Melilotus (Melilotus) is a perennial plant and belongs to the legume family, which are useful forage crops grown for two millennia. Certain species groups of legumes are cultivated as medicinal herbs. In the simple dialect, sweet clover is usually called burkun or sweet clover. In nature, related forms of grass, exuding a sweetish aroma, can be found in meadow pastures or wastelands in Asia and Europe.
Description of the herb sweet clover
The root of the melilot grass looks like an erect rod. The stem has branching shoots. The height of the bushes is 0.5-2 meters, depending on the name of the variety. The leaf blades resemble clover leaves in their toothed-trifoliate shape. Flowers with white or yellow color are collected in cluster inflorescences located at the top of the stems. Elongated beans ripen from withered flowers. Seed germination lasts more than 10 years.
Melilot is considered an excellent green manure. Due to the presence of this grass on the site, the quality of the soil increases, and nitrogen enrichment occurs. This fodder crop forms a vitamin plant mass, which has useful milk-producing and fattening properties.
The use of the herb can be seen in the tobacco, perfumery, and soap industries. The scent of fresh hay exuded by the plant allows it to be used in fragrance and aromatization processes.
The honey-bearing properties of sweet clover are of interest to many gardeners. The honey collected from the flowers of the herb is characterized by a sweetish vanilla aroma.
Planting a sweet clover in the open field
Yellow sweet clover and white sweet clover are suitable for cultivation. These species are propagated in a generative way. The soil for planting can be completely different. Both salt marshes and chernozems or low-podzolic soils are suitable. The grass reacts poorly to an acidic and boggy substrate in places where groundwater lies close to the surface. The plant has the ability to absorb nitrogen and absorb the required amount of nutrients from solid soil, so the cultivated plantings of sweet clover can also grow on marginal soil. An important point when cultivating bottom grass is good illumination of the area.
Before sending the seeds into the ground, the site is thoroughly plowed, at the same time enriching it with granules of potash and phosphorus fertilizers.
Melilot seeds must be stratified before sowing. It is allowed to use clover graters or scarifiers for these purposes, if available. Sowing of the culture is carried out in April. Narrow furrows are dug, the soil is moistened. Seeds are distributed from each other at a distance of 45 cm. They cover the top with a small layer of earth and lightly slap the surface.
If the seeds cannot be stratified, they are sown in the soil in winter. Due to the moisture of melt water and rains, the seed coat will soften.The first shoots will begin to appear with the arrival of spring warmth. In the south, sweet clover is planted in open ground at the end of summer.
Sweet clover care in the garden
Planting and caring for a sweet clover is not difficult even for a novice gardener. The germination process takes about two weeks. When two strong leaves appear, the seedlings are thinned out, and the site is carefully loosened, removing weeds. Crops will develop well if the distance between individual bushes is at least 30 cm.
The plant is considered drought-resistant, but needs additional fertilizing with mineral fertilizers. Fruits are formed only in biennial plants, because young growth directs all forces to maximize the growth of the root system. It is important to ensure that the root collar does not flood when the snow melts. During flowering, the plant attracts bees, which flock to collect nectar.
Diseases and pests of melilot
Along with other fodder crops, sweet clover is exposed to some diseases and attacks of insects. The most dangerous diseases are powdery mildew, bacteriosis of roots, septoria and yellow mosaic. The spread of fungal infections caused by poor care or bad weather conditions can be stopped with fungicides. We are talking about Fundazole, Maximom and other chemicals that have a similar effect. It is almost impossible to cope with the mosaic.
Bottom grass pests include bedbugs, weevils, palomena, kraevik, red-bug and shit bugs. Spraying the leaves and stems with insecticidal preparations helps to achieve the destruction of insects. Strict adherence to the rules of crop rotation, seed treatment, regular weeding of the soil and timely treatment of the soil with insecticides allows to prevent the invasion of pests.
Collection and storage of sweet clover
Raw materials are harvested during the flowering period. Inflorescences and side shoots are cut with a pruner or garden shears. From them, bundles are collected, which are then tied up under the ceiling in a dry room with air access. Electric dryers allow to speed up the process. Raw materials are dried at 40 ºC. The dried grass is crushed and passed through a sieve to separate large particles. The fruits, leaves and flowers of sweet clover have medicinal properties. It is better to store finished raw materials in glass jars without access to light.
Types and varieties of sweet clover with a photo
In gardening, only two types of sweet clover are cultivated.
