How to use black rowan berries. Unique medicinal properties of chokeberry and contraindications: a modest berry with a long track record

A shrub, which is often called chokeberry by the people, it is more correct to call chokeberry chokeberry. This plant has nothing to do with mountain ash, being a representative of the Rosaceae family. The chokeberry was cultivated not so long ago, and before that it was an exclusively wild plant and was used for decorative purposes.

Translated from Greek "Aronia" means "helper".

Aronia chokeberry fruits have an unusual sour-sweet taste with astringent tart notes. Maybe that's why not everyone uses the healing potential of this berry, throwing out the fruits or leaving them to feed the birds. At the same time, the fruits of black mountain ash are more valuable for health than many Exotic fruits and other berries, and this gift of nature should not be neglected.

Composition of chokeberry

chokeberry is a storehouse of nutritional and physiological active substances. It contains vitamins, micro and macro elements, sugars. The berries contain few organic acids, but they are rich in tannins, which make the taste of the fruit tart and astringent. Also, the berries have a lot of pectin, iodine, vitamin C, and vitamin P or rutin in chokeberry is 20 times more than in citrus fruits.

100 g of chokeberry berries contain:

12 useful properties of chokeberry

Chokeberry refers to berries with high content dietary fiber. It contributes better assimilation food, constipation, intestinal spasms, swelling and discomfort in the stomach. And organic acids, due to their immunostimulating and antioxidant effect, protect the intestines from dangerous bacteria.

Aronia chokeberry contains countless antioxidants, the largest in comparison with other berries: quartzetin, epicatechin, caffeic acid, malvidin, lutein and others. These substances work to improve general condition health, eliminating free radicals in the blood, skin, eyes, organs and tissues and not allowing cells to mutate. Studies show that aronia berries, due to the presence of anthocyanins in the composition, reduce the risk of developing colon cancer.

Improve the functioning of the nervous system and brain

Aronia anthocyanins increase the activity of nerve cells, reduce oxidative processes, block free radicals that have a destructive effect on the brain and cognitive pathways, thereby reducing the onset and onset of Alzheimer's disease, dementia and other age-related cognitive disorders.
Immunity Boost

The high concentration of vitamin C in chokeberry stimulates the activity of leukocytes that protect the body's immune system from various infectious diseases. Vitamin C is also essential component for the production of collagen, which is indispensable for the growth and restoration of new tissues, organs, vessels and cells.
healthy eyes

Carotene, being one of the most powerful antioxidants, reduces the intensity oxidative processes thereby preventing or slowing down the development of cataracts. Aronia fruit is also rich in flavonoid antioxidants such as lutein and zeaxanthin, which protect the eyes from ultraviolet rays, and thereby protecting the eyes from age-related macular degeneration in old age and eye inflammation.
healthy skin

The skin is very sensitive not only to external influences on her, but also internal problems organism. Due to negative impacts, as well as due to age, the skin ages, wrinkles appear, dark spots, scars. The berries of chokeberry contain many components that improve the appearance skin and their health in general. Aronia antioxidants have an excellent astringent effect, which helps to cope with age-related changes skin and delay appearance.
Improving the work of the heart and blood vessels

The potassium content in chokeberry is quite high, which has favorable influence on heart health. By dilating blood vessels and arteries, blood flow is increased, arterial pressure falls, thereby reducing the risk of heart attack or a stroke. And dietary fiber and various antioxidants play a primary role in lowering blood cholesterol levels and blocking free radicals. Ripe fruits chokeberry also contain a large number of phenols, which disinfect the blood, promote the rapid healing of wounds and the removal toxic substances from the body, reduce inflammation, improve the elasticity of blood vessels and prevent clogging.
Bacteria protection

Recent studies have shown that chokeberry berries have healing effect on the body with influenza and bacterial infections in the intestines and respiratory tract what makes them popular prophylactic during influenza epidemics.
Blood sugar regulation

Studies show that chokeberry berries are useful for people with diabetes, as they do not increase blood sugar levels and can even reduce it. Aronia is very useful for people who want to prevent diabetes as well as cure its complications.

The main cause of emerging infections urinary tract considered to be Escherichia coli. Symptoms of the disease include frequent urges to urination, pain when urinating and cloudy urine. Not everyone knows that chokeberry berries are 5-10 times more effective than cranberries in this matter. This is due to the higher concentration of quinic acid in mountain ash, which can reduce the growth of certain bacteria, including coli and prevent urinary tract infections, keeping them healthy.

Normalization of the thyroid gland

Juice from black rowan berries has unique property, it promotes the excretion of salts heavy metals and radionuclides from the body. Due to this, it is very effective in violations of the glands. internal secretion, especially thyroid gland, as it contributes to the restoration and normalization of its functions. This property is especially relevant for residents of industrial cities with an unfavorable environment. Such juice neutralizes the impact of technogenic pollution on the body.
Improving liver function

Experts advise using the leaves and roots of chokeberry in the form of decoctions and tinctures for violations in the liver. Due to the high content of pectin substances, bile secretion and its excretion from the body are improved in case of excessive amounts.

