Sea buckthorn is a prominent representative of a tree-like shrub, the height of which can reach 9 m. As a rule, it is a multi-stemmed tree, the height of which varies from 3 to 4 m, the diameter of the crown does not exceed 5 m. Thickets of a wild plant can be seen in the Baltic states, the Caucasus, Eastern And Western Siberia, as well as in cities Central Asia. Likes to grow along the banks of water bodies.
Krushina - perennial, or rather a dioecious tree. home distinctive feature sea buckthorn crop - the presence of sharp thorns, which significantly complicate the harvesting process. Most fruiting plants do not have such protection. The trunk of the tree is literally covered with branches; they are abundantly covered with sharp and hard thorns, each approximately 2 cm long.
Sea buckthorn bark is colored grayish-brown. The foliage is elongated, about 8 cm in length, linear-lanceolate, entire-marginal. It is characterized by a light green color with a characteristic silvery tint.
When buckthorn trees bloom, they produce flowers of various colors. Male flowers are dark brown in color. Each flower can have 4 pistils, all inflorescences are grouped into a spikelet of 10-15 pieces. The length of the spikelet usually does not exceed 1 cm. Female flowers, unlike male ones, have stamens. They are characterized by a greenish color, the inflorescences are grouped into clusters of several pieces. The duration of sea buckthorn flowering is 2 weeks, starting from late April - early May, depending on the region of growth and climatic conditions.
Sea buckthorn
Unripe sea buckthorn fruits are green in color; as they ripen, they acquire a rich orange color (orange). The fruits are usually miniature and oval in shape. The time to harvest comes in mid-autumn. From one adult plant you can collect up to 3 buckets of fruit.
Sea buckthorn is not picky, so even in the wild it is capable of creating impenetrable thickets. The most suitable conditions for growth: sandy soil along river valleys. Sea buckthorn requires virtually no maintenance, since it adapts to all growing conditions, and the roots are able to provide themselves with moisture independently from the depths of the soil.
Important! The plant can be propagated by seedlings, seeds and root cuttings.
There are many varieties of sea buckthorn. The main ones:
Sea buckthorn Leikor
In the State Pharmacopoeias (SP), sea buckthorn is listed as a plant with a rich chemical composition, but the amount and concentration of substances depends on the variety, place of growth, climatic conditions. Pharmacognosy has been interested in sea buckthorn for a long time. Scientists, through numerous studies, have established the components, which has led to the massive use of raw materials in the Russian and world markets.
The composition includes a high concentration of fats of plant origin without cholesterol, carotonin, which colors the oils orange. It is also worth mentioning the presence of ascorbic acid and vitamins B and P. All of the listed components of sea buckthorn are needed by the human body for full functioning. In addition, sea buckthorn berries contain triterpene substances, folic acid, glucose and phospholipids.
The Pharmacopoeia has found many uses for sea buckthorn, for example, energy oils and cosmetic preparations, various vitamin supplements.
Fact! Natural sea buckthorn juice is recommended to be introduced into the diet of people who have low stomach acidity, atonic constipation and hypokinesia of the digestive tract.
It is used as an addition to complex therapy of toxic hepatitis, as well as for the prevention of a large number of diseases.
High-quality sea buckthorn oils are recommended for use for radiation, chemical and thermal burns of the skin, as well as trophic ulcers and bedsores. Before applying to the skin, you must first treat the damaged areas with an antiseptic, then apply a bandage generously moistened with sea buckthorn oil. The dressings are changed at least once a day.
Sea buckthorn oil
All products of organic origin can cause an allergic reaction in humans, sea buckthorn is no exception. There is a list of contraindications for taking products based on sea buckthorn oil:
Growing crops on personal plots does not take much time because it has excellent adaptive properties. When planting sea buckthorn, it is recommended to give preference loose soils containing large amounts of organic matter and phosphorus. The place should be well lit.
Important! Sea buckthorn does not tolerate digging of soil under the crown. Root system It is well developed, so it does not require fertilizer during the growth process.
The optimal time for planting is spring or autumn. Approximate Dimensions landing pit 50*50 cm. The pit should be prepared in advance by adding superphosphate and humus, as well as wood ash. It is important that the root collar is located 3-5 cm above the ground surface.
Planting sea buckthorn
It is better to carry out sanitary pruning in early spring before the buds open. Up to 5 years, the plant needs to form a crown annually. After 8 years, it is advisable to carry out anti-aging pruning.
All varieties of sea buckthorn have average resistance to diseases and pest attacks. The plant is most susceptible to attacks by sea buckthorn aphids and flies. The most common disease is verticillium wilt. For prevention, it is recommended to periodically irrigate the plant with fungicide solutions.
