Lingonberry is a berry not only tasty, but also healthy. People knew about its healing properties in ancient times and called it "the berry of immortality" for its incredible ability to help in the treatment of many diseases. This plant is found in the Far East, Siberia, and the Caucasus.
An evergreen shrub, which is a lingonberry, grows up to 30 cm in height. Small pink flowers that appear in May are combined in a brush. Bright and juicy berries ripen only at the beginning of autumn. The presence of benzoic acid allows them to be stored for a long time.
The shrub can give two harvests a year, and the ripening of the fruits depends on many reasons: air temperature, rainfall intensity, soil quality, plant nutrition.
For medicinal purposes, lingonberry leaves are mainly used, containing arbutin, flavanol, various acids (gallic, ellagic, quinic and tartaric), carotene, mineral salts, sugars, vitamins. The leaf has the same effect as the bearberry leaf, making them interchangeable for astringent, diuretic and antiseptic effects.
Complex therapy widely uses decoctions of lingonberry leaves to provide anti-inflammatory action in cystitis, pyelonephritis, urolithiasis, prostatitis, pain relief in osteochondrosis, arthritis, spondylosis. A decoction of the leaves of the plant is an excellent remedy for the treatment of throat, stomatitis, periodontal disease.
Lingonberry leaf is an excellent helper for stomach problems, liver diseases and diabetes mellitus. Regular consumption of tea made from lingonberry leaves helps the body to better cope with fatigue, vitamin deficiency, and lack of vitamins. To improve the taste of tea and enhance the beneficial properties, the lingonberry leaf is often combined with the leaves of other plants (raspberries, currants).
Traditional medicine tends to use the leaves of the plant both fresh and dried. Narodnaya is more specialized in the use of fruits as a remedy in the treatment of scurvy, tuberculosis, rheumatism, colds.
To improve the digestion process, it is good to just chew on dried lingonberries. Fruit juice is excellent for treating skin diseases, and herbal preparations give good results in cases of treating gastritis and hypertension. The fruits are widely used fresh, as well as in the form of preparations for the winter (pickled, dried, pickled).
Lingonberries must be harvested when they are so ripe that they become ripe in appearance, taste, and pulp quality. Subject to the collection deadlines, the berries will have a presentation for a long time.
Despite all the unique and medicinal properties of lingonberry, there are a number of contraindications for its use. It is not recommended to take bush leaves for intolerance and allergies, stomach ulcers, gastritis with high acidity, for children under 12 years old. With great care, it is necessary to take decoctions for hypotensive patients and people with acute renal failure.
Harvesting of leaves for raw materials begins in April and continues until mid-May, since it is at this time that they contain the largest amount of medicinal substances. If it is not possible to collect the leaves in the spring, you can collect them earlier, literally from under the snow, without much damage to the quality. Then they are dried in a well-ventilated, dark place and stored in packages. A properly dried leaf is bitter and astringent in taste, odorless.
