Rowan is one of the most beloved and popular trees in our country. They plant it in parks and squares, along roads, in the yards of high-rise buildings. And, of course, very often mountain ash is an important element in the landscape design of country houses. Such popularity of this plant is primarily due to its beautiful appearance, as well as the ability to grow on any soil and unpretentiousness.
What does the name "rowanberry" mean
The word "rowan" is directly related to the other two - "bird" and "catch". The name of this tree is not accidental. The fact is that its bright fruits practically do not crumble and can hang on branches in winter. And this, of course, attracts a huge number of different birds to the mountain ash.
General Description
Sometimes Internet users ask the question: "Is the mountain ash a shrub or a tree?" The answer to that is pretty simple. Most often, mountain ash is a not too tall (from 5 to 10 m) tree with a perfectly straight trunk and a dense egg-shaped crown. There are also shrubsvarieties. The bark of the trunk and branches of all varieties is grayish and smooth. The leaves of the mountain ash are oblong or oblong-lanceolate, pinnate, alternate. Their beautiful appearance is one of the reasons for the popularity of mountain ash as an ornamental plant. Young leaves are pubescent, old ones are not.
The rowan tree blossoms quite beautifully. Its flowers are collected in a panicle, may be white or with a slight pinkish tint. However, they do not smell particularly pleasant. Rowan bears fruit annually, but a good harvest can be obtained only once every about 3 years. This plant blooms either in late spring or early summer. The fruits begin to develop in September. Gradually they acquire a bright red or black color. The shape of the fruits of mountain ash is round or apple-shaped. Of course, they are, of course, inferior in taste to the same cherries and grapes. However, in terms of usefulness, they may well argue with them.
Seeds of mountain ash have a crescent shape and a reddish tint. Fruiting begins quite late - on the 5-7th year of planting. The rowan tree begins to produce the most abundant crops after about 30 years of growth. From one adult old plant, you can collect up to 100 kg of berries per year.
Rowan is widespread not only in our country, but also in Europe, as well as in North America and throughout Asia.
Methods of breeding rowan
Rowan ash is a tree that propagates both by seedlings and seeds, cuttings or root shoots. Most often, the first and last methods are used. Despite the fact that the tree is very unpretentious, when planting seedlings in the holes, it is necessary to add manure and mineral fertilizers. In order for the root system to begin to actively develop, the plant is cut off, leaving about 5 buds on it. Rowan seedlings are taken very easily, and this tree grows quite quickly. It is best to plant this ornamental plant in the fall. Seedlings are usually obtained by grafting a bud or cutting to a seedling.
Features of cultivation
As already mentioned, mountain ash can feel good on absolutely any soil. Another remarkable feature is its frost resistance. This plant is able to endure the most severe winters without any harm to itself. The rowan tree is also very resistant to high temperatures. Watering practically does not require and tolerates drought well. However, it is still necessary to moisten the soil under it in the summer from time to time. Another advantage of this plant is wind resistance. Its root system is well developed. The mountain ash tolerates the gas content of city streets very well.
Decorative value of mountain ash
The answer to the question of whether mountain ash is a shrub or a tree is given above. Both varieties are often used for decorative purposes. The popularity of this tree as a plant used in landscape design is due to many reasons. First of all, this, of course, is the beauty of the crown itself, which is distinguished by its compactness and density. Weeping varieties of this are especially valued.plants.
In addition, the leaves of mountain ash trees have a decorative value, they are distinguished by an unusual shape and acquire orange-reddish hues in autumn. Another reason for its popularity in this regard are bright berries, which cover the crown in large numbers and retain their attractiveness until late winter.
Types of mountain ash
The genus of mountain ash has more than forty varieties. However, not all of them are widespread. In gardens and parks, you can find both red-fruited and chokeberry, singled out as a separate species, mountain ash. The fruits of both colors have medicinal properties. The most widespread as an ornamental plant was the mountain ash tree. All varieties of this plant belong to the deciduous rose family and are classified into two main subspecies, differing in the shape of the leaves.
The famous Russian scientist of the last century I. V. Michurin was very serious in the selection of mountain ash. They bred several new hybrids of this wonderful plant. In his own laboratory, they also obtained such a variety as chokeberry - a tree similar to ordinary mountain ash, but in fact it is not. This plant is a hybrid called chokeberry.