Sea buckthorn is a unique plant of its kind, which has a large number of advantageous features, since it has a beneficial effect on human body. Its extracts have been found wide application in folk and traditional medicine, cosmetology and cooking. However, to obtain benefits, you must follow all the rules of use so as not to cause harm. The culture is unpretentious, so even a novice gardener can grow it.
Beneficial features Sea buckthorn and its contraindications were known to the ancient Greeks. In Ancient Greece, the shrub was called the “glossy horse.” And this was explained by the fact that horses eating sea buckthorn fruits were distinguished by their health, fatness, beauty and thick mane. This served as a hint to ancient healers that the berry could also be beneficial for humans. Since ancient times, sea buckthorn has also been popular in Tibetan, Chinese, and Mongolian cultures. folk medicine. In Russia, the plant began to be cultivated with early XIX century. But, for example, in the 80s of the twentieth century, sea buckthorn oil was considered a miracle cure, and there was a real shortage in pharmacies. Doctors wrote a prescription for it.
Sea buckthorn. Botanical illustration by Jacob Sturm from the book "Deutschlands Flora in Abbildungen", 1796.
The green fruits of sea buckthorn taste like pineapple, which is why the shrub is popularly called the “northern pineapple.” Ripe fruits have a pleasant sweet and sour taste. But this plant is valued not only for its taste, but also for its medicinal properties.
In the European part, sea buckthorn can most often be found in forest belts, plantings along roads and railway tracks, on the banks of rivers, lakes, on sea coast, in ravines, on slopes and cliffs. Sea buckthorn roots anchor loose soils and sands well. Sea buckthorn is widespread in the south of Russia, Ukraine, Moldova, the Caucasus, and Central Asia. But this species also takes root well in Siberia, the Sayan Mountains, Transbaikalia, even in India and Pakistan. This plant is cultivated on plantations for medicinal purposes, cosmetology, Food Industry. Sea buckthorn takes root well in parks and gardens and is often grown as a hedge.
Sea buckthorn. 
Chuya sea buckthorn. 
Sea buckthorn willow.
There are 71 varieties of sea buckthorn registered in Russia. Breeders are actively working on developing new varieties: with a high content of all useful substances, large fruits, high yield, dessert taste, absence of thorns. In the wild, a shrub or tree can grow for up to 30 years. Maximum height bush - 6 m, tree - 15 m. The most popular wild species in our region is sea buckthorn. What other species and varieties are considered the most beneficial?
Now there is a lot of information about the conditions for growing sea buckthorn, its various varieties, as well as a huge selection of seedlings. Therefore, many avid summer residents and gardeners try to grow this shrub on their own, and do it quite successfully. For some varieties, the first harvest can be harvested the very next year after planting. With a good yield, up to 15 kg of berries are removed from the bush in 7–8 years.
Sea buckthorn is an unpretentious, frost-resistant plant. Its average life expectancy is 20 years. In addition, it is also a beautiful ornamental shrub that requires careful pruning after 10 years of life.
What are the pharmacological healing properties sea buckthorn?
The most valuable thing in sea buckthorn is vitamins. Ripe fruits are a natural reserve of carotene (vitamin A), ascorbic acid (vitamin C), as well as vitamins E, F, P and group B. B chemical composition plants were also found:
Beneficial properties are also contained in sea buckthorn leaves, its bark, and seeds. The leaves contain a lot of vitamin C, A, tannin, tannins; in the cortex - alkaloids and serotonin, substances with antitumor properties; The seeds contain fatty oil, a lot of vitamins E, group B, and tannin.
What does sea buckthorn treat? In what areas of traditional medicine, for what diagnoses and symptoms is it used?
Contraindications for sea buckthorn include: acute forms of diseases of the digestive system (especially the pancreas and gall bladder); hepatitis; chronic diarrhea; allergy to carotene; diseases of the immune system. Take berries in any form with caution for hypotension. You should know: fresh fruits and juice greatly increase secretion and have a stronger effect than tea, decoction, oil or tincture.
What are the uses of sea buckthorn at home? For example, sea buckthorn oil is freely sold in our pharmacies. But you can also make it yourself. In addition, decoctions and tinctures can be prepared from fruits, seeds, leaves, and bark. The berries make delicious jams, preserves, juices, syrups, fortified drinks, and wine.
Sea buckthorn tea is a good preventative against viral infections, vitamin deficiency, and chronic gastrointestinal diseases.
Preparation
Take ½ cup of tea 2 times a day. You can also brew the berries together with the leaves and infuse them in a thermos.
Decoctions are prepared not only from fruits, but also from branches, bark, leaves, and seeds.
