Common bracken fern: what it looks like and where it grows. Common bracken in medicine and cooking

Bracken fern with its spreading paws adorns birch groves all summer Altai Territory, Far East, Siberia and the Urals. Fans of hiking in these parts enthusiastically admire its mysterious glades, but few people know that this miracle plant is highly valued for its exquisite taste and beneficial features. Recently, local gourmets have also become interested in fern recipes.

Unpretentious, beautiful and unkilled

The bracken fern is a herbaceous plant that looks like a low shrub. It usually grows in dense colonies united underground by a common rhizome. The bracken is found in different climatic regions throughout the earth. It is very easy to recognize by its beautiful feathery leaves, similar to acacia twigs. If the stalk of a fern is cut across and carefully studied its image, then you can see an eagle in it, which gave the name to this plant.

The common bracken is known for its vitality. In any soil, even in the most infertile, rocky or sandy, he feels great. Having settled once, he remains in this place for many years. Summer residents and farmers do not like him for this, leading a fierce struggle with him as with a difficult weed, which is almost impossible to eradicate. Even if a fire occurs that destroys everything in the forest, grove or garden where this plant grew, it will be the first to sprout and sprout new shoots.

From harm to benefit - one step

Despite the widespread attitude to ferns as weeds, two of their species are still classified as edible - this is the ostrich and bracken. It should be noted right away that these plants can be used for food only after observing certain precautionary rules. IN fresh they can not be consumed, as they contain toxic substances that are poisonous to humans.

If there is such a risk, is it worth consuming bracken? The beneficial properties of this plant in many ways exceed the small danger that is easy to eliminate. This has long been understood by residents of many Asian countries, where ferns are not just a delicacy, but are considered a national dish. Such love makes it possible for those who live in Kamchatka and in the Primorsky Territory of Russia to have additional income.

Starting in May, when the first bracken shoots appear, many go to the taiga to collect this delicacy, which is bought in bulk from the population for export to China and Japan. Why is this plant so much loved in the East?

A storehouse of benefits, taste and health

Bracken-fern dishes contain a lot of useful elements, which are found both in young shoots and in rhizomes. Leaves give the body the following substances:

1. Phytosterols - reduce the level of cholesterol in the body.

2. Flavonoids - strengthen capillaries, regulate blood clotting, improve vascular permeability.

3. Sesquiterpenes - have an anthelmintic, antihelminthic effect.

4. Tannins (catechins) - indispensable as a cancer prevention, as well as increase immunity, keep youth.

When eating young shoots and stems of the bracken fern, the body benefits from elements such as essential oils, glycosides, alkaloids, fatty oils, aspartic, nicotinic, glutamic acids, tyrosine, phenylalanine, iodine, phosphorus and many other trace elements and vitamins. Thanks to such a rich composition, the bracken fern is valued. Its beneficial properties stimulate metabolism and increase the level of stress resistance of the body.

Don't miss the short collection period

Let's now proceed to a detailed description of all the nuances that must be taken into account if you want a safe and tasty bracken fern to appear on your table. Preparation starts with proper collection. Although this plant can be found in forests, ravines, birch forests, and even in your garden during the entire warm season, it should be collected for cooking only in spring. The fact is that young shoots that have not yet released leaves are edible.

At the end of spring, the shoots begin to harden, the spreading paws with leaves turn into a shrub that is no longer suitable for food, since it contains large quantities contains bitter glycosides, and the level of toxic substances also increases significantly. It is important not to miss that short period when the bracken is still young, its stem is fragile, and the young shoots are bent into a hook. Such branches are as easy to collect as dandelions - they break easily, and their delicate leaves are rich in a variety of substances.

Set goals and make time

Collected bracken fern should be stored in the refrigerator for no longer than two days. During this period, it must be processed, otherwise it will become completely poisonous. This must be taken into account when collecting. If your goal is to surprise your friends with an exotic dish, you should not collect it in large quantities. If you want to stock up while it is still edible in order to indulge yourself with its unusual taste throughout the year, then it is worth setting aside a few days for these purposes, as it will take time not only to go to the forest or grove for ferns, but also to its processing.

