The first spring flowers delight a heart tired from winter cold. Lilies of the valley come to us together with the spring, which has already fully taken over and has melted the snow with its breath. The description of a lily of the valley flower cannot be embellished for a simple reason - it is perfect! The persistent aroma of spring lily of the valley is able to turn anyone's head in the truest sense of the word.
Description of Lily of the Valley Flower
May lily of the valley (Convallaria majalis) - a herbaceous plant. It does not have woody resistant stems. Lily of the valley has soft stems, which die together with leaves after the end of the growing season.
This miracle of nature cannot but arouse admiration. Elegant little bells with a wonderful unique aroma are the flowers of a forest handsome. The description of the lily of the valley flower as fragile and defenseless does not quite correspond to the truth. At first glance, the lily of the valley really seems very gentle and weak, but in fact it is strong, able to capture large areas, and easily tolerates temperature changes and sudden changes in weather.
Description of a flower of a lily of the valley will not take much time. There is probably not a single person who would not know what this flower looks like. On a one-sided racemose, from 6 to 20 small bells of white or pale pink color are densely located. Although European gardeners have long been able to grow purple-red with large double flowers and leaves in a yellow striped lily of the valley. Flowering begins in May and lasts for 20 to 25 days.
After the flowers bloom, tiny berries form on the stalk, in autumn they turn red. Birds and rodents love to feast on these berries.
The leaves of the lily of the valley are large and beautiful, even without flowers serve as a decoration of the flower garden. They are quite wide and similar to the ears of a fallow deer, because of this similarity, the plant got its name "lily of the valley", which in Stavropol means "ear of a fallow deer." Although this is not the only version of the origin of the name "lily of the valley." Incense during burning gives off a smell very similar to the fragrant aroma of lily of the valley, which justifies the consonance of both names.
Lily of the valley species
Botanists have identified only one genus of lily of the valley, but the variety of subspecies is striking in its beauty. Plants belonging to different subspecies differ markedly from each other. Thanks to the work of breeders, varieties with different colors and sizes of flowers are bred today.
In the territory of the former Soviet Union, three species of lily of the valley are found:
• Lily of the valley Keyskey.
• Lily of the valley Transcaucasian.
• May lily of the valley.
All of these types are used to treat diseases. The most common are the flowers of May lily of the valley. It got its name in 1737, at the same time the description of this plant was first published. Translated from Latin May lily of the valley means "lily of the valleys."
Area
Lily of the valley is listed in the Red Book due to a sharp reduction in the area of its distribution. This spring flower is considered aggressive and can create entire colonies of fragrant bells, but by tearing just one flower, you can lime a whole colony. If you look superficially, you get the impression that lilies of the valley grow everywhere, but in fact the plant inexorably disappears. Deforestation and the construction of settlements in their place led to such a deplorable situation. The illiterate collection of lily of the valley flowers as a medicinal raw material also brought significant damage to forest beauties. Flower lovers, planting lilies of the valley on their plots, receive in the spring the gentle beauty of these plants and at the same time save the endangered species.
Where on your site to "settle" the lily of the valley
White lily of the valley is a perennial plant, quite unpretentious, but if you decide to “settle” such flowers in your garden, then you need to choose a place that is hidden from the sun. Having settled in the shade, the lily of the valley will delight the owners of the site with its beauty for decades. When chilled, the plant will bloom for five weeks.
Lily of the valley due to the underground stems-roots forms dense colonies. Therefore, in order to avoid unwanted growth, the landing site must be surrounded by a solid edging, using stones or bricks half buried in the ground.
Lilies of the valley are used as decoration for flower beds and alpine slides in containers or flowerpots. Thus, they can be easily moved to shaded places and replaced with other plants after flowering, although in addition to beautiful flowers, the lily of the valley will decorate the flower garden with its equally attractive leaves, which serve as an excellent base background for high flowers.
Growing
Lily of the valley can live in one place for about 10 years, as mentioned earlier, this plant is unpretentious, it feels great in any cool place. Land on a flowerbed for lilies of the valley should be rich in organic matter. Before planting the plant, the soil must be dug to a depth of 25 cm and fertilized with rotted manure or peat-humus compost (2 kg per 1 sq. M). Lilies of the valley are planted in early spring and autumn, adhering to the main rule - reinforced watering immediately after planting.
Aromatic beauties breed by seeds and division of rhizomes. When dividing the roots, segments of 6-8 cm are taken, while there should be several apical buds on them. When planting processes, it is necessary to ensure that the roots do not bend, and the shoots are above the surface at a height of no more than 2 cm. Planting must be linearly with a distance of 8-10 cm.
Using the seed method of reproduction, it is necessary to take into account the fact that the first year the seedling is hiding underground. In the second spring, the plant shows its first leaf, which is tightly twisted and resembles a spear peeking from under the ground. As it grows, the lily of the valley leaf unfolds, giving way to a second. The resulting leaves accumulate water in the funnel created by them, which nourishes the roots. In the second autumn, the plant already has a plump rhizome, from which new shoots grow.
Care
It’s easy to care for lilies of the valley, the main thing is to water the drought in the summer. The plant is not afraid of winter cold, so there is no need to wrap it from frost. With the onset of spring, a flower bed with lilies of the valley needs to be cleaned of dead leaves. New shoots grow themselves.
Lily of the valley is a poisonous plant, in contact with it, you must adhere to safety rules so as not to harm your health.
Healing properties
Lily of the valley flowers can be either poison or medicine. To use the plant for health benefits, you need to know all its healing properties, this handsome man has a lot of them.
Officially, medicinal lily of the valley entered medicine only in 1861, when its healing power was used in the treatment of S. P. Botkin.
This medicinal plant is appreciated for its chemical composition, in which substances such as sugars and cardiac glycosides are present. They enhance the healing power of lily of the valley. In traditional medicine, it is used to treat the nervous system, arrhythmias, and cardiovascular diseases. Fever can be eliminated with powder from the root of the lily of the valley. Flowers and leaves are used to relieve physical stress and to treat neurosis. For rheumatism, broth baths are recommended.
In modern medicine, drugs based on lily of the valley are successfully used for headaches, epilepsy, dropsy.
Lily of the valley is undoubtedly a useful plant, but if you use it thoughtlessly, you can harm yourself. Medications from lily of the valley are forbidden to be used for a diseased liver and kidneys, and lily of the valley treatment is also contraindicated for people suffering from diseases of the gastrointestinal tract. It is recommended to consult a doctor before starting treatment with this plant, and in no case exceed the dosage. It must be remembered that all parts of the lily of the valley are poisonous.