Contraindications

The beneficial properties of chokeberry are undeniable, but this does not mean at all that the berries are equally useful for everyone. The fruits of chokeberry should not be consumed by persons suffering from the following diseases:

gastritis with hyperacidity;
hypotension;
constipation;
thrombophlebitis;
stomach ulcer;
ischemic disease;
varicose veins veins.

Scientists have noticed this small shrub just over two centuries ago. At first, chokeberry was used for decorative purposes. But the Russian scientist I.V. Michurin, who crossed chokeberry with bitter, received a new variety of berries, which began to be eaten.

Aronia berries are used for making jams, marmalades, marshmallows, as well as in the wine industry.

Scientists have established the fact that chokeberry fruit extract increases the effectiveness of drugs for the treatment of pancreatic cancer.

It is better to collect chokeberry after the first frost - then the berries ripen completely and are ready for use. You can understand that the chokeberry is ripe by pressing on it. Juice of a rich dark ruby color should flow from the berry.

What else is useful?

The health of the family is in the hands of a woman - a Simple Queen in the home kingdom

Hello, friends. On the pages of the blog, I continue to acquaint you with the gifts of nature that allow a person to remain healthy and strong. long years. Today it's the turn of chokeberry - a berry that has not yet fully revealed its healing capabilities, but is very revered by herbalists and herbalists. I will be happy to share my knowledge about the beneficial and healing properties of chokeberry, contraindications to its use and recipes for the treatment of various diseases. At the beginning of the 16th century, the first contact between the Lenape Indians and Dutch traders took place. The whites gave this tribe a name familiar to us from the books of Fenimore Cooper - Delaware. The Dutch are exceptionally practical people. They were interested not only in beaver skins offered by hunters, but also in flour made from sweet and sour tart berries. So chokeberry appeared in Europe.

Chokeberry in Europe was used exclusively for decorative purposes. And, indeed, an American relative rowan attractive plant. White flowers in spring, chic greenery in summer, and purplish-red leaf lace stitched with anthracite berries in autumn.

We have something to be proud of, large-fruited chokeberry (chokeberry) appeared in the post-Soviet space thanks to Ivan Vladimirovich Michurin. It is this famous breeder who is the author of the Michurin chokeberry that adorns our gardens (the variety was named after the great breeder). Unlike the North American original, the domestic variety has an attractive appearance, productivity and frost resistance.

In Europe, they also “tasted” chokeberry, but later, in the second half of the 20th century. Some of the Western European researchers consider it the most effective herbal medicine against cancer, and in every possible way extol the health benefits of chokeberry.

Health benefits of chokeberry

Aronia "multifunctional" culture. It has many advantages. First, the high content of tumor suppressing substances. Secondly, a large number of trace elements necessary for human health. Thirdly, chokeberry strengthens vascular walls makes them more flexible. Fourthly, chokeberry is distinguished by a high content of vitamins, especially P and PP, and they, to paraphrase the words of Stendhal, are a means of unfading perfection.

Growing a shrub or small tree is easy. It is not demanding on the soil, is not affected by pests and tolerates frost well. It is extremely beneficial to have it on the site. The seedling quickly takes root and grows, requiring almost no care, and in return:

the site becomes beautiful and decorative - trees with large black berries look great in the garden;
blooming rowan attracts the attention of bees, which is useful for all flowering trees and garden crops;
chokeberry consistently produces a large crop of berries, which allows you to cook many tasty and healthy preparations;

AT folk medicine aronia berries are used (in dry, fresh, frozen form), products of their processing (juice, jam, jam) and leaves. Great content iodine makes chokeberry indispensable in the treatment of the endocrine system. How aid used in the treatment serious illnesses, such as typhus, rheumatism and scarlet fever. This is a good anti-allergic agent. Aronia strengthens the walls of blood vessels, and fresh leaves improve liver and kidney function. This type of mountain ash is used for blood clotting disorders. Chokeberry is used to minimize autoimmune disorders during pregnancy.

Aronia is used as an antispasmodic, vasodilator and hemostatic agent. It has a positive effect on the process of hematopoiesis, improves appetite and activates the immune system. Can be used as a diuretic and cholagogue. It is used for burns and as an antiallergic drug. Chokeberry is prescribed for radiation sickness, oncological diseases and toxic goiter.

What is the reason for such wide range applications? Aronia liqueur or chokeberry has a unique biochemical composition. Its berries contain great amount useful substances necessary for human health:

Vitamins. A, C, PP and group B. Beta-carotene and beta-manganese are also present.
Trace elements including boron, iodine, molybdenum and phosphorus.
Sahara, folic acid and pectin.
Anthocyanin.

For treatment and prevention, chokeberry is recommended for:

atherosclerosis;
rheumatism;
vision problems;
low immunity and a tendency to chronic bronchial diseases;
hormonal imbalance;
overweight problems.