Having collected right amount raw materials, immediately proceed to its preparation. Start with sorting - select not a large number of beautiful and uniform heads to treat yourself to this delicacy tonight. Put the rest in the refrigerator. We will process it for a long time in order to prepare it for the winter or for future use. To this end, the plants will need to be salted, pickled or dried, but more on that later.

Preliminary processing

So that the fern dinner is not overshadowed by food poisoning, you need to properly prepare freshly harvested raw materials. First of all, it is necessary to clean it from bitterness and toxic substances. Perfect option which will maximize the preservation useful material and the trade dress of the fern is soaking. The shoots prepared for cooking are dipped in a saline solution for a day, after which they are soaked in fresh water. Such Preliminary processing will make young bracken shoots completely safe and palatable.

If you don’t want to wait a whole day, then you can clean the fern from bitterness with the help of several stages of boiling. First, take a copper basin and pour a large amount of water into it. Bring it to a boil, add salt, immerse the shoots very carefully for two to three minutes. After that, you should replace the water - and bring it to a boil again. This should be done two or three times.

At the last boil, the shoots need to be boiled for about ten minutes, constantly monitoring the process. As soon as the fern heads curl into beautiful green rings, they should be removed from the heat. Now let's start preparing the bracken. The recipes for almost all bracken dishes are similar, differing only in the presence of ingredients. They are based on the same cooking methods that we are used to using when processing mushrooms.

We make stocks

Let us now return to the processing of the fern, which was put aside in the refrigerator. We want to procure these stocks of raw materials for long term, salted. To do this, you need to take a large capacity, it is best wooden barrel. Fold in it the collected fern, mixed with salt in a ratio of 3 to 10 (for three kilograms of salt, 10 kilograms of raw materials). Cover with something heavy so that a brine appears under the yoke. After two weeks, the brine should be drained and replaced with a new one, which is already prepared in a ratio of 2 to 10. Leave it again for two weeks, after which the fern, if desired, can be salted again in a ratio of 1 to 10. After that, the shoots must be folded into bunches and dry.

Soak bracken in advance in water (salted) or boil (raw). Put the prepared shoots in a frying pan, in heated oil, and simmer to get rid of excess moisture. After that, evenly mix all the products and season the salad with mayonnaise. Garnish with finely chopped green onions.

It is impossible to embrace all the many recipes that cooks offer for cooking bracken. These can be not only the famous Korean pickled fern salads, but also Russian inventions, such as dumplings, pancakes and even pies stuffed with fried bracken. All these experiments became possible due to the fact that it tastes like mushrooms, so the same dishes are prepared from it.

Also to simple recipes include fried fern, which can be used as a gravy for any side dish. It is very easy to prepare it:

1. Finely chop one onion and fry until transparent.

2. Put 400 grams of boiled fern into the pan and fry for another 10 minutes with onions.

3. Separately, mix half a cup of sour cream with one tablespoon of flour.

4. Pour the mixture into the roasted ferns. Put in the oven. When is formed golden brown, take out. Serve hot.

Anyone knows perfectly well what a plant looks like.

IN Lately it is very popular, not only for its amazing shade tolerance, but also for its simple beauty.

There is a special specimen called Orlyak, which is worth paying attention to. It is little known, but it is found almost anywhere on the planet Earth, except for those places that are covered with eternal ice.

Origin

The plant is a perennial that appeared about 55 million years ago and is considered an ancient lichen, preserved from the few of its kind. These species not only survived to this day, but also retained their appearance unchanged.

The height of the fern rises to 70 cm, and in the southern regions this figure increases to 2 meters. It is completely unpretentious to the soil.

The bracken fern took its name from the elongated leaves similar to eagle feathers. The plant is poisonous in relation to representatives of the animal world. However, man has learned to use the fern in the decoration of rooms, in medicine and cooking.

Ferns in nature and at home

There are over 10,000 species of ferns. They grow anywhere in the world and during their existence have become accustomed to different climatic conditions. In Russia, there are only a few species of them, including the bracken fern.

The bracken lives longer at home than in wild nature. At proper care, the plant pleases with its beautiful green crown for up to several decades.

