The very rich history of rue today has become just a memory of the distant past of mankind, although this unpretentious and hardy perennial herb can still offer a lot of people to the world today.
Rue (Ruta graveolens) - sometimes mystical and sacred, then so common and worldly - at all times it was a very famous and respected plant with very versatile applications. It is an aromatic herb for seasoning your favorite dish, an attractive organic insect and pest repellent, and a powerful natural antispasmodic agent. But in any case, aromatic rue is a terrific aromatic herb for any garden.
Latin name of the species graveolens, which the fragrant rue shares with several other aromatic plants, such as celery or dill, means "strong smelling": from the Latin gravis - "heavy", and olens - "smell".
Fragrant rue is an evergreen herb with delightful bluish-green leaves native to southern Europe.
It is a shrub with fragrant complex leaves. Small, 4-5-petaled, dull yellow flowers, gathered in scutes, appear above the foliage in early summer. It grows well in full or partial sun (at least 6-7 hours of sunshine per day) and in well-drained soil. The fruit is a brown seed capsule. Ruta will grow even in extremely dry conditions, but this plant can be easily killed by over-watering. Ruta does not require feeding, she will be quite happy and on very poor soil. Usually it is not attacked by pests and diseases.
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Ruta in history and art
In France, rue is widely known as "the herb of grace" or "the herb of maidens" (herbe a’la belle fille), in this country it has been a symbol of virtue and purity for centuries. Ruta was also used in Lithuania as part of traditional Lithuanian wedding ceremonies, in which the bride wears the obligatory rue wreath, which is burned during the wedding ceremony, symbolizing the girl's transition from the carelessness and virtue of childhood to the responsibilities of motherhood and adulthood. Today rue is the national flower of Latvia. A sprig of rue in various European countries is a symbolic gift to a married couple to protect their marriage.
In many parts of the world, rue has also been used to ward off witches and evil spirits due to its strong, pungent scent. In ancient Europe, rue twigs were considered a very reliable protection against magic, they were worn to protect against black spells. This belief began with the ancient Greeks, who used to eat rue when dining in the company of strangers, so as not to get poisoned or get an upset stomach, since they believed that new companions, using witchcraft, could cast spells on them. Ironically, rue was also widely used in witchcraft to create and cast spells. Healers and sorcerers from different nations of the world used it to give a person a "second sight"; it was also believed that rue helps to look into the future. This ancient veneration of rue as a sacred herb and a powerful talisman against evil was also reflected in the rites of the Catholic Church, where it is immersed in holy water during a high mass, and then it is sprinkled on parishioners to bless them.
The image of rue was widely used in art and literature, where its meaning is closely related to regret or repentance, and even the word "rue" in its literal sense in some European languages today means "repent" or "mourn". In the Bible, in the Book of Luke, rue is used as a constant symbol of guilt, sorrow, and suffering. The hardy evergreen shrub is referred to by many classical writers from Pliny to Milton to Shakespeare as a herb of memory, protection, and healing. And among Italian artists, including Michelangelo and da Vinci, it was customary to eat rue to hone their creativity and vision during tedious drawing or sculpting.The strong, bitter taste of rue was believed to awaken the senses and stimulate creative productivity. This idea that rue could aid vision was also shared in past centuries by experienced shooters, who covered their flintlocks and bullets with a mixture of rue to make their shooting more accurate.
In colonial Brazil (1500-1815), rue was also highly regarded as a plant that provides protection and attracts good luck, for this purpose it was used by both slaves and their masters. Jean-Baptiste Debre (1768-1848) depicts African slaves trading in rue on the streets in his famous painting, A Scenic and Historical Journey to Brazil.
Ruta is now widely used in some religious rituals, especially in Afro-Brazilian cults.