Seed decoction recipe
This is a proven remedy for diarrhea. Take a whole glass of the decoction at night. Decoctions of sea buckthorn bark also help with diarrhea.
Preparation of a decoction of leaves
This remedy is most effective for atherosclerosis, high cholesterol, hypertension, hormonal imbalance. Take ½ cup of decoction 2 times a day before meals. The decoction can also be used externally as lotions and compresses for joint diseases. In this case, plant branches are added to the decoction.
Fresh juice is an excellent multivitamin product. It is also used externally to heal wounds, and drunk for coughs, throat and mouth infections. It can be used fresh or stored for the winter. Fresh juice is especially useful for improving metabolism, cleanses the blood, increases hemoglobin levels, reduces cholesterol, preventing the development of thrombophlebitis.
Preparation
The juice can also be prepared with added sugar.
Vodka tincture is made from berries. This remedy is effective for all of these diseases. However, you need to remember that in case of hypertension, alcohol tincture can be a tonic.
Preparation
Take 20 drops 2-3 times a day before meals. You can also make a delicious dessert wine from sea buckthorn at home.
Sea buckthorn oil is the most famous and valuable product obtained from fresh or dried berries. How to cook it?
Preparation
To get a strong extract, the process must be repeated 4 times. To do this, the oil is drained, then a new portion of fruit is poured into it, infused and drained again. You can use sunflower, olive, or corn oil as a base. The course of treatment is long - at least 1 month. Take 1 tsp of oil. 3 times a day before meals. Read more about it in our other article.
You can make jam, jam, jelly, marshmallow, jelly, and compote from sea buckthorn. There are many recipes when berries need to be sterilized. However, during heat treatment of fruits, many vitamins are lost. There are other ways to make fortified jams.
Preparation
This jam should only be stored in the refrigerator.
The benefits and harms of sea buckthorn are well known in folk medicine, but have also been studied in scientific medical practice. This berry is most useful in the treatment of inflammatory diseases of the gastrointestinal tract, but it cannot be taken (especially fresh) during an exacerbation. This is a good wound-healing, bactericidal agent that is used in dermatology, gynecology, otolaryngology, and dentistry. It is often prescribed for the prevention of viral infections and vitamin deficiency.
Sea buckthorn fruits are a storehouse of vitamins and minerals. Due to their unique composition, the berries are used for the production of medicines on an industrial scale, and some recipes for home first aid kit have reached us through the centuries.
Other names for sea buckthorn are dereza, voskovukha, jida. In nature, there are two varieties of this plant: buckthorn and willow. The first variety is usually cultivated.
Under natural conditions it grows along the banks of reservoirs on sandy soils and pebbles, in the mountains. Widely distributed in Siberia, almost everywhere in Europe and in the temperate climate zone of Asia, can be found in the mountainous regions of China, Pakistan and India.
Sea buckthorn plantings are used to secure road slopes, ravines, sand, to create hedges, as ornamental plant and for the purpose of obtaining a fruit harvest.
Photo from: pixabay.com The value of sea buckthorn lies in its unique composition, rich in various biologically active substances. Together with its low calorie content, this berry is excellent for inclusion in the diet for dietary and therapeutic nutrition.
The fruits are extremely rich in carotenoids. The brighter or darker the color of the berries, the higher their content.
It also contains vitamin K in small quantities.
From the list of water-soluble vitamins: C, PP, B vitamins.
The following minerals are present in sea buckthorn berries: iron, phosphorus, potassium, sodium, magnesium and calcium.
Sea buckthorn leaves and bark are also valuable medicinal raw materials. They contain tannins and serotonin, which have a stimulating effect on nervous system and suppressing the growth of cancer cells.
Sea buckthorn is known as medicinal plant for a long time. True, it was originally discovered as a means of giving horses an external shine. Currently, sea buckthorn has gained widespread use in medicine, both folk and official.
For preventive purposes fresh berries used as an immunostimulant and to compensate for deficiencies of vitamins and microelements. They have a strengthening effect on the cardiovascular system (prevention of atherosclerosis) and reduce the risk of blood clots.
The fruits have a sour taste, so they are often consumed in the form of juice. Berries mashed with sugar are added to teas, cocktails, and desserts.
Oil from the fruits and seeds of sea buckthorn has pronounced regenerating and anti-inflammatory properties. It is used externally to treat burns, lesions of the mucous membranes and skin, and to stimulate recovery processes in the postoperative period.
Sea buckthorn oil is prescribed for oral administration for gastritis and peptic ulcers.
Extracts and extracts from fruits and leaves are widely used not only in medicines, but also in cosmetics.
Sea buckthorn and preparations based on it should be used with caution during exacerbations of diseases gallbladder and liver. It is also not recommended to consume fruits when urolithiasis and increased secretion of gastric juice due to the high acid content.