In nature, the bracken fern takes root to a depth of one and a half meters. At a certain time, leaves appear from them. They are twisted like snails and are called “rachis”, translated as “ridge”.

As they grow, the shoots resemble palm fans, so the fern stalks are called “vayami”, if translated from Greek, this will mean “palm branch”. This sign is not a feature of the bracken, there are other types of fern with the same shoots.

Cultivation and care

The appearance of the fern Orlyak

It is believed that a fern is a plant that grows wherever possible. Indeed, this is due to the deep-seated root, which protects itself from freezing during the cold seasons.

Drought fern is also not terrible. Fires are the main threat to forests, but they do not pose a danger to the common bracken. The same deep root system will sprout again if top part plants will die.

Home plant

Bracken fern is allowed to grow at home. A beautiful and healthy plant can only be obtained with proper care during growth.

Purchase

The first step should be to buy a fern without any diseases. How to understand it?

In a new house, a homemade bracken should be left for a day in a dark place. Only after it must be planted in a prepared pot with a mixture of earth.

Soil selection

The soil should be mostly sand. This plant loves drained soil. With predominantly clay soil, the fern will not feel comfortable. It is advisable to pour broken bricks at the bottom of the pot.

When planting, the roots of the plant are planted in a deep hole lined with compost around the edges. After sprinkling with soil, water abundantly with funds for an easy adaptation process.

Lighting

Manipulations are carried out in the spring, in a deep hole protected from light and drafts. There are times when a fern becomes cramped in its native pot and needs more space.

pruning

The plant does not need to trim the crown. At home cultivation it does not shed its leaves. And in the garden, old leaves are replaced by new ones.

reproduction

The bracken fern reproduces in several ways. Which is the most convenient, you can determine after a complete analysis of each of the options.

So reproduction is happening.:

1. disputes
2. division.

Reproduction by spores

The bracken is an asexual plant and in the wild, reproduction occurs mainly by spores. At home, when autumn comes, cut the leaf and put it to dry. The spores are powdery.

Around January, they are poured into boxes with earth and irrigate the earth with water. Required condition- this is a shelter with thick glass to create a greenhouse effect.

After a couple of months, moss appears - this is the basis of the future plant. Now oxygen is needed, so the glass is removed. Gradually, the sprouts will stretch. It is better to transplant them separately. In the spring, seedlings are determined to a permanent place.

Reproduction by dividing the bush

The breeding method is easier than the previous one. The root system of the fern is so powerful that it easily tolerates division. Therefore, many secondary elements can be obtained from one plant.

Perform separation in early spring when the temperature no longer falls below 0 degrees.

Bracken fern cannot reproduce with the help of tubers and shoots!

Pests and diseases

The fern will die if it is not helped in this situation. Fight insect pests with the help of chemical insecticides.

It is necessary to follow all the rules when working with these substances, so as not to harm the bracken and get the opposite effect.

Beneficial features

The plant is used not only to decorate housing, it is widely used as a medicine. In addition, it has found a place in cooking.

Fern may not always be useful, there are a number of contraindications, so before using it, you need to remember about the undesirable consequences.

The root part is considered important in the plant.

It has unique properties:

1. Activates growth.
2. Improves performance.
3. Removes stress.
4. Increases immunity.
5. Accelerates metabolism.

In cooking, leaves are widely used in a young period. They are boiled, baked, fried and put in salads. It is necessary to process shoots within 2 days, after the expiration of time they become poisonous. Orlyak is similar in taste to mushrooms.

Contraindications

Many scientists are against the use of bracken fern for food or in medicinal purposes because it contains several types of poison.

Orlyak is contraindicated:

1. Women in position.
2. Women during lactation.
3. Children.
4. People with intolerance to certain substances.

There are cases of fern poisoning, as a result, nausea, vomiting, dizziness occur, allergies pour out, the functioning of the kidneys and liver is disrupted.

Growing a bracken fern is not difficult at all. It is highly valued in the ornamental world of plants. As a result, he pleases his owners with a lush bright green crown.