And here is what article was devoted to this plant in the popular and very authoritative Russian Botanical Dictionary of N.I. Annenkov:
“Ruta graveolens L. U Diosk. Peganon. Cepeyton. Rom. Ruta. Farm. name Ruta hortensis s. sativa s. graveolens s. latifolia (Herba). Ruta. Zimozelen (Grodn.) - Cargo. Mariam-Sakmela. - Nѣm. Die Gartenraute, die gemeine Raute, die Weinraute. - Franz. Rue des jardins. Rue fétide. - Eng. Herb of Grace. Common Rue, Strong scented Rue. Otech. South. Heb. Сѣв. Afr. The strongly scented herb contains an essential oil so pungent that the herb applied to the skin produces redness and inflammation. Among the ancients, it was considered a precious medical remedy for poisoning and as a warming, diaphoretic, blood-producing and strengthening nerves. Leaves and mena, in small quantities taken, contribute to digestion, but more can cause miscarriage. Usually, there are leaves of rue, finely crushed, with butter and bread. The fresh juice of the grass is included in the spring treatment; infusion of herbs upotr. like gargling with a malignant toad of the throat. Divorced in gardens. In Russia on account of this plant there are several. zamuchan_ya. In the Kursk province. They say that if early in the morning you throw fresh rue points on open to the sun places in the garden or vegetable garden, then soon all the snakes, how many there are in that place, will crawl out and greedily rush to devour it, and then soon they will be surrounded. On the Don, superstitious villagers say that during a thunderstorm of the root there is a devastation for the devil from thunder and that thunder hits the place where this 'idol grass' grows (idol is the same as devil). "
(N. I. Annenkov. Botanical Dictionary. - St. Petersburg: Imperial Academy of Sciences, 1878. - S. 307).
The use of rue in medicine
Historically, rue was cultivated primarily as a medicinal plant. Hippocrates especially valued rue, and it was this plant that became the main ingredient in the famous antidote to poison used by Mithridates. The Roman naturalist Pliny the Elder (23–79 AD) mentions 84 medicinal preparations containing ruta.
For centuries, the indigenous people of Europe have harvested rue herb to treat a variety of illnesses, from insect bites to eye strain and plague. The dried leaves of rue were used as a sedative for stomach cramps and nervous disorders, as well as for the treatment of poor eyesight, warts, various internal parasites and scarlet fever. From antiquity right up to the middle of the 19th century, it was believed that the leaves of the rue ward off insects, scorpions and snakes; holding a branch of rue near the nose protects against the plague, and a branch hanging around the neck protects against many diseases. Courtrooms in England were strewn with fresh rue to protect judges from "prison fever." An echo of this custom today is the traditional judges' bouquet, which is still presented to British judges before the start of the session in some areas. Initially, this bouquet was a bunch of aromatic herbs with rue, donated to a lawyer to prevent poisoning or contamination.
In Mediterranean traditional medicine, rue is used to treat lung diseases such as tuberculosis, as well as to treat wounds externally.
Basically, rue is a rich source of secondary metabolites: coumarins, alkaloids, essential oils, flavonoids and phenolic acids. It is widely used all over the world for its many medicinal properties. Today it has been proven that the extract and essential oil obtained from this plant have various pharmacological activities, including contraceptive, anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial, antipyretic, antioxidant, analgesic, antihyperglycemic, hypotensive, antiviral and antispasmodic effects. Analyzes in vitroconducted with human cell lines have shown the anti-cancer potential of furanoacridones and acridone alkaloids isolated from fragrant rue. Modern pharmacology believes that this is an interesting plant species for the pharmaceutical industry due to its ability to have several strong pharmacological effects at once.
But still today, rue is grown mainly as an ornamental plant in the garden.
Read also the article Fragrant rue: cultivation and use.
Collection of medicinal raw materials
Ruta has lost its popularity as a medicinal and culinary herb over time due to its bitter taste, its ability to cause nausea and poisoning when taken in too much dosage, and also because of the difficulty of harvesting due to allergic reactions to its essential oils when combined with ultraviolet radiation. This phenomenon is called phytophotodermatitis and can be obtained when your skin is in contact with a plant under direct light. Essential oils are activated by light and can cause very painful blisters, rashes and skin irritation similar to poison ivy. The best way to avoid this painful reaction is to wear long sleeves and gloves when caring for the rue and collect it very early or almost in the evening when the sun's rays are weaker. Washing the affected area quickly can help ease the reaction, and applying aloe vera, calendula, or over-the-counter antihistamines directly to the contact points.
It is best to harvest the rue right before it blooms, because as soon as the plant begins to bloom, its essential oil content decreases. It is best to harvest rue early in the morning, when essential oils are at their peak. The herb can then be used or dried immediately. You can store fresh rue for up to a week by placing the freshly cut stem in a glass of water in the refrigerator or by wrapping it in a damp towel and placing it in an airtight plastic bag.
It is necessary to store dried rue in a tightly closed container, in a dark and preferably cool place.
ATTENTION! Before using ANY herb or plant for medicinal purposes, please be sure to consult a doctor or professional herbalist.
The end is in the article Ruta in cooking.