Harm: when it is better to refuse chokeberry

Along with great benefit chokeberry for health, it can also bring considerable harm. To prevent this from happening, you need to be treated taking into account contraindications. With caution, you need to use black mountain ash for those who suffer from:

arterial hypertension;
hypotension and frequent low blood pressure;
gastritis with high acidity;
peptic ulcer;
tendency to increased blood clotting, thrombosis, varicose veins.

Medicinal properties of chokeberry and contraindications

Aronia received official drug status in 1961. Its positive healing effect on the human body has been scientifically proven and experimentally confirmed. Let you have no doubt useful and medicinal properties chokeberry, simply and contraindications should not be forgotten.

The use of chokeberry for medicinal purposes is quite wide. I offer the most common recipes for the treatment of various diseases.

♦ With sclerosis, cardiovascular diseases and goiter, you can use the following recipe. Take a kilogram of berries and grind them in the same amount of sugar. You need to take one teaspoon three times a day half an hour before meals. The course of treatment is carried out for two weeks, then take a break for three months and repeat if necessary.

♦ For the treatment of persistent headache, you can drink fifty milliliters of berry juice three times a day half an hour before meals. In winter, you can replace the juice with an infusion of aronia berries, steamed in hot water. To do this, take three tablespoons of dried fruits and pour half a liter of boiling water. The whole mixture must be insisted throughout the night, and in the morning strain and drink as well as juice.

♦ Dizziness, disturbances in the work of the vascular system. It is necessary to drink fifty grams of juice from the fruits of chokeberry three times a day for half an hour before meals for a month. You can also drink an hour after. In winter, it is worth preparing an infusion of dried berries. To do this, take three tablespoons of fruits and brew them in half a liter of boiling water. You need to drink during the day for three doses half an hour before meals.

♦ Constipation. Take 0.5 parts of chokeberry fruits, three parts of bird cherry fruits and two parts of blueberries. A tablespoon of the mixture should be poured with a glass of boiling water and strained after five minutes. You need to drink a tablespoon five times a day twenty minutes before meals.

♦ Endocrine diseases. We take three parts of chokeberry flowers, five parts of five-lobed motherwort, one part of dyeing gorse and two parts of May lily of the valley. We brew one tablespoon of the collection with 1.5 liters of boiling water and insist. You need to drink thirty grams three times a day.

♦ With atrophy optic nerve. We take one hundred grams of chokeberry, seeds of mordovnik, initial letter, mistletoe, rose hips, cornflower flowers and seventy-five grams of rue, periwinkle and ephedra. A tablespoon of the collection should be poured with a glass of boiling water and left overnight. In the morning, strain and drink one hundred grams four times a day.

Does chokeberry increase or decrease blood pressure?

When people read about the benefits of chokeberry, they usually miss out on its effects on blood pressure. But in vain. During treatment, it is imperative to know whether chokeberry lowers or increases blood pressure, since efficiency directly depends on this. this plant and its safety for human health. Remember! Chokeberry significantly reduces blood pressure. Hypotonic patients should use it with extreme caution. This applies to how medicinal decoctions and infusions, as well as liqueurs from chokeberry, tinctures, cognacs, as well as jams, syrups, jelly and black ashberry jam.

How does chokeberry affect blood pressure?

To lower the pressure, you can drink fifty milliliters of fresh juices of chokeberry, viburnum and black currant. Also, for the best effect, you can combine the intake of juice with walnut and honey.
It is necessary to mix equally chokeberry, horsetail and yarrow grass, birch leaves, crushed dandelion roots, wheatgrass and corn silk. One tablespoon of the mixture should be poured with a glass of boiling water and insisted for half an hour. You need to drink half a glass three times a day, and the course itself should be carried out for no more than a month. The collection perfectly cleanses blood vessels, lowers blood pressure and helps with hypertension. For a better effect, you can add rose hips or currants.

Aronia berries for hypertensive patients are a wonderful medicine.

For the treatment of hypertension, you can use the following recipe. We take a three-liter bottle and fill it 4/5 with dry chokeberry berries, and fill the rest of the volume warm water with sugar. You need to drink a glass a day for twenty days. You also need to use wormwood and cloves once a week.
With hypertension. Take two tablespoons of chokeberry, viburnum () and rosehip. All herbs must be poured with two liters of boiling water and brought to a boil. Insist in a thermos for two hours and drink a glass three times a day. You can add some honey or sugar.
Take a glass of plant berries and fill them with half a liter of vodka. Each berry should be pierced with a needle, and the infusion itself should be left for a week in a dark place. After that, you need to strain and take a tablespoon three times a day for half an hour before meals. For the treatment of hypertension, the course should be carried out for two weeks, but no more.

Natural, tasty and mildly acting remedy that reduces pressure in a short time. But be careful! If you eat a large amount of berries for people with normal pressure, well-being can deteriorate significantly due to its sharp decrease. Hypotonic patients cannot be treated with chokeberry, because it does not affect low blood pressure in the best way- can be reduced to critical level with long-term use.

