Skin care - Vedangam Ayurveda

March 1 2024

Gwarpatha

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A perennial erect, succulent shrub found almost throughout the area. It has multiple tuberous roots. Stem is very small and leaves are pale green, fleshy, radical, sessile, tapering to a blunt point with horny prickles at the margins. Yellow or orange coloured cylindrical flowers on leafless scapes appear in December to February.

Part used: Juice and Leaf pulp

Usage: Fresh juice of leaves is cooling, cathartic and treats dermatitis, burns and other skin problems. It is a hair conditioner and additive in skin creams. A yellowish coloured juice from the cut leaves is concentrated to make commercial drug “aloes”. The juice of roasted leaves is valuable in colds, coughs, sciatica, rheumatism and stomach disorders. Aloe is externally applied on inflamed painful parts of the body. Pulp of leaves is applied externally to expel the guinea worms. It also cures jaundice, disturbed menstruation, earache, eye diseases, liver and spleen problems. Poultice of pulp tied over boils and tumour hastens suppuration. A tooth paste containing the Aloe gel has been prepared for preventing gingivitis and other bacterial infections. Leaves are eaten as vegetable
and as pickle.

Agrotechniques : Propagated through Root suckers in July August, preferably in sandy soil. Plant to plant distance should be 50x5O cm and row to row, 75-100 cm. The field should be ploughed and farm yard manure added at 2.S t/ha. Irrigation increases growth of plant. In rainfed areas, growth is slow. Weeding after one month. After one year of plantation leaves can be cut and used as such.

February 29 2024

NIMBU

hello Blog Antioxidants, Botanical medicine, Citric acid, Citrus fruit, Culinary uses, Detoxification, Digestive aid, Essential oil, Folk medicine, Herbal medicine, Home remedies, Immune booster, Lemon plant, Medicinal properties, Natural health, Natural remedy, Nimbu, Skin care, Traditional healing, Vitamin C 0

CLIMATE: Lemons grow best between a temperature range of 13°C to 37°C. High humidity Favours spread of many diseases and frost is highly injurious to these plants. Hot wind during summer results in desiccation and drop of flowers and developing fruits.

SOIL: Lemons can grow in a wide range of soils, viz., from sandy loam or alluvial soils to clay loam or deep clay loam or in lateritic/acidic soils. The plant flourish well in light soils with good drainage properties and in deep soils with pH range of 5.5 to 7.5.

PROPOGATION AND PLANTATION: The best propagating technique for lemons is through rootstocks. For grafting the budwoods into the rootstocks, the selection shall be from disease free mother plants only.
For preparation of the seedlings, primary nursery beds may be prepared on light fertile soils. Secondary nursery seedlings may be raised in polythene bag and replanted after attaining the height of about 30-40 cm, which generally takes one year.

The best season for planting is June to August. 1m3 pits at a distance of 6 x 6 m should be dug for plantation. 15-20 kg of farmyard manure and 500 g of super phosphate needs to be applied in pits while planting per ha land.

PLANT PROTECTION: The plants shall be grown without chemical fertilizers and use of pesticides. Organic manure and pesticide are recommended.
IRRIGATION: Lemon plants require critical stage watering in the initial year. It reduces fruit drop and increases the fruit size. Diseases like root rot and collar rot occur in flooded conditions. Light irrigation with high frequency is beneficial. Irrigation water containing more than 1000 ppm salts is injurious.

HARVESTING: Lemons take 150-160 days for maturity, hence the fruits may be harvested 2-3 times in a year from one lemon tree.

USES

The lemon fruit is rich in Vitamin C which helps the body to fight off infections, to boost up immunity, to improve digestion, removes constipation and prevents or treat scurvy, soar throats, heavy weight, rheumatic conditions etc. It also has many skins caring properties.
The fruits can be eaten raw, and are frequently used in cooking, aromatherapy. The dried fruit rind is used as an insect repellent in the clothes cupboard, the juice is used for polishing metals, as wells as to remove ink stains for bleaching.