White melilot (Melilotus albus)
White sweet clover or burkun is a silage grass with feathery leaf blades, which reaches a height of up to 1.5 meters. Inflorescences grow out of the sinuses. The white flowers resemble the wings of a moth. Compared to other honey plants, white sweet clover is capable of producing nectar even in dry weather. Under natural conditions, the plant takes refuge in wastelands, grows along roads and agricultural fields. The most famous varieties of this type are:
- Medet is a rapidly maturing Siberian variety that grows up to 1.2 m and has thick, rough stems, as well as massive flowers intertwining into cyst-like inflorescences. The grass is resistant to low temperatures, drought, pests and diseases.
- Hoarfrost - the variety is prone to bushiness, has green, low-leafed stems. The tips of the leaves are slightly serrated, without pubescence. Flower brushes are loose in white tone. The beans are in the shape of an ellipse. The plant is threatened by leaf-eating weevils;
- Chermasan - the height of the variety is no more than two meters. The culture is distinguished by coarse, low-pubescent shoots. The length of the inflorescences does not exceed 18 cm. The beans are dark gray;
- Steppe - the variety is drought tolerant. The surface of the stems at the bottom of the bush is bare, and above it is pubescent. Flower clusters are loose. The fruits look like yellow beans with achenes. Leaf blades are rounded without hairy pubescence. Their color is approaching a light green hue.The surface of the leaves contains a waxy coating;
- Volzhanin is one of the most resistant varieties of sweet clover to any adversity; it can develop on different types of soils. The culture is unable to infect neither powdery mildew, nor spring frosts, which often return after the establishment of the May heat. Bushes grow medium in length. Shoots rough to the touch and slightly branched. During the ripening period, dark beans with yellow oval achenes are formed.
Yellow sweet clover (Melilotus officinalis)
Melilot yellow has another more common name - wild hops, groundwort or moth grass. Local residents of Belarus, Ukraine, the Caucasus and Western Siberia are well acquainted with this plant. Wild plantings of yellow sweet clover are often found on forest edges, near roads and fields. Bushes tend to branch. The leaves are trifoliate, like many other varieties, toothed at the edges. Brushes are formed from small yellow flowers. The culture bears fruit with brown beans, which contain oval, yellowish achenes. Seed ripening occurs at the end of summer.
The following varieties have gained popularity among gardeners:
- Sarbas is a cold-resistant variety that demonstrates high yields and resistance to fungal infections. Grass shoots can grow back quickly after mowing. The seeds and the ground part of the plant attract pests;
- Koldybansky is a melliferous culture with coarse shoots of medium height. Koldybansky sweet clover bushes weakly branch;
- Ishimsky is an early variety of bottom grass. It ripens quickly and gives a rich harvest. The length of straight smooth stems ranges from 80 cm;
- Kokshetau - a hybrid form of yellow sweet clover, from the leaves of which honey is obtained;
- Omsk - the plant is characterized by yellow flowers and large fruits. Each fruit contains two achenes.
Useful properties of sweet clover
Healing properties
Melilot grass tissues contain traces of cymarine, carotene, essential oils and ascorbic acid, glycosides, tannins, flavonoids. When glycosides break down, coumarin is obtained. It is a substance with a crystalline structure and the smell of freshly cut hay.
People learned about the usefulness and unique properties of sweet clover in ancient times. The herb is considered an effective remedy that can heal wounds, stop inflammation, cramps and cleanse the body of harmful substances. Bottom grass raw materials are used in the treatment of diseases of the respiratory system, normalization of blood pressure, headaches, neuroses, sleep problems, gout, arthritis, skin diseases and malfunction of the female genital organs.
Sweet clover honey is an excellent remedy for insomnia, headaches, sudden changes in blood pressure, respiratory diseases, joints and varicose veins. Doctors recommend taking sweet clover honey to stimulate the lactation period. The substances in the honey plant have a diuretic and laxative effect, therefore decoctions and preparations from sweet clover are prescribed for constipation and diseases of the urogenital canals.
Contraindications
It is not recommended to use sweet clover herb for kidney diseases or women in position. In case of violation of the dosage of the drug, cases of poisoning are possible. Excessive use of raw materials negatively affects the activity of the nervous system and interferes with the contraction of smooth muscles. If you take sweet clover for a long time, the following symptoms may occur: drowsiness, dizziness, nausea, headaches and bouts of vomiting. The most serious consequences of an overdose of the herb are the destruction of the liver walls, internal bleeding, and central nervous system paralysis. In this regard, the use of raw materials should be strictly coordinated with the doctor, who will advise the required dosage that is safe for the body. Moderate use of decoctions, infusions and collections of herbs will allow you to cope with many diseases.
