative and pain reliever.

Contraindications

The plant is not used for:

  • pregnancy;
  • kidney diseases;
  • problems with blood clotting;
  • internal bleeding.

When using sweet clover, remember that the plant is poisonous - never exceed the dosage and it is better to use it as part of a collection.

Excessive and too long consumption of sweet clover can cause central nervous system depression, drowsiness, dizziness, liver damage, headaches and other problems. Animals that consume rotted hay containing sweet clover are poisoned by dicoumarin.

Honey

Bees collect honey from sweet clover all summer.

The color of honey is determined by the type of plant and the soil in which it grew. It ranges from white to amber, sometimes with golden and greenish tints.

Sweet clover honey smells very pleasant.

Yellow sweet clover produces honey, the taste of which is very mild and the smell is delicate.

White sweet clover produces honey with a sharper, slightly bitter taste and smell with notes of vanilla.


Sweet clover honey is very healthy

Benefit

The honey obtained from sweet clover is highly beneficial. It contains fructose (40 percent) and glucose (about 37 percent).

When using sweet clover honey externally and internally, it has beneficial properties:

  • Increases energy levels and body tone.
  • Has analgesic and anti-inflammatory effects in diseases respiratory tract.
  • Improves the condition of people with hypertension and heart disease.
  • Has a diuretic effect.
  • Eliminates dizziness and headaches.
  • Stimulates lactation.

During long-term storage, sweet clover honey becomes a viscous mass of white or yellow color.

Calorie content

Calorie content of 100 grams of sweet clover honey is 314 kcal.


The color of sweet clover honey varies from white to golden, the smell is also different, it all depends on the place where the bees collect nectar

Application

In cooking

  • Only yellow sweet clover is used for food, since white sweet clover is classified as a poisonous plant.
  • There are many recipes that include sweet clover, but you should not overuse the addition of this aromatic herb (there is a risk of headaches and nausea).
  • Fresh young sweet clover is added to salads, okroshka, and soups.
  • The crushed dried plant is used as a seasoning, adding to sauces, drinks, snacks and main courses.




Half a liter bread kvass you need to put 70 grams of boiled beef, cut into pieces, 50 grams of boiled potatoes, a hard-boiled egg and 50 grams fresh cucumber. Chop clover leaves (20 grams), as well as 25 grams of onion, grind with mustard, sugar and salt, add to okroshka. Season with sour cream to taste.


Garnish made from sweet clover roots

Wash the roots of the young plant well and, after salting, fry using vegetable oil. This side dish can be served with fish or meat.

Meat stewed with clover

Cut 250 grams of meat into pieces and fry a little. Place it in a casserole dish and add 50 grams of chopped onion, 50 grams of coarsely grated carrots, 200 grams of chopped potatoes and 20 grams of sweet clover leaves. You also need to put pepper in the casserole dish, Bay leaf and dill seed, then pour everything with water so that it covers the ingredients. Simmer the dish until cooked over low heat.


Drink with clover

Bring a liter of water to a boil, put 10 grams of sweet clover inflorescences and leaves in it, add sugar to taste and about 100 ml of cherry or cranberry juice. When the drink boils, remove from heat and cool.


Look next video from the TV show "1000 and 1 Spice of Scheherazade". From it you will learn a lot about the yellow clover plant.

In medicine

  • WITH medical purpose Both yellow and white sweet clover are used. The leaves, stems, and flowers of these plants are used.
  • Since white sweet clover is poisonous, only experienced healers risk using it.
  • The plant contains coumarin, which has a depressant effect on the nervous system. This substance prevents seizures and increases the number of leukocytes.
  • Sweet clover is used for migraines, insomnia, hysteria, headaches, menopause, flatulence, bronchitis and other problems.
  • The herbaceous part of the sweet clover is included in the preparations from which poultices are made. The plant is also a component of a green patch that helps against calluses and abscesses.
  • After infusing dry clover (2 small spoons) with boiling water (half a glass) for four hours, it is used to stimulate lactation, divided into three portions.
  • Decoctions, as well as infusions prepared from sweet clover, are effective for otitis media, mastitis, purulent wounds, boils.
  • Homeopaths use sweet clover in the preparation of drugs against psychosis.
  • Traditional medicine considers the plant an excellent laxative, and also prescribes sweet clover for hypertension, pain, lung diseases, gynecological pathologies, bloating and other problems.
  • The drug meliocin, which has a stimulating effect, is made from the leaves of sweet clover.