Common bracken (Jesus grass) is a perennial herbaceous fern of the Dennstedtiev family. It occurs almost everywhere in light deciduous and coniferous forests, among bushes, on open hills, edges, abandoned fields, clearings. Widely distributed in Russia. In some areas, the common bracken is included in the Red Books (Komi Republic, Moldova, etc.). Common bracken is used in cooking and traditional medicine in many countries.

Description and preparation

Common bracken has a powerful deep-seated root system, large pinnate leaves (fronds) with curved edges on long petioles, reaching a height of up to one and a half meters. In July-August, the bracken develops spherical spores (not annually).
The roots and grass (leaves) of bracken are used as medicinal raw materials in folk medicine. Harvesting of grass is carried out in May, when the top of the shoot begins to straighten, or when the shoots have straightened, but the leaves have not yet blossomed: young shoots are cut off and dried in electric dryer at a temperature of 20°C. The roots are dug up and dried in early spring.
At one place, you can harvest for 3-4 years, and then you need to take a break for 2-3 years.

Chemical composition

Common bracken is rich in: flavonoids, phenols, tannins, carbohydrates, carotenoids, succinic, coffee, ferulic, fumaric and other organic acids. Due to its composition, bracken has antipyretic, analgesic, antitussive, anthelmintic, astringent, diuretic, antitumor, antiemetic, wound healing and tonic effects on the human body.

In folk medicine, common bracken is used for:

• colds, fever, sore throat;
• cough, bronchitis, dry pleurisy, tuberculosis;
• headache, migraine;
• gastralgia;
• myalgia;
• infectious hepatitis;
• spleen infiltrate;
• rheumatism, arthritis, joint pain;
• diarrhea
• hemorrhoids;
• helminthiasis;
• rickets;
• convulsions;
• radiation sickness;
• tinnitus;
• abscesses, eczema, ulcers, burns, diathesis;
• hair loss.

Recipes

Migraine infusion:

• 1 tbsp dry crushed leaves of common bracken;
• 1 st. boiling water.

Pour boiling water over the bracken, let it brew for 15 minutes and strain. Take 60 ml three times a day. The recommended course of treatment is 20 days. Also, this infusion can be taken with inflammation of the ovaries. With hemorrhoids, lotions are made from a decoction of a bracken leaf.

Decoction for cough:

• 1 tsp bracken leaf;
• 1 tsp crushed bracken root;
• 400 ml of boiling water.

Pour boiling water over the bracken, boil for 10 minutes, and then let it brew for an hour. Strain. Take 50 ml 3-4 times a day for coughing. In addition, this decoction can be taken to treat migraine, stomach pain and joint pain.
Decoction for arthritis:

• 3 tbsp common bracken root;
• 500 ml of boiling water.

Pour boiling water over the bracken root and boil over low heat for 15 minutes. Then remove the decoction from the heat and let it brew for two hours. Strain. Divide into several parts and take throughout the day 20 minutes before meals or 2-3 hours after meals. Also, this decoction is used to prepare compresses and lotions for the joints. You can take it with anemia, scrofula, diarrhea.
Decoction for helminthiasis:

• 1 tbsp crushed dry bracken root;
• 1 st. boiling water.

Pour boiling water over the bracken root and boil over low heat for 20 minutes. Then remove the broth from the stove and put in a warm place to infuse for an hour. Strain. Take 1/3 cup of decoction three times a day. Also, this decoction can be used to wash wounds, skin rashes, abscesses, boils and to gargle with sore throat.

• fresh chopped bracken root;
• cognac.

Fill a glass container 1/3 full with bracken root and fill with cognac to the top. Let it brew for 21 days. Strain. Take 15 ml, dissolved in a small amount water, three times a day before meals.
Compress for varicose veins:

• 15 ml gruel from fresh bracken root;
• 15 ml of sour milk.

Grind the fern root to a pulp and mix with sour milk. Apply the resulting mass in a thick layer to the affected area, fix with several layers of gauze. Keep such a compress should be 5-6 hours.

Bath decoction:

• 100 g fresh bracken root;
• 3 liters of boiling water.

