Clover - a plant that is familiar from childhood to almost every person. In villages and villages, in fields and forests, and even in stuffy cities - this herb is found anywhere. Small clover flowers manage to blossom even on vacant lots and roadsides of dusty roads.
Clover is a perennial grass that belongs to the family of legumes. The height of the clover reaches half a meter, and the rhizome sometimes hardens. The leaves of this plant are mostly triple, and the flowers are collected in small heads. Clover refers to a number of plants that enrich the soil with nitrogen due to the bacteria living in its roots. In nature there are more than 250 species of clover. The most useful and common are the red and white clover.
Red clover
Red clover (meadow) grows throughout Europe and Siberia. This plant has been considered a valuable forage crop since the sixteenth century. A characteristic feature of red clover is the branched root, long leaves and dark red flowers. This plant blooms in the second half of summer. The fruits of clover are small seeds that look like beans.
Red clover is highly valued in folk medicine. About its medicinal properties were known many centuries ago. Meadow clover contains a large number of vitamins and nutrients. Particularly useful is the aerial part of the plant. Red clover has many healing properties: hemostatic, expectorant, diuretic and antiseptic. In folk medicine is widely used decoction of red clover for the treatment of bronchitis, cough, tuberculosis, anemia, dizziness. Meadow clover is used for the prevention of cancer.
Decoction of red clover is easy to prepare yourself: one tablespoon of inflorescences should be poured with 250 milliliters of water and boiled for 5 minutes. The received tincture should be taken 5 times a day on a tablespoon. Tincture of red clover well helps with burns and inflammations.
White clover
White clover (another name for "creeping clover") or as it is called in the people "white kashka" is found in the territory of the CIS, the Caucasus and Europe. The stem of the white clover spreads on the ground, hence its second name - creeping clover. White clover is unusually tenacious - it stands up to trampling and bleeding, it grows very fast. The composition of the inflorescence of the creeping clover includes essential oils and fat.
In folk medicine, white clover is used to treat female diseases, hernia, asphyxiation. From this plant, tea and infusion are prepared, as well as consumed in fresh form. Treatment with clover is considered highly effective due to the high content of vitamins, salts and acids useful to the human body.
Most varieties of clover are excellent melliferous plants. Honey collected from red and white clover is considered very valuable, there is even a special variety of bees that pollinate clover.
Clover possesses not only healing properties, many ancient legends are associated with this plant. In today's world, clover is a symbol of Ireland. In this country it is customary to add a leaf of clover to a glass of whiskey.
Among all varieties, one should separately distinguish a four-leafed clover. In the people it is believed that four-leafed clover brings good luck. This plant was looking for young girls to get married. Clover with four leaves was put under the porch to discourage unwanted guests. But a clover with five leaves should not be ripped off - you can attract trouble.