Chokeberry jam for hypertensive patients and debilitated people

To make jam, you need to take a kilogram of berries and half a kilogram of sugar. Within a couple of minutes, the berries should be blanched in boiling water, and then transferred to a saucepan or other container in which the jam will be prepared. Add sugar to the berries, and send to low heat. Cook with constant stirring until it starts to boil. Before boiling, you need to lay out the jam in dry sterilized jars and roll up the lids. Take this yummy should be 1-2 teaspoons three times a day, after meals.

Dried chokeberry, application

The use of dried chokeberry berries is due to their excellent healing properties.

Dried chokeberry is indicated for violations of the secretory function of the stomach ( low acidity). Chew a few berries before eating - and you will immediately feel better.

With a lack of vitamin C and iodine, chokeberry will help to quickly make up for the deficiency, therefore dried berries useful for goiter, thyroid diseases and endocrine diseases.

♦ It is necessary to take four tablespoons of berries and pour them with a glass of boiling water. Leave the decoction for two hours, then strain and take a glass three times a day half an hour before meals. The course of treatment is carried out from ten days to a month. After two months, you can repeat the treatment if necessary. This infusion will help cure inflammation of the thyroid gland.

♦ For goiter, take an equal amount of crushed fresh or dried fruits of chokeberry and hawthorn, cocklebur grass, sweet clover, St. John's wort, lemon balm, motherwort and cudweed. Two tablespoons of the mixture should be poured into a thermos and pour 0.7 liters of boiling water. Leave the decoction to infuse throughout the night, and in the morning strain and drink one hundred milliliters three times a day. You can also drink the juice of black or red mountain ash, it also perfectly removes the goiter.

Fresh and dried chokeberry berries prevent the accumulation of "bad" cholesterol in the body, have an antitumor effect and increase hemoglobin.

♦ Treatment of atherosclerosis. Take equal amounts of crushed dried fruits of chokeberry, red hawthorn and wild strawberry. Two tablespoons of the mixture should be poured with half a liter of water and sent to water bath for ten minutes. Strain the mixture and dilute boiled water room temperature to original volume. You need to drink half a glass four times a day, and the course of treatment should be carried out for a month. After that, you need to take a break for a week or even twelve days, and if necessary, repeat the course.

♦ For the treatment of anemia and radiation sickness, you need to take chokeberry berries and drink yarrow tincture for a year.

♦ Vitamin tea according to the following recipe will help with sclerosis. We take the crushed fruits of chokeberry and wild rose in equal quantities and pour one tablespoon of the resulting mixture with a glass of boiling water. Insist fifteen minutes and drink twenty minutes before meals.

♦ To raise the level of hemoglobin, you need to regularly take fresh or dry chokeberries and raw beets, chopped on a grater.

Aronia increases the body's resistance to infections, strengthening the immune system and purifying the blood.

♦ It is necessary to take two parts of chokeberry fruits, large plantain leaves, blood-red hawthorn, officinalis calendula flowers, tripartite herb, and three parts of Manchurian aralia root and safflower-like leuzea. You need to drink the infusion in a third of a glass three times a day as a tonic and immunostimulating agent for cardiovascular diseases.

♦ From allergies. You need to eat fifty or one hundred grams three times a day fresh fruit or drink a decoction of dried berries. To prepare it, you need to take twenty grams of berries and pour 200 milliliters of boiling water. When the decoction has cooled, strain the decoction and drink half a glass three or four times a day.

♦ Take two tablespoons of dried fruit and pour half a liter of boiling water. You need to drink like tea, and eat berries. You can also fresh berries blanch and pass through a meat grinder, then mix with sugar in a ratio of one to one. Helps with allergies, fatigue and severe stress.

♦ With vegetative-vascular dystonia on the background high pressure need to be treated like this. Take two parts of the roots with rhizomes of valerian and blue cyanosis, chicory roots and the ground part of heather, one part of peppermint and three parts of lemon balm. You need to focus on the fact that one part is thirty milliliters of herbs. Three tablespoons of the mixture should be poured with 400 milliliters of boiling water, add one teaspoon of chopped dry chokeberry berries and a tablespoon of hawthorn berries. Send for half an hour under the lid in a water bath. Ten minutes later, the broth should be filtered and drunk fifty milliliters four times a day an hour after meals.

How to dry aronia in the oven

Aronia berries are harvested in late summer - early autumn. Better after the first frost. Don't be late! Aronia is extremely attractive to birds, especially thrushes. They peck berries without leaving a single fruit on the branches, so it is not so easy to collect it.

Berries can be dried outdoors, but in this case, the fruits often rot or become moldy. It is best to dry the chokeberry in the oven.

How to dry chokeberry in the oven: the harvested crop is scattered thin layer on a baking sheet and put in the oven. The temperature in the oven or electric dryer should not exceed 50 degrees. Periodically, the berries are turned over by simply shaking the baking sheet or stirring them with a wooden spatula. Properly dried berries change color, becoming cherry red. This shade shows that the fruits are completely preserved vitamin complex RR. It is better to store medicinal raw materials in paper bags or glass containers with a tight lid.

