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MEDICAL_AYURVEDIC PLANTS

In India, many forms of alternative medicines are available for those who do not want conventional medicine or who cannot be helped by conventional medicine. Ayurveda and Kabiraji (herbal medicine) are two important forms of alternative medicine that is widely available in India. Ayurvedic form of medicine is believed to be existent in India for thousands of years. It employs various techniques and things to provide healing or relief to the ailing patients. One of the things that ayurveda uses is medications of plant origin. Many herbs and spices used in Indian cooking, such as onion, garlic, ginger, turmeric, clove, cardamom, cinnamon, cumin, coriander, fenugreek, fennel, ajowan (ajwain), anise, amchur, bay leaf, hing (asafoetida) etc., are known to have medicinal properties. Ayurvedic medicine uses all of these either in diet or as medicine. Besides, the many medicinal plants that are found in India (and elsewhere) are routinely used by the practitioners of Ayurveda. In India over 7,000 medicinal plant species are known to exist. Some of these medicinal plants have been featured on Indian postage stamps. The first set of stamps showing medicinal plants came out in 1997. The set had four stamps showing four different medicinal plants - Tulsi (Ocimum sanctum), Haridra (Curcuma longa), Sarpagandha (Rauvolfia serpentina), and Ghritkumari (Aloe barbadensis).

Then in the year 2003, The Indian Posts and Telegraph Department issued another set of stamps showing four more medicinal plants. They are Amla (Emblica officinallis), Ashwagandha (Withania somnifera), Brahmi (Bacopa monnieri), and Guggulu (Commiphora wightii).

A very common and well known medicinal plant of India is Neem or Margosa (Azadirachta indica). Neem is being used by Ayurvedic practioners in India for thousands of years for such a wide range of ailments that in Sanskrit it is often called sarva roga nibarak ("healer of all ailments"). In many tropical countries, Neem is often referred to as "the village pharmacy." Practically, every part of the Neem tree (seeds, leaves, flowers and bark) are used in Ayurvedic medicine. In Indian sub-continent, poor villagers use the chewed Neem twig to brush their teeth. The Neem oil is used to prepare cosmetics like soaps, shampoos, balms, creams, toothpastes etc. Ayurveda uses Neem in various forms to treat skin ailments to diabetes to cancer and everything in between. In fact, the medicinal properties of Neem is so powerful and so diversified that it is being researched by modern scientists not only in India but all over the world including USA. A more detailed description of Neem as a medicinal plant of India is beyond the scope of this page. Interested people will find hundreds of references about Neem in the Internet. Neem is shown in the following Indian stamp issued in 1998. Tourists and patients seeking ayurvedic treatment in India will find Ayurvedic Centers in various parts of the country. Ayurvedic massages and ayurvedic relaxation and rejuvenation techniques can be enjoyed by toursits, even if they are on a short visit only, in many of these centers and also in some local hotels. Here are some links to help you find one of these ayurvedic treatment centers. Ayurveda Centre, India Ayurveda Center, Kerala Indus Valley Ayurvedic Centre, Mysore Ayurveda & Yoga Retreat, Coonoor Ayurveda Resort India, Bangalore Ayurvedic Natural Health Centre, Goa Cochin Ayurvedic Center, New Delhi India Travel Trendz - Ayurveda Center India Ayurvedic Center, Pune The Taj Ayurveda Centre, Kumarakom, Kerala If you really want to know more about Indian medicinal plants, here are some good references: Medicinal Plants of India FRLHT's Encyclopedia of Indian Medicinal Plants ENVIS Centre on Medicinal Plants - Focus on 960 Species of Traded Medicinal Plants of India and Medicinal Plants of Conservation Concern. If you want to know more about ayurveda or ayurvedic treatment, the following reference will give you authentic information and answer all your questions about ayurveda: What is Ayurvedic Medicine? A detailed description of Indian and other exotic herbs and spices, including their medicinal properties, can be found in The Epicentre. Health benefits of common Indian herbs and spices can be found here. It is written in layman's language. No complicated medical terms!

Wild Flowers

Those that grow in the wild or on their own, without cultivation are called wildflowers. Wildflowers indigenous to the continent are called "natives". Others, which may be quite common, but not indigenous, have been introduced from some other part of the world and are referred to as "naturalized." Both types share one common distinction: They are equipped to grow on their own in nature. Any flowering plant growing without deliberate human aid. Today`s wildflower seed mixtures and the fascination with wildflower gardening is directly descended from early English gardening innovators who recognized the flowers of the wild as perhaps the most wonderful and beautiful flowers of them all. Wild flowers are the source of all cultivated garden varieties of flowers. Although most wild flowers are native to the region in which they occur, some are the descendants of flowering plants introduced from other lands.

Types of Wild flowers
Annual Wildflowers: These are the species that grow and bloom quickly from seed, and this group includes some of the most popular wildflowers with gardeners. Annuals have long blooming seasons, usually about two months. First frost cuts down the annuals, ending their one-season life cycle. If they "come back" the following year, it is due to seeds produced from fading flowers and dropped during the season before. Some gardeners replant the wild annuals in their meadows each year to refresh full bloom.




Perennial Wildflowers: These are the highly valued species that return each year from expanding clumps, and contribute to building a permanent wildflower garden or meadow. From seed, most perennials do not bloom until they have lived through at least one growing season and a winter. During their first year, they make small top growth while developing deep root systems. This allows the plant to survive its first winter, and then develop into a full size blooming plant in its second season. Most perennials bloom for approximately two weeks each year. If they are winter lasting in their growing region, most are quite permanent, and can live and expand for decades. A few are "short-lived" in some areas, and may return only 3 to 5 years.




Biennial Wildflowers: These wildflowers live out two-year life cycles from seed, blooming only during their second season. They also reseed heavily, and are usually quite permanent in meadows. Most meadow wildflowers require full sun. After all, most wildflower displays are seen in nature in wide-open places. However, there are exceptions, even, some which demand shade. Most wildflowers on this list absolutely require full sun. A few of these enjoy some shade, but will tolerate full sun.

These Wildflowers were on our land before any human settlement, in other words these Wild plants were put in place by nature, not by humans. One of the strangest and most interesting wildflowers of the southwest mountains is called "ground cone". The casual observer seldom sees the plant, perhaps because it usually pushes out of the soil near or under the branches of shrubs. The aboveground flower stalk is strikingly similar to a small pinecone, and with age looks even more like an old, weather-beaten cone. But you can be sure it is not a pinecone when you see small purplish flowers between the numerous overlapping scales. The fleshy flower stalk arises deep in the ground from a tuberous mass attached to the root of a nearby host shrub.

One of the loveliest wildflowers of sandy soils and sand dunes is "dune primrose". It has very flashy, large white flowers that turn pinkish with age. It often grows in abundance with beautiful pinkish-purple "sand verbena", producing a magnificent wildflower display. Cactus is the famous example of Wildflower. Desert and mountain wildflowers are named after just about every possible thing, including brushes, houses, musical instruments, jewelry and the anatomy of animals.