Bedstraw jointed
Bedstraw is one of the plants of the family called shift plants; in Latin the name of this plant will be as follows: Galium articulatum Lam. (G. desypodium Klok.).
As for the name of the bedstraw family itself, in Latin it will be like this: Menyanthaceae Dumort.
Description of the bedstraw
Bedstraw is a perennial herbaceous plant. The rhizome of such a plant is creeping and reddish, it will be endowed with one to three stems. The height of such stems will vary between thirty and one hundred centimeters, such stems will be strong and rough along the ribs, they can be either straight or ascending at the base. The leaves of the bedstraw are found in a whorl of four, they are wide, oblong-ovate or elliptical, the length of such leaves is five and a half to six and a half centimeters, and the width is about one to two centimeters. The bracts of the bedstraw are paired, at the top the inflorescences will be single, they are quite small, the length of such leaves is five to six millimeters, and the width will be about one and a half to two millimeters, such leaves can be either elliptical or ovoid. The panicle of the bedstraw is wide, dense and dichotomously branched; the semi-umbrellas of this plant will have thirty to forty flowers, they are collected at the very tops of the stems in threes or four pieces. The diameter of the corolla of the bedstraw will be about three to three and a half millimeters, it is endowed with broadly elliptical lobes and is colored in yellowish tones. The fruits of this plant will be bare, their length is one and a half millimeters, and their width will be about two and a half to three millimeters.
Bedstraw blooms during the period from May to October. Under natural conditions, it is found in the Caucasus, Belarus, Moldova, Ukraine and the following regions of the European part of Russia: Ladoga-Ilmensky, Black Sea, Volga-Don, Lower Volga and Lower Don. For growth, this plant prefers floodplains, mountain slopes, forest edges, wet meadows, bush thickets, river and sea banks.
Description of the medicinal properties of bedstraw
Galium arvensis possesses valuable medicinal properties, and its rhizomes and herb are recommended for medicinal purposes. The herb includes the stems, flowers, and leaves. These valuable medicinal properties are attributed to the anthraquinones and alkaloids found in the rhizomes, while the aerial parts of the plant contain alkaloids, saponins, organic acids, coumarins, flavonoids, phenolic acids (their derivatives, chlorogenic acid), and gallic acid. The leaves of Galium arvensis contain vitamin C and alkaloids.
It should be noted that this plant is quite widely used in homeopathy, where it is used as a pain reliever and sedative. In folk medicine, drinking one tablespoon of this plant’s juice two to three times daily is recommended for ascites, malignant tumors, chronic heart disease, chronic skin conditions, and the following gastrointestinal conditions: colitis, gastritis, gastric ulcers, and duodenal ulcers. Galium arvensis powder is used topically as a hemostatic agent. For gastric ulcers, one to two grams of Galium arvensis rhizome powder should be used.