Does black ash thicken or thin the blood?

Unnecessarily "rare" or "dense" blood is the same unfavorable factor. In the first case, even small wounds heal poorly, in the second, blood clots may form. Blood can clot when sugar or fatty foods are overused. meat food. Before starting treatment, it must be borne in mind that chokeberry thickens rather than thins the blood. Therefore, long-term use of rowan berries with thrombophlebitis or varicose veins is contraindicated. It must be added that we are talking about the abuse of berries, and not about occasional intake.

Chokeberry strengthens or weakens?

Aronia has a unique taste and inimitable aroma. Berry juice is a real health elixir. It has astringent, choleretic and laxative properties. This applies not only to juice, but also boiled berries. Therefore, keep in mind that chokeberry weakens, not strengthens, and should not be used for people prone to frequent diarrhea and indigestion.

Is it possible to freeze chokeberry for the winter?

The tart taste of chokeberry is completely preserved in frozen berries, as are all useful properties. Many people are interested in whether it is possible to freeze chokeberry for the winter so that everything is preserved in it. medicinal qualities? Of course! The main thing is to use a quick freeze so that the sugar contained in the chokeberry does not have time to turn into starch.

Gather aronia at the end of fruiting. Brushes are carefully cut off, disassembled, separating strong berries from substandard ones. Wash, recline in a colander, letting the water drain, and dry on a clean cloth. Then you can freeze the berries in several ways:

Each berry is separate. This method allows you to achieve such a freezing, as in supermarkets, when each berry can be taken separately, pouring right amount. For such a freezing, the berries are laid out in one layer on sheets of cardboard or cutting boards covered with cling film (the berries will not stick to the cardboard or board) and sent to freezers in this form. It is necessary to lay out so that the berries do not touch each other.
Home or simple. To do this, dried berries are put in containers (bags, plastic containers) and frozen.

Store frozen food separately from meat and fish. After defrosting, the berries can be whipped in a blender and added to tea, compote or jelly. Whole berries can be used as a filling for pies. Without defrosting, the fruits are thrown into boiling water and compotes, fruit drinks are boiled, brewed in a thermos for medicinal infusions etc.

Medicinal chokeberry liqueur with cherry leaves

Recipe 1.

We take one hundred chokeberry berries, one hundred cherry leaves, two teaspoons citric acid, 800 grams of sugar, two glasses of vodka and one liter of water. Berries and leaves must be crushed and poured with water. Boil the mixture for ten minutes and add sugar, citric acid to it and put it on a slow fire again for twenty minutes. Cool the broth and add vodka, mixing thoroughly. You need to take thirty milliliters during the flu epidemic.

Recipe 2.

To prepare the liquor, take one hundred or two hundred grams of berries. They need to be crushed in a blender and mixed with one hundred grams of cherry leaves. Dilute the whole mixture with a liter of water and send it to the fire for ten minutes. After that, you need to add 800 grams of sugar and two teaspoons of citric acid and send it back to the fire for twenty minutes. Once the mixture has cooled, add half a liter of vodka, stir and bottle.

Conclusion

Dear readers. Once again I am trying to convince everyone that nature has taken care of us in full - it has given us such wonderful healing plants. And the modest chokeberry only confirms this. In addition to the fact that chokeberry is very beneficial for health, it is also very tasty. The berries make excellent jam, compotes, jelly and jam. Aronia liquor is extremely tasty and healthy, it is only important not to abuse it.

I tried, as always, to fully reveal the beneficial and healing properties of chokeberry, talk about contraindications and give many different recipes. I sincerely hope that many readers will find useful and necessary information for themselves.

All health!

With love, Irina Lirnetskaya

Aronia chokeberry ( Aronia melanocarpa), or chokeberry. Its generic name comes from the Greek aros - benefit, help, which indicates the usefulness of the plant. From two Greek words, a specific definition was formed: melanos means black, and karpos means fruit, and speaks of the color of the fruit.

Plant species and family: This is a highly branched shrub, it belongs to the Rosaceae family. Aronia has a great shoot-recovery ability. Annual shoots are red-brown in color, later becoming dark gray. Chokeberry is often grown as an ornamental, medicinal or fruit plant. Many amateur gardeners and summer residents plant chokeberry in their area.

Botanical characteristic

Root (rhizome): the shrub has a powerful root system.

Leaves, crown: crown in young age differs in compactness and tightness, but then it becomes sprawling, reaches 1.5-2 meters in diameter. The leaves are entire and simple, obovate or elliptical in shape, have short petioles, their length is 4-8 centimeters, their width is 3-5 centimeters. The edges of the leaves are serrated and have a sharp transition to a sharp and short tip. Top surface leaves are glossy, leathery, dark green in color. The lower one has a slight pubescence, because of this it acquires a whitish tint. In red-purple bright colors, the leaves turn after the second half of September.

Flowers and inflorescences: small, bisexual, five-petaled, white color, are collected in dense thyroid inflorescences, which are 5-6 centimeters in diameter.

