Ribwort plantain

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Ribwort plantain
Ribwort plantain (Plantago lanceolata), inflorescence

Ribwort plantain ( Plantago lanceolata ), inflorescence

Systematics
Asterids
Euasterids I
Order : Mint family (Lamiales)
Family : Plantain family (Plantaginaceae)
Genre : Plantain ( Plantago )
Type : Ribwort plantain
Scientific name
Plantago lanceolata
L.

The plantain ( Plantago lanceolata ), also spit herb , lung aphid or Wormtongue called, is a plant that the family of plantain plants belongs (Plantaginaceae). The word "Wegerich" or "Spitzwegerich" (from Middle High German wëgerīch or - in relation to the narrowly tapering leaves - pointed wëgerīch ) comes from Old High German (from wega , "way", and rīh , "king", as a component of men's names like Friedrich, Dietrich etc.).

description

illustration
Ribwort plantain (
Plantago lanceolata ), habitus
Ribwort plantain (
Plantago lanceolata ), habitus

The ribwort is a perennial, herbaceous plant that reaches heights of 5 to 50 centimeters. The richly branched root can reach a depth of up to 60 cm. The leaves that stand in a basal rosette are sessile. The simple leaf blade is pointed, narrow and lanceolate.

The flowering period extends from May to September. A dense, cylindrical, spiked inflorescence stands on a long, 5-furrowed stem. The relatively small, inconspicuous flowers are hermaphroditic.

The number of chromosomes of the species is 2n = 12, less often 72.

Occurrence

The ribwort was originally only native to Europe. It is now spread all over the world. It often occurs in greasy meadows , in park lawns (especially in its poor form), on paths and in fields. According to the ecologist Heinz Ellenberg , the ribwort is a class characteristic of the grassland communities ( Molinio-Arrhenatheretea ).

In the Allgäu Alps, it rises on the Hochtannberg in Vorarlberg up to 1750 m above sea level.

ecology

The ribwort is a deep-rooted hemicryptophyte . It is secondary to wind and its flowers are female . In addition, one is pollination by pollen seeking insects possible. The seeds are less swellable than the common plantain ( Plantago major ). The vegetative reproduction takes place through root shoots. It is spread via the sticky seeds that stick to animal paws, shoes and wheels.

The ribwort is attacked by the rust fungus Puccinia cynodontis with spermogonia and aecidia . The powdery mildew Podosphaera plantaginis also frequently attacks it.

Taxonomy

Plantago lanceolata L. has the synonyms: Plantago azorica Hochst. , Plantago hungarica Waldst. & Kit. , Plantago sphaerostachya Hegetschw. , Plantago lanceolata var. Sphaerostachya Mert. & WDJ Koch .

Others

The palynology (pollen analysis) has demonstrated the highly visible pollen already for the late heat time. Ribwort plantain pollen in postglacial sediments is interpreted as a settlement indicator. The closed pollen curve usually only begins in the older subatlantic .

use

In times of shortage after the two world wars and during the global economic crisis, lettuce made from wild ribwort was a popular substitute for unaffordable or unavailable greens.

It is best to harvest and collect it from the beginning of April to the end of August. It is often found in small meadows, on fields and field edges, on paths bordering the forest and on very small areas in localities.

After insect bites, the ribwort, ground and applied to the sting, has a cooling or pain-relieving effect. The same applies to nettle stings.

Important phytonutrients and medicinal effects

Ribwort plantain in the form of the herb drug (Plantaginis lanceolatae herba)

The ribwort contains iridoid glycosides such as aucubin , catalpol , asperuloside , mucilage , tannins , silicic acid , saponin . It relieves irritation and is slightly cough-relieving. It is used against catarrh of the airways and inflammatory changes in the lining of the mouth and throat. The effectiveness of the drug is due both to the enveloping effect of the mucilage and the astringent effect of the tannins as well as the antibacterial and thus anti-inflammatory effect of the degradation products of the iridoids ( aucubigenin is produced by hydrolysis by means of beta-glucosidases from aucubin). In addition, it can be used externally for inflammatory changes in the skin, both exogenously caused by insect bites or contact with nettles, as well as endogenous skin diseases such as neurodermatitis or other inflammations or small open wounds.

To make tea infusions, the leaves or the whole herb are collected and dried (the drug name for the leaves is: Folia Plantaginis lanceolatae and for the herb: Herba Plantaginis lanceolatae ). For ribwort juice, you squeeze the fresh leaves. A recipe for plantain syrup ( Plantaginis sirupus ) states that the plantain leaves ( Plantaginis lanceolatae folium ) should be boiled in purified water ( aqua purificata , i.e. deionized water ), then filtered and the resulting aqueous extract with 1.5 times the amount of sugar (sucrose, saccharum) ) to mix into syrup. The syrup is preserved with 1% alcohol, methyl paraben and propyl paraben .

