Syrian honey vatnik brought to Europe from North America. Known as Aesculapova, Swallowtail, Milky Grass. It has nothing to do with Syria! The name is due to the mistake of its discoverer.
It is attractive to bees due to its strong chocolate aroma, but requires special attention during breeding – it can harm crops. In Ukraine and the EU, this plant is classified as a malicious weed.
The content of the article
- 1 Significance for agriculture
- 2 Appearance
- 3 Agrotechnics
- 4 Honey productivity
- 5 Useful Properties
Significance for agriculture
In the XNUMXth century, cotton wool was appreciated in Europe as a technical culture. The stalks of the grass were used for the production of ropes, fabrics, and the tuft of the inflorescences was used as cotton wool for stuffing upholstered furniture and toys. They tried to get rubber from the juice. However, the production was laborious and required considerable financial investments, and the final product was not of the proper quality. With the development of technology, the attention of manufacturers has shifted to high-quality rubber, which is in demand in the market.
Vatochnik gradually moved into the category of ornamental plants. Until now, it can be found in the front gardens and near the fences of private houses in Ukraine.
Two decorative types are common here:
- frost-hardy meat-red variety – with purple inflorescences that produce nectar from June to August (about 30-35 days);
- tuberose variety – with orange flowers blooming from mid-summer and blooming throughout the fall (it hibernates badly in the forest-steppe, even with winter shelter).
The plant is used in modern pharmacology as a bactericidal and anti-inflammatory agent. Young shoots of herbs are included in dishes instead of traditional asparagus.
The grass easily penetrates natural plant groups! When it gets into the fields, it acts like a weed – it quickly takes root and captures the territory, which leads to loss of yield. For example, soybeans are harvested 15-20 percent less. And the loss of oat yield is more than 25 percent.
Appearance
Syrian honey plant has a high stem, sometimes reaching two meters. When it breaks, a juice characteristic of color and consistency is released – milk containing rubber and resins. The leaves are large, simple, lanceolate, arranged oppositely on the stems.
The flowers are of different colors – from pale to bright pink-lilac. They are large enough, collected in umbellate inflorescences. After flowering, crescent-shaped bolls with dark brown oval seeds are formed. When ripe, the capsules open – the seeds are outside. They are bordered by long, fluffy hairs in the form of a tuft, reminiscent of cotton wool (hence the name of the herb).
Rapid reproduction by seeds is possible only in years with long, very warm autumn. In such weather, the wind carries fully ripe seeds over long distances.
Agrotechnics
A honey plant that tolerates cold winters and dry weather in summer. Loves moderately fertilized soil with an admixture of sand. After planting, it gradually grows, forming almost regular rows.
When sown with seeds, it throws out inflorescences only after two or three years! Planting seedlings accelerates the growing season – the first flowers appear in the second half of summer.
The seeds should be planted on the windowsill in early March. The first shoots appear after two weeks. By the end of May, the beginning of summer, the seedlings will be ready for transplanting into open ground.
Watering the grass is necessary only during dry periods. Fertilizing with mineral fertilizers is carried out once a year, in summer.
Note! The honey plant is included in the European Union in the list of invasive species harmful to agricultural crops. This means that its special cultivation with the release of seeds into nature, as well as the transfer of seed material or its import into the EU countries is prohibited.
The complete eradication of weeds from the fields takes on average 3-5 years of targeted treatment with a mixture of herbicides!
When cultivating near apiaries, it is necessary to place plantings of cottonwood far from fields with cultivated plantings. But even in this case, the uncontrolled spread of the weed in nature is not guaranteed. Although its seeds do not ripen every year, the risk of their spread by the wind in a warm autumn is quite possible – the viability in the soil lasts for three years.
The most favorable for the growth and distribution of honey plants are forest, forest-steppe zones with a moderately warm or cool climate.
Honey productivity
Cotton wool is valuable for apiaries as a plant with fragrant inflorescences attractive to honey bees. Its flowering occurs in the period from the second half of July, August. Depending on the weather, nectar is released within 3-4 weeks.
Honey productivity varies. An average of 45-85 kilograms of marketable honey is obtained per hectare. However, there are separate mentions of the record 100-200 kilograms.
Honey collected from cotton wool is light with a slight yellowish tinge. The aroma is subtle with a slight chocolate note. Crystallizes slowly. It looks almost transparent after pumping out of the honeycomb.
Useful Properties
Honey from cotton wool is used in folk medicine:
- for any skin diseases, including psoriasis and lichen;
- with the bites of various insects to treat the affected surface.
This product is used in cosmetology as a rejuvenating agent with a high amino acid content.
Important! The juice of the grass is poisonous. Direct skin contact results in skin irritation. The contamination should be washed off immediately with warm water and soap or any other kind of soap.