Fruits: this is a berry, quite juicy and sour-sweet, has an astringent tart taste. Fruit round shape, less often they are compressed-rounded, slightly pubescent, Green colour when mature - naked, shiny, black, have a bluish coating. The weight of the fruit ranges from 0.6 to 1.5 grams, the diameter is up to 12 millimeters. The fruits of chokeberry (rowan) chokeberry have a dense skin, this contributes to the fact that they are well preserved in fresh. Ripe fruits do not crumble and hold firmly on the branches.

Height: up to 2.5-3 meters.

Flowering time: flowering depends on weather conditions and can last from 12 to 16 days. The late flowering of Aronia Aronia eliminates the possibility that its flowers will be damaged by spring frosts, this mainly ensures its annual fruiting.

Ripening time: end of August and beginning of September.

Reproduction: grafting, cuttings, dividing the bush, layering, sowing stratified seeds.

Distribution: in the Altai Territory there are large industrial arrays of chokeberry. The homeland of aronia chokeberry is considered the eastern part North America. It was from there that in 1935 it first came to Altai, and then spread to other regions. Chokeberry loves light, tolerates frosts easily, grows well on both podzolic and chernozem soils.

What part of the plant is used: medicinal raw materials chokeberry are its fruits and leaves.

The chemical composition of the plant: chokeberry (chokeberry) useful properties by no means deprived, it contains: vitamins A (beta-carotene), B1, B2, B3 (aka PP), B6, C, E, K, micro and macro elements, pectin, tannins.

Collection and preparation of raw materials

The harvest of aronia fruits is carried out in September and the first half of October. The fruits are harvested by hand, cut with secateurs and stacked in boxes and baskets. Store in a cool place for no more than 3 days. If the temperature does not exceed 5°C, then they can be stored for 2 months. To dry the fruits, they are scattered in a thin layer, and if in dryers, the temperature should not exceed 60 ° C.

Dried leaves and berries are stored in paper boxes or bags, of course, only in a dry room and no more than 2 years.

If the goal is to save as long as possible fresh fruits chokeberry, then its fruits are plucked with stalks and leaves and placed in a cool place where the temperature should not be higher than 1 ° C, so they can last up to six months. Aronia berries can be used for various purposes, including their use in cooking.

Pharmacological properties (action)

The fruits of black chokeberry show a hypotensive effect.

Leaves are harvested immediately after flowering. The fruits contain a substance called sorbitol, it is used as a sugar substitute for those with diabetes. Aronia juice strengthens the walls of blood vessels. The leaves contain substances that improve liver function, which contribute to the formation of bile and its outflow.

Chokeberry is characterized by many medicinal properties. It normalizes blood pressure, lowers blood cholesterol, strengthens blood vessels, increases their firmness and elasticity.

Aronia chokeberry, thanks to the substances contained in its composition, favors the active expansion of blood vessels and capillaries. It was experimentally found that for the treatment of hypertension, chokeberry is one of the the best means due to its vasodilating and capillary-strengthening properties. It is consumed in the form of juice, 3 times a day and no more than 2 tbsp. for one take. Aronia can be taken as a tea and infusion.

Chokeberry has a positive effect on endocrine system and boosts immunity. It is used as a vasodilator, hemostatic, antispasmodic, diuretic, choleretic, hematopoietic and appetizing agent.

Also, this plant improves appetite, increases acidity, helps regulate digestion, and activates the liver.

The use of chokeberry

The use of fruits. They are used for prophylactic and therapeutic purposes in such pathological conditions, which are accompanied by fragility and permeability of capillaries: atherosclerosis, hypertension, diabetes, glomerulonephritis (kidney disease), capillary toxicosis, hemorrhagic diathesis, radiation sickness, etc. As an auxiliary medicine recommend the fruits of chokeberry and preparations derived from them, for rheumatism, septic endocarditis, measles, arachnoiditis, allergic conditions, scarlet fever, typhus.

Juice application. For bleeding that has different origin, hypertension ( initial stage), anacid gastritis; externally used to treat burns. Counts effective tool for prevention P-vitamin deficiency and atherosclerosis.

The use of chokeberry juice and a decoction of its berries expands blood vessels, as a result of which their permeability increases, the functions of the hematopoietic organs are activated, and this is very useful for bleeding and radiation sickness. With radiation sickness and rheumatism, chokeberry juice is a good preventive and therapeutic agent.

Aronia juice lubricates burns. A combination of juice and fruits of aronia chokeberry with rose hips and black currant, with the addition of honey, is useful.

Recipes and method of application

Fresh fruits: take three times a day for 50-100 grams.

Chokeberry juice is taken 3 times a day for 1-3 tables. spoons, do this half an hour before eating. Or eat 5-7 pieces of berries daily, with the diseases listed above.

