Hey everyone, at the beginning I would like to welcome you all to my new contribution and hope you have a weekend so far which has brought some interesting experiences into your life! In my new post I would like to talk about nature and introduce an old plant.
Yesterday I had the opportunity to photograph hempnettle which is also known under the scientific name Galeopsis and it was already known in old cultures and was very appreciated there as a medicinal plant and today it is rather forgotten for these purposes, but it still has the same medical potential. It is believed that it has already been used in prehistoric times and has its origin in the temperate climate zones where it is especially widespread in Europe and some parts of Asia. In ancient times, it was used against serious diseases and especially the various contained active ingredients can help against lung diseases and it is suspected that it was mixed together with other plants and mainly used cooked because it has a special promoting effect on the lungs in the hot state and can help to dissolve mucus. It was also used against other diseases and one of the most important properties was the anti-inflammatory effect, but the general status as an medicinal plant as mentioned above has changed and it is often considered rather as a pest plant which is particularly often found on roadsides, fields or stony soils. It grows rather inconspicuously and often appears in the strangest places and can generally be considered a very robust plant which also has an important meaning for insects because of the long flowering period and it is visited by bees, bumblebees, hover flies or wild bees and some species have even specialised in it and is recommended for anyone who is looking for a plant with a a high ecological value. As always, I would like to mention that when it comes to the use as a medicinal plant, people should always ask the trusted doctor or pharmacist about the correct use or possible side effects to avoid complications!
Thanks for stopping by and I hope you could learn something new about nature! I captured these pictures with my Camera Sony Alpha 6000 plus 55-210 mm lens.