IN medicinal purposes they use white and medicinal clover, they treat the nervous system, women's diseases, boils and other problems

Infusion for headaches, hypertension, insomnia

Infuse sweet clover herb in a closed container filled with boiled cold water (two glasses) (take two teaspoons). Take the infusion two to three times a day, half a glass.

For baths and compresses

Prepare the infusion by placing a closed container with 2 tablespoons. spoons of sweet clover and 500 ml of water onto a hot stove.

Tincture for migraine

Pour the sweet clover herb with 40% alcohol (1 to 10) and place it in a dark place for 10-15 days. After straining, the tincture can be stored in the refrigerator for up to two years. You can use it either internally or externally - fifteen drops each.

Poultices

They can be prepared from flowers, steamed with boiling water, or from crushed leaves.

For hemorrhoids

Take two parts each of multi-colored and lush cloves, as well as one part each of knotweed, sweet clover and cinquefoil. After grinding everything in a mortar or coffee grinder, take 20 grams of the resulting powder and grind it with 80 grams of fat or lard (melt it first). Keep this mixture in a water bath for four hours, and then strain while still hot.

At home

Sweet clover is used as:

  • fragrance in tobacco products;
  • soap flavoring;
  • forage plant;
  • honey plant;
  • soil improver.


Varieties

The plant is considered a valuable crop and is grown in different climatic zones. Sweet clover is represented by many varieties, of which more and more are constantly appearing. White sweet clover is represented by the varieties Volzhanin, Diomid, Rybinsky, Volga, Stepnoy and others. Medicinal sweet clover is represented by the varieties Lazar, Siberian, Golden, Alsheevsky and others.


Volga melilot belongs to the white large varieties, but is an annual

Growing

Sweet clover seeds germinate at a temperature of +2+4 degrees. Only ripe or slightly unripe seeds germinate well. They are scarified before sowing. In the first year, the melilot develops a root and a green part. The plant begins to bloom a year after planting.


Sweet clover is an unpretentious plant, it sprouts well at slightly above-zero temperatures, although it begins to bloom only in the second year

Due to the presence of a strong root system, sweet clover is not picky about soil. The plant is also drought-resistant, so it does not need to be constantly watered. Only acidic soil and excess moisture have a bad effect on sweet clover.

Sweet clover is a herbaceous biennial plant of the Legume family. It is found on all continents, but is most common in Eurasia. The plant is popularly known as “sweet clover”, “burkun”, “sleepy grass”, “hare’s chill”, “soap grass”, “stable grass”. Although the sweet clover cannot be called exclusively decorative, it brings great benefit site and people, and is also an excellent honey plant. Thanks to this, it is worth sowing it on the site at least once every few years.

Botanical description

Sweet clover is a biennial or young herbaceous crop up to 1-2 m high. A strong, branched rhizome can penetrate the soil to a depth of 150 cm. Nodules with nitrogen-fixing bacteria form on underground shoots. Thin, slightly branched stems are covered with smooth green skin. They form tall but transparent aerial vegetation.

On the shoots there are small ovate or lanceolate leaves with wavy or serrated edges. They bend slightly along the central vein. The foliage is colored bluish-green. Each petiole bears 3 separate leaves. At the junction with the stem there are small stipules. The middle leaf has a petiole slightly longer than the lateral ones.














Long but narrow racemose inflorescences are formed at the tops of the stem and its lateral processes. Small corollas on short flexible pedicels are shaped like a moth, 2-7 cm long. The flowers are yellow or white. The flowering period begins from June to August and lasts about a month. By mid-September, the fruits ripen - small elongated beans with several yellowish-brown seeds, similar to beans.

Types of sweet clover

The genus of sweet clover cannot be called diverse. It includes only 22 plant species.

Sweet clover (yellow). A biennial plant with a taproot forms an aerial, branched shoot 100-150 cm high. It is covered with small triple lanceolate leaves. The lobes grow on thin petioles and have jagged edges. Inflorescences in the form of narrow loose clusters bloom on thin shoots. Small moth corollas are colored yellow. The petals are surrounded by 10 long stamens, 9 of them with fused threads. Depending on the climate, flowering occurs between June and September.

A biennial or annual with a branched stem grows 60-170 cm in height. The shoot is covered with sparse trifoliate leaves. The top is decorated with a narrow brush with small white flowers. They bloom in summer. In total, flowering lasts about a month, but an individual flower lives up to 2 days. The plant produces a large amount of nectar and is the best honey plant in the genus.

A fairly compact herbaceous annual grows 15-50 cm in height. Its stems are covered with small, obovate leaves of a dark green or bluish color. Short loose brushes composed of yellow flowers 2-3 mm long. They bloom in the first half of summer.