Pour boiling water over the bracken and simmer for three hours. The resulting broth is filtered and added to the bath for rheumatism. Also, this remedy is used in the form of lotions for eczema, skin ulcers, scrofula, etc.
Dry bracken grass, crushed into powder, is used to powder wounds and burns, which contributes to their speedy healing.
For pain in the joints, compresses are made from the leaves of the common bracken.
To improve the fusion of bones after fractures, as well as the treatment of ulcers on the skin, poultices are used from the crushed leaves of the common bracken.
A decoction of the root can be rubbed into the scalp for hair growth.

Contraindications

Common bracken is contraindicated:

• children;
• pregnant and lactating women;
• with individual intolerance.

Attention! The common eagle belongs to poisonous plants. Before starting treatment with bracken, you should consult with your doctor. During treatment, the recommended dosage should be strictly observed. Overdose medicines prepared on the basis of bracken, can lead to the following side effects: nausea, vomiting, dizziness, headache, hypotension, convulsions, respiratory depression. Bracken poisoning can be fatal.

Common bracken- Pteridium aquilinum (L.) Kuhn is a perennial herbaceous fern from the Hypolepidaceae family. This is perhaps the most conspicuous and memorable fern. It has a strong black rhizome, the length of which reaches 1 m, and the diameter ranges from 1.5 to 10 mm. The rhizome is horizontal, branched, sometimes woody. From the rhizome at some distance from each other, single leaves depart.
A little earlier, in an essay on the male fern, it was described in sufficient detail about the features of the leaves of ferns. Recall that they arose in the process of evolution as a result of the fusion and flattening of entire shoots, therefore botanists call fern leaves fronds. Most ferns are large-leaved. The fronds of the bracken are also very large, their length and width at the base are from 50 to 150 cm. They are hard, light green. The bracken frond plate is broadly triangular in general outline, divided into 3 segments, which, in turn, are double-pinnate, the terminal lobes of the frond are lanceolate, whole-cut.
Each frond has a long, strong petiole, equal to the length of the plate or even longer than it, densely covered with brown films. The petiole is oriented almost vertically, and the blade is attached to it at an angle and is located mainly parallel to the soil surface.
On the underside of the bracken fronds are sporangia, in which spores develop and mature. Clusters of sporangia stretch in a continuous narrow strip along the edge of the leaf lobes. They are slightly covered by the wrapped edge of the sheet. The bracken reproduces by spores, like other ferns. The spores emerge and are dispersed by the wind from June to September.

Bracken spread

Bracken is one of the few cosmopolitan ferns. It is found in both the Northern and Southern Hemispheres, as well as in the Old and New Worlds. Of course, this does not mean that it can be seen both in the Arctic and in the Sahara. The bracken inhabits only forest areas. So in our country it is known almost everywhere where there are forests.
The bracken grows in the forests different types, but light enough: birch, pine, larch, etc. It enters glades and edges, grows in clearings, forest fires, and inhabits thickets of shrubs. In the mountains it does not rise above the forest belt.

Economic use of bracken

Orlyak - very ornamental plant. Birch forests with bracken cover are especially picturesque. They inspired the work of many artists. Landscapes with an eagle are captured on the canvases of famous painters of the world.
Young, just opening bracken fronds, when they are still white and folded in the form of a snail, are eaten boiled, pickled and salted. They have a lot of amino acids, they taste like first-class mushroom dishes. The Russians are not used to this product, although in the old days during the famine they used it as a substitute for bread. In Japan, the fern is regarded as a delicacy and is imported into the country in significant quantities, including from Russia. There are also many lovers of the bracken fern in China and Korea. It is curious that the nutritional advantages of the bracken were appreciated back in the 19th century (and possibly even earlier) by the inhabitants of New Zealand, far from Japan! In the Canary Islands, where bracken grows in abundance, its rhizomes are constantly mixed with flour; bread baked from such a dough is called heleho.
Bracken fronds have an anti-rotten property - vegetables and fruits laid by them remain fresh for a long time, do not deteriorate. It has been observed that bracken fronds repel insects. In some areas Western Europe peasants used bracken leaves to stuff mattresses and pillows. It was believed that such a bed protects against sciatica, and most importantly, repels cockroaches, flies, spiders, bedbugs, since bracken grass is insecticidal. In France, girls prepared a font from the root of a fern to bewitch a loved one, and in addition, to cleanse the skin and body.
The rhizomes are rich in starch. In some places they feed pigs. A special glue is made from the rhizomes, it does not dissolve in cold water and impregnated with it, for example, backpacks to make them waterproof.
This fern got its name from the fact that the vascular bundles in the rhizome in the cross section represent some kind of state eagle (hence the German name Adlerwurz or the French Fongere imperiale); sometimes the vascular bundles on the transverse section resemble the initials of the name of Jesus Christ (1C), which is why the bracken is also called Jesus grass (Jesus Chrisfus Wurzely Germans). In Russia, in different places, the bracken has names: vitriol, kotochizhnik, flea beetle, Perunov fireflower, fire-color.

