Useful information

Creeping thyme, or thyme: cultivation and useful properties

Creeping thyme (Thymus serpillum) 800x600 Normal 0 false false false RU X-NONE X-NONE MicrosoftInternetExplorer4

Creeping thyme, or thyme (Thymus serpillum) is a perennial shrub that forms small tufts. The stem, creeping along the ground, in places giving adventitious roots, is branched, lignified in the lower part, with numerous ascending vegetative and generative branches. Leaves are opposite, small, oval, ovate or lanceolate, whole-edged, short-petiolate? with essential oil glands clearly visible in a magnifying glass. The flowers are small, double-lipped, violet-red, collected at the ends of the branches in false whorls, converging into a capitate inflorescence. Blossoms in June-July; bears fruit in August.

Widely distributed in the European part, Siberia and the Caucasus. It lives mainly in the steppe zone, on the southern slopes, rocks, steppe meadows, on the outskirts of pine forests.

Growing

The plant grows well in culture. Thyme can be placed in a rocky garden, in a mixborder in the foreground or among slabs of paths, on a hill among stones or in a garden stylized as a Mediterranean. It is very decorative even after flowering. Variegated forms were bred, as well as with strong anthocyanin coloration. Skillfully combining different shapes, you can create a stunning composition from just one view. A similar example was once presented at an exhibition in Chelsea.

 

Creeping thyme (Thymus serpillum)

Creeping thyme can be grown in the garden. It is quite unpretentious, drought-resistant and winter-hardy, but it should be borne in mind that the plant is photophilous, therefore it is better for it to select the sunniest area, and prefers light, fertile, and most importantly, not acidic soils.

When preparing the site, it is necessary to carefully select all weeds, and on heavy soils, add sand and compost when digging.

Thyme is propagated by seeds by sowing in the ground and seedlings, as well as by cuttings and dividing the bush.

Given that the seeds are very small, it is better to grow seedlings with seed propagation. To do this, in mid-March, the seeds are mixed with 3-4 parts of river sand, and sown superficially in a box or pot and cover it with glass on top until shoots appear. The addition of sand allows the fine seeds to be spread more evenly over the surface.

In summer, the plant can be propagated by green cuttings. They take root perfectly. Cut off the tops of the shoots 8-10 cm long before flowering. They are planted in river sand according to the 3x3 or 4x4 cm scheme.Cover on top with film or glass. Several times during the day they are sprayed with a spray bottle. After 15-20 days, roots are formed, and after a month the plants can be planted on the site. The care consists in weeding. Plants quickly close together and form a dense, decorative-looking pillow.

In order to harvest medicinal raw materials, leafy twigs are collected during flowering. They are cut off with a pruner or sickle, but in no case pulled out. Plants are easily uprooted, but they do not recover well. The grass is dried at a temperature not higher than 35 ° C, threshed, leaving only leaves and inflorescences. The shelf life of raw materials is up to 2 years.

Medicinal and useful properties

The aerial part contains 0.2-0.6% (in rare cases up to 1%) of essential oil (20-40% carvacrol, 1.5-2% thymol, linalool, cineol), 3-7% tannins, flavonoids. Thyme essential oil contains at least 55 components, the ratio of which varies widely and is determined by belonging to a certain chemotype. The characteristic is the content of methoxylated flavonoids with high antispasmodic activity. In addition, triterpenes were found in the grass - ursolic and oleanolic acids, flavonoids, bitter and tannins. In addition, the herb of thyme contains a wide variety of micro- and macroelements, in particular, it accumulates iron, molybdenum, selenium and boron.

Thyme and other herbs on display in Chelsea

He was very much appreciated by the ancestors of the Slavs.Many peoples had a pagan custom of sacrifice to the gods - burning dry thyme grass. The name of the Bogorodskaya, or the Theotokos herb is associated with the fact that in Russia it was customary to decorate her icons with bunches of this fragrant plant on the day of the Dormition of the Most Holy Theotokos.

Its medicinal effect is associated with essential oil. Thyme is used as an expectorant, antimicrobial, fungistatic agent. Its drugs increase the secretion of the bronchi and contribute to a faster evacuation of sputum. In medicine, thymol and thyme essential oil are used for disinfection of the mucous membranes of the mouth, pharynx, pharynx, for fungal skin diseases, in particular for epidermophytosis, as an anthelmintic, and for suppressing the fermentation process in the intestine. Liquid extract from the herb is part of Pertussin, which is used as an expectorant and emollient for coughs (whooping cough and bronchitis). The complete infusion is used for bronchial asthma complicated by bronchitis and pneumonia.

In rheumatic diseases, thyme has a warming and analgesic effect. It has a weaker effect than common thyme.

It has been experimentally established that the aerial part and roots of thyme increase the function of the gonads. In China, it is used for exhaustion and as a tonic. In a mixture with other plants, creeping thyme is used to treat alcoholism, as well as for prostate adenoma and prostatitis.

Application recipes

Creeping thyme (Thymus serpillum)

As a diaphoretic, it is recommended to drink hot infusion with sugar... The infusion used for colds and coughs is prepared at home from 10 g of thyme (2 tablespoons) per 200 g of boiling water, heated in a water bath for 15 minutes, cooled, filtered. Take a tablespoon 2-3 times a day.

Known use infusion of thyme as a sedative and pain reliever for insomnia, headache, radiculitis, neuralgia. Take an infusion of 1 tablespoon 3-4 times a day.

As an external anesthetic and distracting it is used for neuralgia, myositis, arthritis in the form concentrated infusion or oil infusion in sunflower oil 1: 3 or 1: 4.

Make with thyme infusion fragrant baths for skin rashes, rheumatism and nervous diseases. To prepare a bath, 50 g of raw materials are brewed in 1 bucket of boiling water, filtered and poured into the bath.

Thyme is contraindicated in case of decompensation of cardiac activity, liver and kidney diseases, stomach and duodenal ulcers, during pregnancy. Accordingly, in these cases, thyme requires careful use.

In case of an overdose of thyme preparations, especially with alcohol, nausea and vomiting are observed. Therefore, in folk medicine, a concentrated decoction of thyme (15 g per 2 glasses of water) is used to develop an aversion to alcohol. To do this, after taking the broth, the patient is allowed to sniff alcohol. After a few minutes, nausea and vomiting occur.

Thyme leaves and inflorescences can be added when stewing meat or sprinkled on pizza as a seasoning. Thyme is used for pickling and pickling, as well as in various drinks, for making cheeses and sauces. Here are a couple of recipes: Normal 0 false false false RU X-NONE X-NONE

Baked salmon with thyme

Spicy potato soup with thyme

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