Annual herbs grow slightly pubescent, weakly branched shoots 15-100 cm long. Bottom part The stem gradually becomes reddish. The leaves closer to the ground are larger. Together with the petiole, their length reaches 6.5 cm. The color of the foliage is bright green. In summer, loose racemes with yellow, moth-like flowers 5-7 mm long bloom on the shoots.

Growing from seeds

Due to its short life cycle, sweet clover is propagated by seeds. They are sown immediately in open ground before winter or in March-April at a temperature of 0…+4°C. Before sowing, the seeds are soaked in warm water for 2-4 hours until the skin softens. For better germination, scarification is also carried out.

For sowing, holes are prepared with a depth of 1.5-2 cm at a distance of 50-60 cm. The seeds are scattered manually or using agricultural machinery. Seed consumption rate: 200-250 g/ar. Shoots appear in 10-15 days. When the seedlings grow several true leaves, they are weeded, increasing the distance between plants to 30 cm. In the first year, flowering occurs towards the end of summer, so the fruits do not ripen. It's not that abundant.

Features of care

Sweet clover grass is not fussy to care for. Plays a decisive role right choice places. The plant needs a lot of light. It tolerates intense heat and frost equally well, so it does not need shelter.

The soil for planting can be heavy clay, sandy or rocky. Even on saline soil, sweet clover will grow. However, it cannot survive on acidic and flooded lands. It also adapts well to limestone. Do not fertilize the soil before planting big amount organics. No more fertilizer will be needed.

Plants are drought tolerant, so they usually do not need watering. Only in the absence of precipitation for a long time, when the soil is severely cracked, can the plantings be watered using the sprinkling method.

In autumn, the entire above-ground part dries out and dies. A well-developed, long rhizome remains underground. Already in early spring, new shoots appear from renewal buds. If there is too much water from melted snow, the shoots may rot.

When sweet clover is used as a green manure, fodder and medicinal crop, it is cut off at the budding stage. To increase the green mass, it is recommended to trim the roots with a special cultivator. Then it will develop better and be more saturated with nutrients.

Economic use

Sweet clover brings great benefits to the site. It is an excellent green fertilizer. Rotted biomass, when decomposed, provides the soil with a large amount of nitrogen compounds and other nutrients. At the same time, a strong and long root penetrates into the depths and well loosens even knocked down lumps and dense clay.

The soil becomes looser and more fertile. On sandy loam and light soils, rhizomes, on the contrary, have a binding effect and prevent erosion. If you don't cut the shoots, they will hold snow. Additional benefit sweet clover is its ability to fight root rot, wireworms and nematodes. Its smell also repels rodents.

Fresh grass and hay obtained from cut sweet clover contain a lot nutrients. The plant can easily compete with alfalfa or clover. Unfortunately, as they grow, the stems accumulate a large amount of coumarins and also become very tough. Therefore, feed is prepared at the budding stage. It is recommended to combine clover with other plants. It increases the amount of milk and fat deposits in animals.

The crop plays an important role as a honey plant. The most effective is white sweet clover. During the flowering period, bees collect nectar in an amount of 1.5-2 c/ha.

Sweet clover honey has a whitish, amber color and an intense aroma. It is used not only as a tasty additive, but also for treatment. Consumption of the product increases lactation in lactating women. It is also taken as an antispasmodic, diuretic, and anti-inflammatory agent. It makes it easier pain syndrome, relieves hypertension, respiratory spasms. It is also used externally, applying compresses to the chest for mastitis.

Medicinal properties

Sweet clover is rich in coumarins, essential oils, resins, mucilages, tannins. It is actively used in folk medicine. Flowers and the upper part of shoots with leaves are used for medicinal purposes. They are cut and dried, then rubbed by hand, and the tough stems are removed. The resulting raw materials are stored in paper envelopes for up to 2 years. It has a strong dense aroma and bitter taste.

Ointments, decoctions and alcohol infusions. Decoctions and tinctures are taken orally to treat insomnia, headaches, hypertension, bronchitis, flatulence and cystitis. Compresses from decoctions are applied for mastitis, radiculitis, sprains, hemorrhoids, inflammatory processes and wounds on the skin. Flower ointment helps relieve joint pain.

Treatment with sweet clover has contraindications. First of all, everyone without exception should not increase the dosage, since coumarins can have a negative effect on health. The result is dizziness, insomnia, and headache. Also, sweet clover is contraindicated for internal bleeding and liver disease.