Medicinal value of bracken and methods of therapeutic use

The rhizome and, to a lesser extent, bracken leaves are used in folk medicine for a wide variety of diseases. The decoction was taken in the treatment of cough, aches in the joints, externally - in the treatment of wounds; also used for scrofula, as an anthelmintic, for diarrhea, pain in the stomach, headache, and the juice of the plant was used to treat chronic wounds, abscesses, eczema. The fern is mentioned in the writings of Pliny and Dioscorides, and detailed description plants and ways to use it gave in his writings Avicenna in the XI century.
In the Middle Ages, the Swiss physician and pharmacist Nuffer wrote a recipe for the preparation of ferns, which he kept secret. Later, after the death of Nuffer, this recipe was bought for a lot of money from the pharmacist's widow by decree french king Louis XVI, and in 1775 the fern was included in the pharmacopoeia of European countries.
For the treatment of arthritis and polyarthritis, an infusion of the roots is prescribed (inside and outward)

Boil bracken fern roots (3 tablespoons with top) in 0.5 liters of water for 15 minutes, then leave for 2 hours. This daily dose should be taken 15-20 minutes before. before meals (on an empty stomach) or 2-3 hours after meals at night. Make lotions and compresses on the affected joints.

The plant is considered poisonous, but young bracken leaves are an excellent food product. Only the youngest leaves are used for food, when they have not yet unfolded. They are boiled, then washed 2-3 times to remove bitterness. After that, it can be used for soups, salads, fried in oil (they taste like mushrooms) and used as a seasoning for meat, fish and vegetable dishes.
For long-term storage young leaves can be preserved different ways. Pickled leaves are highly valued by gourmets who equate them with palatability to mushrooms of the highest category.
In our country, bracken is eaten only by amateurs. Given its rich vitamin content, it should be used more often in the diet of patients. diabetes in vascular disorders.

Orlyak recipes for medical nutrition

fern leaf salad
Young fronds are cleaned, washed, boiled, finely chopped, mixed with chopped green onions and boiled eggs, salted, seasoned with vegetable oil or sour cream. 100g bracken, 20g green onions, 2 tablespoons vegetable oil or sour cream, salt.

Green soup with fern leaves
Carrots, young bracken fronds, potatoes, browned flour with onions and tomatoes are put in the meat broth, salted and boiled until tender.
For 0.5 l of broth, take 100 g of fern, 1 onion, 1 carrot, 2 potato tubers, 1 tablespoon of flour, 1 tablespoon of tomato paste, salt.

Fried fern leaves
Young fern fronds are cleaned, washed, blanched, breaded in flour and fried on butter. Serve as a side dish for meat or fish and vegetable dishes.

It turns out that this plant has many medicinal properties. Gourmet culinary experts actively use it in cooking. Let's take a closer look at this plant. Do not mind? Read!

Common bracken: photo, brief description of the plant

This plant is a perennial herbaceous fern that belongs to the Hypolepis family. The common bracken, the photo of which is available in this article, has the following distinctive features:

• has a strong rhizome;
• reaches a height of up to 90-100 cm;
• plant leaves up to 150 cm wide, dark green, triangular in shape, located singly;
• the edges of the leaves are curled.

Bracken fern grows mainly in forested areas. This plant does not form bushes at all.