The most famous rowan hybrids
Hybrids of this plant can be mixed with many others. For example, one of the most famous is the variety Krategozorbuz. This is a very interesting hybrid of mountain ash and hawthorn. Malozorbus - anothercommon mix. It is a hybrid of mountain ash and apple. Sorbapyrus is a mixture with pears, characterized by dark ribbed, very tasty, sweet-sour fruits. Another interesting variety is Amelosorbus, which is a mixture of mountain ash and shadberry.
Medicinal properties of fruits
Rowan ash is a tree whose fruits are also used to improve the body. Our ancestors knew about the healing properties of these berries. The fruits of mountain ash contain just a huge amount of vitamins (C, E, P, K). In addition, fructose, glucose, sorbic acid and carotene are present in the juice and pulp of the plant's berries. A lot of them and also tannins.
It is recommended to take decoctions of rowan berries for diseases such as atherosclerosis and hypertension. They are also drunk for violations of the function of the kidneys, liver and heart. Rowan juice also helps with hemorrhoids, gastritis and low acidity. Sorbic acid is detrimental to staphylococcus aureus and dysenteric bacillus. Therefore, rowan berries are often used as food preservatives or for water purification. Our ancestors also knew that if you throw a rowan branch into a bucket of water, it will acquire a pleasant taste and will not deteriorate for a long time.
Rowan - a tree, the photo of which you can see on this page, has one more rather interesting property. Its berries are able to alleviate the patient's condition during oxygen starvation. Our ancestors used the juice and decoctions of the fruit of this tree to treat acnethe result of a malfunction of the oven. In addition, the juice of rowan berries increases blood clotting and reduces the content of cholesterol in it. It also has choleretic and diuretic properties.
Panicles of this plant, as already mentioned, are white. Rowan (for a tree, or rather its flowers, pink color is sometimes also characteristic) is valued not only for the medicinal properties of the fruit. For medical purposes, the flowers of this plant of both shades are also used. For example, they are very good at helping with various kinds of female ailments and coughs.
For what diseases are berries used
The red rowan tree produces fruits used as a medicine for the following ailments:
- sclerosis and cardiosclerosis;
- hemorrhoids;
- goiter;
- heavy periods (to increase hemoglobin in the blood);
- as a contraceptive.
Of course, mountain ash also has contraindications. You can not take drugs based on its fruits with increased blood clotting and thrombosis. It is also not recommended to use such drugs for gastritis with high acidity, gastric or duodenal ulcers.
Rowan in cosmetics
Sorbus ash is a tree whose fruits have been used for cosmetic purposes since ancient Greece. Berry infusions were used for washing, as a hair rinse, as hand baths, etc. Modern cosmetologists advise using forhealing of the skin of the face gruel prepared from the pulp of berries. For aging oily skin, as a rejuvenating agent, you can use a mask of berry juice mixed with whipped egg white.
Rowan (the tree, the photo of which is given just below), or rather its fruits, are often used for weight loss. To do this, you just need to brew the berries like tea (20 pieces per glass of boiling water). You can also prepare a decoction of crushed fruits mixed with thin twigs. Since mountain ash binds carbohydrates in the body, even a sweet remedy can be cooked from its berries for weight loss. To do this, take half a kilo of sugar per kilogram of fruit. Take this jam one tablespoon a day.
Ritual meaning of mountain ash
Once upon a time, in pre-Christian Russia, the red rowan tree also had a sacred ritual meaning. For example, in the Central regions it was used during wedding ceremonies. The newlyweds' shoes were covered with its leaves, and the berries were put in their pockets. This was done in order to protect the future family from the intrigues of sorcerers and witches. For the same purpose, rowan trees were planted near the house. Until now, this tree is considered a symbol of family happiness. In the Middle Ages in Russia, mountain ash was used to expel the spirits of illness. The sick were placed on its branches for healing.
