Benefits and cultivation of the monarda
What is Monarda?
The monarda is a perennial herbaceous plant from North America that, being part of the Lamiaceae family, is cultivated both to decorate the gardens or other where it is located, thanks to the beauty of its very fragrant flowers, and to the beneficial effects of its leaves .
The vegetation in question, known as the flower of the Bergamot, manages to reach about a meter in height and in a short time forms compact, dense, extremely decorative bushes, with a dark green color.
How is the monarda made up?
The monarda is composed of:
– a robust rhizomatous root from which straight herbaceous stems with quadrangular section are born, submerged by a luxuriant foliage;
– multiple dark green lance-shaped leaves, slightly rough, serrated at the edges, with pointed apex and aromatic, so that, if they were to be rubbed, they would give off a very pleasant perfume, similar to that of Mint;
– particularly odorous flowers which, during the period of flowering, blossoming on the top of the stems, have a spherical shape with pink, white and red bratee.
The monarda is a type of vegetation which, during the whole summer, produces abundant blooms, prefers sunny areas, but manages to develop perfectly even semi-shadowed places, tolerating the cold and suffering excessive heat.
Cultivation of the monarda
The monarda, which develops perfectly in any type of soil, prefers the well-drained, soft and rich in organic matter and suffers if planted inside a compact and heavy substrate, to the point that after a while it dies because it is suffocated.
It is a plant that, preferring a well-fertilized earth, from autumn to vegetative growth, every 2/3 months, wants to be watered regularly every 3/4 days only in spring, summer and autumn, while in winter it does not like irrigation .
What is prepared by the monarda?
The leaves, due to their aroma similar to bergamot, are dried and used after the harvest to be able to prepare multiple food and non-food products, such as perfumed pouches, essential oils with antibacterial, antiseptic, anti-inflammatory and antifungal capabilities, soft drinks and Osweg tea comparable to the Chinese one is particularly aromatic, but with a bitter taste, so that not everyone likes to drink it.
It is good to know that this particular flavor, due to a substance, called thymol, present in the foliage of the reasoned plant, is similar to the strange but special combination of flavor, created by peppermint and oregano.
Benefits of the monarda on human health
It must be taken into account that the monarda, besides being an odorous and ornamental plant, is also officinal since it contains monardine (anthocyanins), thymol, carvacrol (phenols and essential oil) and tannin and bitter substances.
There are many benefits that the monarda, with its precious properties, provides the body with, such as:
– the prevention and treatment of colds;
– antipyretic action;
– the fight and treatment of oral infections, the neck region and headache;
– myorelaxant, anti-spasmotic and anti-inflammatory action;
– grandiose reliefs on severe pain, colic and itching caused by mosquito and other insect bites;
– antifungal activity;
– the stimulating action on the organism and that against the various skin infections;
– the fight against the accumulation of gas present in the stomach and intestines, nausea and heartburn;
– hair care and stimulation.
In addition, the monarda, also used to treat depressive syndromes, is able to alleviate diarrhea and constipation, to calm burns, to heal various wounds, sprains, fractures and bruises and to act against urinary tract infections such as cystitis.