The pharmaceutical industry's need for the drug is met mainly from cultures. The powdered drug is also an ingredient in ointments.

Since the natural antibiotic is often destroyed when making tea, it is safer to use pressed juices.

Roots of the ribwort in a showcase (length of the box estimated 1 m). Recorded at the State Horticultural Show Schwäbisch Gmünd in May 2014.

The ribwort was voted " Medicinal Plant of the Year 2014" by scientists at the University of Würzburg ("Study Group Development History of Medicinal Plant Science") in autumn 2013 with reference to the antibacterial and hemostatic agents it contains .

Individual evidence

  1. Variant grammar : pointed .
  2. Jürgen Martin: The 'Ulmer Wundarznei'. Introduction - Text - Glossary on a monument to German specialist prose from the 15th century. Königshausen & Neumann, Würzburg 1991 (= Würzburg medical-historical research. Volume 52), ISBN 3-88479-801-4 (also medical dissertation Würzburg 1990), p. 190.
  3. See on this Friedrich Kluge , Alfred Götze : Etymological Dictionary of the German Language . 20th edition. Edited by Walther Mitzka . De Gruyter, Berlin / New York 1967; Reprint (“21st unchanged edition”) ibid 1975, ISBN 3-11-005709-3 , p. 843.
  4. ^ Erich Oberdorfer : Plant-sociological excursion flora for Germany and neighboring areas . 8th edition. Verlag Eugen Ulmer, Stuttgart 2001, pp. 872-873, ISBN 3-8001-3131-5
  5. Erhard Dörr, Wolfgang Lippert : Flora of the Allgäu and its surroundings. Volume 2, IHW, Eching 2004, ISBN 3-930167-61-1 , p. 498.
  6. Peter Zwetko: The rust mushrooms Austria. Supplement and host-parasite directory to the 2nd edition of the Catalogus Florae Austriae, III. Part, Book 1, Uredinales. (PDF; 1.8 MB).
  7. Jussi Jousimo, Ayco JM Tack, Otso Ovaskainen, Tommi Mononen, Hanna Susi, Charlotte Tollenaere, Anna-Liisa Laine, 2014. Ecological and evolutionary effects of fragmentation on infectious disease dynamics. Science 344: 1289-1293. doi : 10.1126 / science.1253621
  8. Karol Marhold, 2011: Plantaginaceae : Datasheet Plantago lanceolata In: Euro + Med Plantbase - the information resource for Euro-Mediterranean plant diversity.
  9. Hans Flück, Rita Jaspersen-Schib: Our medicinal plants , 7th edition, Ott Verlag Thun 1986, ISBN 3-7225-6756-4 , p. 149
  10. ^ Roche Lexicon Medicine, 5th edition, Verlag Urban & Fischer, Munich, Jena 2003, ISBN 978-3-437-15156-9 , p. 1470
  11. C. Jänicke, J. Grünwald, T. Brendler: Handbuch Phytotherapie , Wissenschaftliche Verlagsgesellschaft mbH, Stuttgart 2003, ISBN 3-8047-1950-3 , p. 504f
  12. ^ R. Hänsel , O. Sticher: Pharmakognosie, Phytopharmazie , 8th edition, Springer Verlag, Berlin 2007, ISBN 3-540-34256-7 , pp. 829f and 604
  13. Ruprecht Düll , Herfried Kutzelnigg : Pocket dictionary of plants in Germany. A botanical-ecological excursion companion to the most important species. 6th, completely revised edition. Quelle & Meyer, Wiebelsheim 2005, ISBN 3-494-01397-7 , p. 367.
  14. https://www.basg.gv.at/index.php?eID=tx_nawsecuredl&u=0&g=0&t=0&hash=fe06aff2ef9f79bf49b71870d6e2b0a8cc994550&file=fileadmin/redakteure/dateien/Archiv_Monographieentw%C3%BCrfe/29.06.2017/Spitzwegerichsirup_offizinal.pdf Austrian Federal Office for safety in health care : information on the preparation of ribwort syrup official , accessed on March 25, 2019
  15. Ribwort plantain not only helps with coughs. Interview with Johannes Gottfried Mayer on Deutschlandfunk , December 31, 2013

Web links

Commons : Spitz-Wegerich ( Plantago lanceolata )  - Album with pictures, videos and audio files
Wiktionary: Ribwort plantain  - explanations of meanings, word origins, synonyms, translations