The mountain ash tree, described above, is a plant about which all sorts of legends are composed. For example, there is a very interesting legend explaining the bitterness of its fruits. In ancient times, it was believed that this tree was created by himself. Satan from Eve's tears, shed by her when she was expelled from paradise. He did this as a sign of his triumph over humanity. However, the Creator, seeing that the leaves of this tree resembled a cross, took it from the garden of the devil. Of course, Satan did not like this, and for a long time he tried to steal and destroy the mountain ash. However, all he succeeded in was making her berries bitter. But at the same time, a divine sign also appeared on them - a five-pointed stigma in the form of the Star of Bethlehem. Until now, this "mark" on the fruits of mountain ash is considered a symbol of the imminent second coming.
Not only legends, but also poems and proverbs were written about this wonderful tree. By the way, not only in antiquity. The songs of Yevgeny Rodygin "Oh, Curly Rowan" and Irina Ponarovskaya "Rowan Beads", we think, are well known to everyone in our country.
Folk signs associated with mountain ash
There are several signs associated with this tree:
- If the mountain ash tree, the description of the flowers of which is given above, is strewn with white or pinkish panicles in spring, it means that oats and flax will be born this year.
- A high harvest of the wild variety in the forest portends a rainy autumn, a low one, respectively, dry.
- If the leaves on the mountain ash turned yellow very early, it means that autumn will be early and winter will be cold.
Harvesting mountain ash
The answer to the question of whether rowan is a shrub or a tree, you now know. However, whatever the variety of this plant, you can collect its fruits from the moment of ripening until late frosts. It is most convenient to cut the brushes with a sharp knife or secateurs. Already on the ground, they are cleaned of stalks and various kinds of debris.
The berries are dried in the oven at a temperature of about 70 degrees. You can also do this outdoors, of course, not in rainy weather. Rowan berries retain their healing properties for two years. In winter, they can be brewed as tea or ground in a coffee grinder and added as a seasoning to various dishes. In addition, jam is made from chokeberry, and delicious marmalade is made from red chokeberry.
The mountain ash tree is unusually beautiful in autumn because of the bright red or red-orange berries. However, its fruits do not have a very pleasant bitter taste. But after the first frost, it disappears. Therefore, it is best to harvest the fruits of this tree in late October or early November. Bitterness in berries is caused by a special substance amygdalin. By the way, it will be said that it cannot be considered safe. In the stomach, it decomposes to hydrocyanic acid. Therefore, eating too many bitter rowan berries is not recommended.
Interesting facts
Healing and decorative properties are not the only advantages of this wonderful tree. Very high quality carpentry products are made from rowan wood. Its distinctive properties are hardness and elasticity. In ancient times, mainly spinning wheels and spindles were made from this wood. In addition, rowan can serve as a mother plant for other members of its family, for example, pears andquince.
One of the most interesting varieties of mountain ash is considered large-fruited (Sorbus domestica). It was bred in the Crimea by the Crimean Tatars. The fruits of this variety can be pear-shaped or round. At the same time, they reach a diameter of about 3.5 cm and a weight of 20 g. Their taste is simply wonderful. However, this variety requires shelter for the winter and is not nearly as unpretentious as the common varieties. In some regions, it is believed that the mountain ash is a widow's tree. If you cut it down, there will be a dead person in the house.
At the beginning of the 20th century, mountain ash was used to make tinctures on an industrial scale. They were made from fruits of an ignorant variety. However, the tincture was called "Nezhinskaya". Why its manufacturers chose this particular name is still unknown. It was believed that this was done in order to confuse competitors. There was also an opinion that such a name was given to the tincture because “unfeminine” sounds more pleasant than “ignorant”. By the way, it was in the village of Nevezhino, Vladimir Region, that rowan varieties with sweet fruits without bitterness were first discovered. Subsequently, they spread throughout Russia.
You can see a beautiful photo of the mountain ash tree a little higher. In the people, its fruits are called berries. However, from a biological point of view, they are nothing more than apples. The presence of rare vitamin P in them puts mountain ash in one of the first places among all medicinal plants. It is his presence in the juice that explains the ability of the fruits of this tree to eliminateirritability, insomnia and general weakness of the body.
Well, we hope we have given a sufficiently detailed description of such an interesting tree as mountain ash. High decorative qualities and unpretentiousness make it more than expedient to use it as a decoration for courtyards of private houses and cottages, as well as city streets.
