Many weeds growing along the roadside in rural fields are actually authentic Chinese herbal medicines. The plantain that I want to introduce to you today is one of them.
Banana is also called "pig ear tree" here, because its leaves are oval when they grow up, just like pig ears, so they are very similar. This easy-to-understand name also lets us know this kind of grass at a very young age.
The origin of the name of Plantago is said to be related to the famous Ma Wu in Han Dynasty. There is a story circulating on the Internet. On one occasion, the Qiang people led by Ma Wu conquered Wuling, but they were defeated because of the unfamiliar terrain and were trapped in the wilderness. It was hot at that time and there was no water. In midsummer, both the sergeant and the war horse got "hematuria" because of extreme water shortage. In desperation, a groom unexpectedly found that three horses were cured. After careful observation, I found that a piece of grass like a pig's ear on the ground was eaten up by a horse. Prove that it is indeed the role of weeds, which will be reported to Ma Wu. Ma Wu was overjoyed and asked the groom where the grass was grown. The groom pointed to his hand and said, "It's in front of the cart." Ma Wuxiao said, "God help me. What a good banana. " Immediately ordered the whole army to eat this grass, and after eating it, it really cured hematuria. The name of banana has been handed down like this.
The seeds of plantain are called plantain seeds. Plantain can be used as medicine, but in my impression, many years ago, a special medicinal company bought plantain seeds. My grandparents collect plantain seeds every year and sell them to Chinese medicine companies, and use the money they sell to supplement their families.
I remember when I was a child, when I was busy in summer, my grandparents often went to the river or the ridge with sickles to cut a weed we called "pig ear tree" locally. This weed was very common in those days, especially where there was water, and it grew most in the low-lying areas along the river or in the fields.
The leaves of the "pig ear tree" are wide and thick, and their vitality is very tenacious. When this weed grows up, it will pull out several long spikes straight in the middle of the plant and then produce a bunch of dense or yellow or white flowers. When the flowers fall behind, the ears will be covered with seeds like grains. When the seed skin changes from green to Huang Shi, the seeds will mature.
When the seeds of the "pig ear tree" are ripe, grandpa and grandma will go to the fields to harvest with sickles. Bundles of ripe plantains are cut home, dried in the sun, and then rubbed vigorously in a dustpan (a round object woven by vines or Vitex negundo), and black seeds roll out of the shell, which is similar to the seeds of green onions and is black and small.
Plantago seeds have a long maturity, and they seem to grow all the time from summer to autumn, so they can harvest several crops. At the end of the whole harvest period, grandparents will put the washed plantain seeds in cloth bags and transport them to the city to sell money. At that time, the price of plantain seeds was higher than that of wheat and corn. In my impression, a catty can sell for a few cents!
It was also in the process of helping harvest that I realized that plantain is a kind of medicinal material. But it is not clear what the specific use is and what diseases can be treated.
I didn't know banana was full of treasures until I grew up.
Plantago plantain seedlings can be eaten as wild vegetables. Before and after May Day every year, fresh banana seedlings are picked back, blanched with boiling water, and then fished out and mixed with salt and sesame oil, which is very refreshing. You can also dip in the sauce, stir-fry and steam. Of course, it is also delicious to make jiaozi with it as stuffing. There are many wild vegetables in rural areas, such as shepherd's purse, purslane, mugwort leaf and grey vegetables. When I was a child, I often ate, but plantain seedlings ate less.
Cooking porridge and boiled water with plantain leaves is considered by Chinese medicine to have expectorant, antitussive, antiasthmatic and diuretic effects.
The seeds of plantain are mostly used as Chinese herbal medicine. According to TCM works, Semen Plantaginis has the effects of clearing heat, promoting diuresis, detoxicating and cooling blood, and can be used to treat urinary system infection, gouty arthritis and acute enteritis.
With the development of economy and society and the improvement of living standards, people nowadays pay more and more attention to health preservation. Traditional Chinese medicine, as a traditional treasure of the Chinese nation, re-glows with more dazzling brilliance. Many common weeds have become people's favorite food on the table because of their natural, green and pollution-free characteristics and certain therapeutic value. In recent years, shepherd's purse, purslane, dandelion and other wild vegetables are simply treasures in the eyes of city people. In spring, not only many city people go to the countryside to dig wild vegetables, but also wild vegetables are sold with vegetables in the city's vegetable market, and they are expensive.
However, with the change of environmental climate and the extensive use of chemical herbicides, many common weeds in the past have been eliminated, and the phenomenon of overgrown weeds in fields is rare. In particular, weeds like plantain are rare in our hometown, and I have never heard of anyone harvesting plantain seeds and selling them for money!
It is understood that banana has been specially planted now. This kind of plantain planted artificially needs not only fertilization, but also pesticides. I just don't know if there is any difference between the efficacy of plantain planted in artificial environment and that of wild plantain. But what is certain is that the price is definitely dozens of times that of the wild before!
Farmer friend, have you seen banana? Do you know its medicinal effects? What are the commonly used Chinese herbal medicines among the weeds you have seen?