ARNICA
The other common names for the herb arnica are Leopard's bane, Mountain tobacco, Common Arnica, Mountain Arnica, Mountain Daisy and Wolfsbane.
The word arnica comes from the Greek "arnakis", meaning lamb's coat, and refers to the felt-like sepals covered in soft hairs that surround the flower. Arnica is an alpine herb with a long history of use in the folk medicine of Russia and the Swiss Alps. Today, many plastic surgeons recommend that their patients use arnica creams to reduce post surgical bruising, and athletes often carry a tube in their gym bags to soothe sore muscles. One of the best known herbal sports medicines, arnica has dramatic results if used immediately after an injury.
Arnica is an herbaceous perennial plant. The stem of the herb which bears the flowers is normally not branched and slightly hairy in appearance, this flowering branch tends to reach from twelve to twenty four inches in height, and is noticeable by bearing only one to two pairs of leaves on opposite sides of the branch. The plant height ranges from 30 –60 cm. One or two pairs of leaves form a flat rosette. They are entire, bright green, toothed and somewhat hairy on the upper surface. The lower leaves are clustered, ovate, and ciliated and have rounded tips. The upper leaves are smaller, lance-shaped, opposite and attached directly to the stem. From the centre of the rosette rises a round and hairy stalk that ends in 1-3 flower stalks bearing each one orange-yellow daisy like blossom. The fruits are bristly achenes. The rhizome is dark brown, cylindrical, usually curved, and bears brittle wiry rootlets on the under surface.
The most commonly used parts of the herb arnica are the roots and the flowers for its medicinal and commercial purposes.
0 comments:
Post a Comment