The berries are harvested during the ripening period in autumn or winter of already frozen fruits. The beneficial properties of berries are preserved as much as possible throughout the year. Due to their high acid content, soaked sea buckthorn berries can be stored in the refrigerator for several months. You can only dry berries that were collected before frost, with the skin intact.
Leaves and bark can be collected throughout the year, but spring collection is most effective. They are best stored dry.
The raw material for the production of sea buckthorn oil can be either whole fruits or the cake remaining after squeezing the juice. It can be dried or frozen and used as needed to make a fresh batch of healing oil.
The easiest way to get 100% natural sea buckthorn oil is cold pressed. Obtained using a juicer, the juice settles for 2-3 days in a cool, dark place. A small amount of oil will collect on the surface. It needs to be collected using a pipette or spoon. Store in the refrigerator for no more than six months. It is most suitable for cosmetic purposes, but the yield of the finished product is very small.
A drop of sea buckthorn oil to your regular cream will help keep your skin young and healthy, protect against chapping and dryness, and rubbing it into the scalp before washing your hair will strengthen it and give it a special shine.
To emphasize the taste of sea buckthorn juice, it is better to add sugar and dilute it boiled water based on: a glass of water and 4 tablespoons granulated sugar for 3 glasses of pure juice.
Describing sea buckthorn, let's consider its flowering: it is expressed by single-covered, correct form flowers, each of them is endowed with a tubular two- or four-lobed perianth.
Each flower contains from four to eight stamens.
The most important enemies of sea buckthorn are sea buckthorn moth and sea buckthorn fly. They propose to fight them with chlorophos; they need to irrigate the plants at certain times.
The sea buckthorn aphid is considered an unpleasant harmful insect; it, together with the larvae, can infect plant leaves. On garden areas they fight it with infusions and decoctions of tomato and potato leaves, garlic and onion peels, as well as tobacco leaves mixed with laundry soap. In addition, a chemical method using karbofos at a concentration of ten percent is effective in combating aphids.
Sea buckthorn has medicinal properties due to a large number active substances, such as vitamins C and E, flavonoids and beta-carotene. Thanks to them, the aging process of the body slows down, the work of the cardiovascular system is stimulated and the body’s immunity is strengthened.
Sea buckthorn has medicinal properties due to a large number of active substances, such as vitamins C and E, flavonoids and beta-carotene
Sea buckthorn ( Hippophae rhamnoides L.) was described in Tibetan medical books of the 8th century AD. e. IN ancient Greece Sea buckthorn was fed to horses so that they would have shiny wool, hence its name: hipp - horse, and phaos - glossy. Currently, sea buckthorn is ornamental shrub in gardens and parks, and more recently they began to grow it for food use. Several varieties have already been obtained with larger fruits than the wild form, with a pleasant, non-bitter taste. The description of its pharmacologically active substances in laboratory conditions has made it possible to actively use various properties of plant extracts from it.
Sea buckthorn (Hippophaë rhamnoides L.) is a species of plant from the Elaeagnaceae family. It is found in Europe and Asia, up to China, mainly along the sea coasts. The plant does not require soil and can grow on sandy soil. It is resistant to frost and drought, does not like very strong soil salinity, and tolerates air pollution well.
Sea buckthorn (Hippophae rhamnoides L.) was described in Tibetan medical books of the 8th century AD. e. Characteristics of the plant: sea buckthorn is a highly branched shrub, less often a low tree, reaching a height of 1.5 to 6 m. appearance reminiscent of fluffy willow species. It grows slowly. Young shoots of sea buckthorn end in sharp thorns. The bark on the trunk and branches in the longitudinal direction cracks and peels off in pieces, usually dark brown, sometimes black. The buds are ovoid, golden-copper in color. Shoots with thorns form lateral branches in the form of second row thorns. The leaves are narrow and soft, up to 7 cm long, with slightly curved edges. The inflorescences are small, on the branches before the leaves appear - from March to May. Fruit orange color, juicy, aromatic, with a characteristic sour-tart taste. They contain a lot of vitamins (A, B, C and E). The berries remain on the plant all winter until spring. They are tasteless because they contain little sugar. After winter frosts they become sweet.
Sea buckthorn is widespread in many countries due to its low soil requirements, resistance to drought and air pollution, and has great decorative value. The abundantly fruiting bushes are especially beautiful. Under the weight of ripening bright fruits, the branches bend to the ground and often break.
Sea buckthorn grows well in a sunny place, tolerates mild soil salinity, and loves calcareous soils. Does not grow well in wet, swampy, cold, heavy, clayey, dense soils.