The composition and medicinal properties of bracken fern

Common bracken contains very useful for human health substances:

• catechins (purify the body, neutralize free radicals, slow down the aging process);
• flavonoids (calm the nerves, regulate blood pressure, strengthen blood vessels, normalize heart rhythm);
• phytosterols (regenerate the skin due to an increase in collagen levels);
• fatty oil (perfectly relieves inflammation, accelerates the process of wound healing, has anticarcinogenic properties);
• bitterness (stimulate appetite, normalize the work of the digestive tract, helps restore energy and strength);
• carotene (removes dangerous toxins, neutralizes free radicals, regulates the process of protein synthesis);
• riboflavin (restores sleep, improves the condition of the organs of vision, calms the nerves);
• tocopherol (protects the human skin from the harmful effects of ultraviolet rays regulates lipid metabolism, relieves puffiness);
• nicotinic acid (improves joint mobility, provides all types of metabolism, dilates blood vessels, lowers blood cholesterol, increases blood flow, has a beneficial effect on the digestive tract and liver, lowers blood pressure).

Orlyak ordinary has the following properties:

• antipyretic;
• sedative;
• anti-inflammatory;
• diuretic;
• painkillers;
• antispasmodic;
• antimicrobial;
• hypotensive;
• antihelminthic;
• choleretic;
• wound healing.

Bracken fern in cooking

This plant is actively used by gourmet cooks to prepare dishes with an original taste, and very healthy ones. For this purpose, the rhizome of the common bracken and its young shoots are used.

Let's look at the recipes for making bracken fern.

Salad with egg

For this dish, you need to take the following ingredients:

• young fronds (leaves) of a fern - about 100 g;
• hard boiled chicken eggs- 2 pieces;
• green onion;
• a couple of tablespoons of vegetable oil;
• salt to your own taste.

Vayi must be thoroughly washed and boiled, then chopped. Onions and eggs are also cut very finely. Mix the ingredients well in a prepared container, salt and season with vegetable oil.

Korean-style bracken fern salad with carrots

To prepare it, you will need the following products:

• two bulbs;
• canned corn (third part of the can);
• rye crackers;
• hard cheese;
• beef;
• Korean carrot;
• eagle fronds.

Beef and fern fronds should be boiled well beforehand. Cut the onion into thin half rings and fry. Cheese and boiled beef cut into strips. Finely chop the fronds. Mix all ingredients thoroughly in large capacity, season with sauce.

Culinary experts note that the shoots of the above plant can be used to prepare side dishes.

They taste great with peas, potatoes, cereals. But in without fail it is recommended to soak the common bracken well in water and boil until cooked (this is even before preparing the main dish). This is done in order to eliminate bitterness.

Fern bracken in medicine

Alternative medicine uses the above plant to treat many diseases and ailments. This:

• cough;
• pain in the joints;
• scrofula;
• diathesis;
• diarrhea;
• pain in the stomach;
• polyarthritis;
• convulsions;
• ulcers;
• arthritis;
• leukemia;
• haemorrhoids;
• radiculitis;
• rheumatism;
• radiation sickness;
• dry pleurisy;
• jaundice;
• bronchitis;
• noise in ears;
• cold.

How does bracken fern reproduce?

This plant reproduces vegetatively or through spores. Vegetative way reproduction involves the use of cord-like thin rhizomes, which are at a sufficient depth. Thanks to this method bracken fern easily takes root in difficult places: in abandoned fields, conflagrations, pastures.

Reproduction by segments of the rhizome of the above plant can be carried out both in early spring and at the end of summer.

From July to September, the common bracken usually reproduces with the help of spores. The wind carries them to different distances.

For indoor cultivation the above plant is not suitable. It can be cultivated, for example, in the garden.

Caring for the bracken fern

The above plant is not overly whimsical. It easily tolerates a lack of moisture, resistant to dry soils. The main advantage of the common bracken, by the way, like all ferns, is its ability to grow rapidly.

In no case is it recommended to feed the plant (especially with manure). Common bracken easily tolerates even very low temperatures, has no pests, and is not affected by diseases. If a very dry summer is observed in the region, then its leaves may turn slightly yellow.

Common bracken is a great option for decorating the garden. Besides, medicinal properties plants can be actively used to prepare remedies for the treatment of various diseases (only with prior consultation with a specialist, of course). Yes, it can be used in cooking.