Making chokeberry juice: You can also use this recipe to make juice. Grind fresh fruits, and warm up this pulp. 1 kg of pulp in ½-3.4 cups of water and heat for 10 minutes at t to 60°C. Put under pressure. Next, the pressed raw material is placed in an enamel pan. Pour warm clean water(1:10), stirring, soak for 3-4 hours, then squeeze again. Then the juice of the first and second extraction must be combined and filtered. Heat to 80°C and pour into sterilized jars.

A decoction of chokeberry berries: pour a glass of water 1 table. a spoonful of berries and boil them for 1 minute. After which they need to insist for one hour. The decoction is taken three times a day for 0.25-0.5 cups.

Aronia decoction: this decoction activates energy, gives strength and strengthens the immune system. To prepare it, you will need 20 grams of dried fruits and 200 ml of boiling water, then cook on low heat for 10 minutes, and leave for 20 minutes. Squeeze strain. Decoction drink half a cup 3-4 times a day.

Aronia compote (for preservation): put the washed berries into boiling water for at least 3 minutes (for sterilization). Then, the jars need to be filled with these berries by 1/3 and pour boiling syrup. Cover with sterile lids and roll up. Sugar is taken from the calculation - half a cup per 1-liter jar.

Aronia tea: pour 1 liter of boiling water over 6 tbsp. leaves and insist them for half an hour. This remedy is recommended to be taken three times a day, one glass. This tea increases blood clotting and lowers blood pressure.

Decoction of chokeberry bark: 5 heaped tablespoons of crushed bark pour 0.5 liters of water and cook for 10 minutes. Cool and squeeze. It is taken as an anti-sclerotic agent for atherosclerosis of the vessels.

Aronia fruit jam is prepared in this way: 2 kilograms of mountain ash must be poured sugar syrup(hot). For this syrup, take 2 kg of sugar per half liter of water, stir until dissolved and then boil. Let the future jam stand for 8 hours, after which it will be necessary to boil and stand again for 8 hours. After that, it will need to be cooked until tender, until the berries settle to the bottom.

They also make wine from chokeberry (rowan). This wine is highly vitaminized and has medicinal properties. It is prepared as follows: washed berries must be crushed (in a mortar, meat grinder or food processor), then dilute this mass with clean water 1: 1. The next step is to add sugar, you need to take it ½ cup per 1 liter.

It is necessary that the sugar dissolves, for this it is good to interfere, place under a water seal. Leave to ferment in a warm place. After 5-7 days, the berries will float, and the young wine will begin to ferment, now you need to strain the must through a colander, squeeze the berries and discard.

The wine is again placed under a water seal, now until the end of fermentation. Then it will need to be carefully drained through a hose into another container. The sediment is ejected. Now you can add sugar to your liking and put in a cool place. The chokeberry wine is almost ready, it has to stand for several months to become clean and transparent.

Contraindications and side effects

The fruits of chokeberry (rowan) aronia are contraindicated if there is a high acidity of gastric juice, in the presence of gastric ulcer and duodenal ulcer, high blood clotting. Also, it is not recommended to take it for hypotensive patients. under reduced pressure.

" Rowan

Black (chokeberry) and red mountain ash are distant relatives. Both plants belong to the same family, but different kinds. Red - to the genus Rowan (Sorbus), chokeberry - to the genus Aronia (Aronia).

Rowan "chokeberry" is called only due to the external similarity of inflorescences and seedlings: juicy false drupes collected in a brush. Another unifying feature is the benefits and medicinal properties of the fruit.

Cultural chokeberry, widespread in Russian gardens, - the brainchild of Ivan Vladimirovich Michurin. Its ancestor is a wild North American shrub (chokeberry) with inedible fruits, which is considered a malicious weed in its homeland. Having received his seeds, the Russian breeder began lengthy experiments on the hybridization of the "American".

According to various sources, the crossing went either along the line Aronia chokeberry - Aronia plum-leaved, or along the line Aronia chokeberry - Sorbus ordinary. As a result, a new plant appeared with tart, slightly dry fruits, which are called "apples" in fruit growing. In honor of its creator, it received the name of Aroniy Michurin.

The composition of chokeberry

Let's start with the question, how is chokeberry useful? The dark purple, almost black color of chokeberry fruits speaks for itself: they contain a lot of anthocyanins. These substances in the plant not only play the role of a pigment, but also protect tissues from oxidative stress. Why is this important for a person? The fact that anthocyanins are the very notorious antioxidants that have entered the lexicon of cosmetologists and pharmacists. They neutralize free oxygen radicals that can cause cellular mutations.

The astringent taste of chokeberry is the merit of tannins. These are the so-called "tannins" that bind carcinogens and reduce the risk of tumor formation.

The fruits of chokeberry, despite the sweetness, are quite low in calories - only 55 kcal per 100 g. The vitamin and mineral composition is rich:

The fruits of chokeberry accumulate iodine, which is absorbed by the roots from the soil. Thus, the content of this trace element depends on the region of growth: the richer the soil with iodine, the more it is in the fruits. And the greater the usefulness of berries.

Black rowan treatment

And now consider the medicinal properties of chokeberry. Aronia fruits have long been adopted as medicinal raw materials. Particular attention should be paid to people with cardiovascular problems and diabetics. If you eat only 100 grams of chokeberry daily, you can quickly adjust your cholesterol and blood sugar levels. The use of these fruits for medicinal purposes is indicated for many diseases:

Hypertension. Aronia has a diuretic effect, due to which blood volume decreases and blood pressure decreases.
Atherosclerosis. Flavonoids and vitamins C, E and A strengthen the walls of blood vessels.
Decreased immunity and inflammatory processes. Aronia anthocyanins can also help with infectious diseases of bacterial etiology.
Hypoacid gastritis. The fruits of chokeberry increase the acidity of gastric juice.
Sleep disorders, nervousness. Chokeberry reduces excitability by acting as a natural sedative.
Toxicosis of pregnant women. The hepatoprotective effect of aronia fruit helps to cope with nausea.
Diarrhea. Tannins render astringent action normalizing digestion.
Visual disturbances. Vitamin A, which is part of visual purple, normalizes many processes. Blackberry is especially useful for "senile eyes", reducing the risk of glaucoma and cataracts.
chokeberry fruit recommended for people exposed to radiation or living in areas with poor ecology. In this case, care must be taken to ensure that the fruits used are grown in safe regions.

The benefits of chokeberry are obvious, but we should not forget about precautions. People with thrombosis, ulcerative processes of the stomach and intestines, with colitis, constipation, hyperacid gastritis and hypotension should use these fruits with caution.

red rowan

Red rowan is a familiar element of Russian phytocenoses. It is found everywhere, includes many species and two life forms: shrub and tree. But on personal plots, it is almost never specially planted. And in vain.

Firstly, mountain ash lends itself perfectly to formation and can become an interesting accent in decorative plantings. Secondly, its fruits are no less useful than the widely used chokeberry fruits.

The composition of the fruits of red berries and the benefits for the body

The fruits of red rowan are bitter, and this is good. Bitterness is given to them by parasorbic acid, a substance with a very high antimicrobial activity. Back in the middle of the 20th century, the legendary biochemist Mikhail Mikhailovich Shemyakin conducted experiments with mice infected with salmonella. After the introduction of 1 mg of diluted parasorbic acid into the peritoneum, the experimental animals recovered.

Other valuable substances found in mountain ash "apples" - flavonoids that can increase the body's resistance to radiation, and pectins. The jelly-forming properties of the latter are used not only in cooking, but also in medicine - to bind and remove toxins.

The calorie content of rowan fruits is 50 kcal per 100 g. As a multivitamin raw material, they are priceless. Mountain ash is a champion among other plants in many respects.

The chemical composition of the fruits of red rowan clearly shows that in terms of the content of carotene and vitamin A, this plant will give odds to carrots. Rowan juice contains the largest number vitamin C among all fruit juices.

In rowan leaves, the percentage of vitamin C is even higher than in fruits. During the flowering period, they concentrate 108 mg ascorbic acid per 100 g of raw materials.

Medicinal properties and contraindications of red mountain ash

And now consider what diseases rowan treats. In ancient medical books you can find many recipes for treatment from the fruits of red mountain ash. Since ancient times, they were considered a panacea for dysentery, scurvy and hemorrhoids, used as a disinfectant, diuretic, laxative, choleretic and anti-inflammatory agent. FROM Modern research confirms the findings of traditional medicine. Today, red rowan (dried and fresh) is used in cases where:

rapid strengthening of immunity is required in case of a viral or other infection;
need complementary drug therapy anti-inflammatory agent for tonsillitis, bronchitis, laryngitis, tracheitis, pharyngitis, otitis and so on;
it is required to strengthen the vascular walls;
need a remedy for anemia;
it is required to stimulate appetite and increase intestinal tone;
a natural wound healing or antimycotic agent is required.

Contraindications to the use of red rowan fruits are hypotension, thrombosis, hyperacid gastritis, peptic ulcer Gastrointestinal tract, diarrhea, ischemia, heart attack, pregnancy and early childhood.

Unripe fruits of red mountain ash should not be consumed. You can eat them "from the branch" only after the first frost.

Harvesting and storage of rowan fruits

The fruits of chokeberry are harvested from mid-September until frost. With the collection it is better not to hesitate too much, because these berries are willingly pecked by birds and crumble when overripe. They are harvested by cutting off the entire stem from the branch, and then picking the berries in a bowl. Then they are washed and sent to dry.

Red rowan is best harvested at the end of October or November, when it is slightly touched by frost. Such fruits are not stored, but they are guaranteed not to be toxic. Once collected, they should be recycled immediately. For example, you can make rowan juice with pulp for the winter.

RECIPE. The berries freed from the stalks are washed and blanched for 3-4 minutes in boiling water, after which they are rubbed through a sieve. Sugar is poured into the blanching water and a twenty percent syrup is boiled. Combine it with mountain ash puree, warm it up, not letting it boil. Pour into sterilized jars and seal.