Here is a herb whose crushed leaves smell like cucumbers, and their taste also resembles this popular vegetable. Borage, Borago officinalis, is a biennial plant with beautiful, delicate flowers the color of the sky on a clear day.Belongs to the so-called salad herbs, and its flowers are also used for decoration.
In the Middle Ages, borage was a frequent decorative motif. It was painted in armorials, woven on tapestries and sashes worn by knights, because it was believed that the herb gave courage.Modern research has confirmed the relationship between borage and "courage" - because it acts on the glands that secrete adrenaline. The plant is native to Asia Minor and Syria. It has also grown in the Mediterranean for a long time. The Arabs valued borage very much, establishing its plantations.
When they began their conquest of the Iberian Peninsula, the herb made its way to Spain, and from there it spread throughout Europe. Borage has been popular here since the Middle Ages. It was treated as a vegetable and eaten raw or cooked like spinach. It was called then - boracz, borag, pazyta, garden honey. And the Latin name borago probably comes from the Old Arabic language and means "father of sweat", which suggests the diaphoretic use of this plant.
Medicinal uses of borage
Due to its protective effect, borage is used in the treatment of inflammation, especially chronic catarrh of the upper respiratory tract.The high content of mineral s alts causes the herb to be added to dishes in a s alt-free diet. It also positively influences the processes of digestion, excretion and cleansing of the body, which improves the appearance of the skin.
Borage contains water-soluble and easily digestible silica, which is very important, especially in the diet of elderly people, as this element is less and less in the body with age. And silicon is essential in the processes of counteracting vascular and rheumatic diseases. It also increases the overall immunity of the body.
In contrast, borage seed oil has similar properties to evening primrose oil - it lowers the risk of blockages and blood clots.This is because the gamma-linoleic acid it contains lowers cholesterol and blood pressure. In homeopathy, we recommend fresh herb extracts against liver pain.
Externally, borage is used in the form of compresses in skin diseases (boils, ulcers, eczema, and itching of allergic origin). The herb is harvested during flowering, cutting the shoots not too low so that the plants will have time to grow back and give a second harvest by the fall.Fresh leaves for immediate use can be harvested at any time. When collecting flowers, they are gently torn off the calyx. It is more advantageous to use fresh borage than dried, because it contains more active ingredients.
For longer storage, however, it must be dried at up to 30ºC. Flowers can be frozen or candied - in this form they can be decorated.
Borage in cosmetics
The herb mixed with bran is used in baths to cleanse and soften the skin; restores its firmness and elasticity.
Borage culinary use
Like most herbs, borage is used fresh or dried. Fresh leaves, shoots and flowers are added to, for example, leaf and head lettuce.Leaves and shoots need to be cut finely, then they will lose their roughness, while the flowers are added whole; apart from the taste qualities, they give the dishes an interesting appearance. Young leaves are also added to cucumber salad, cottage cheese, soft cheeses, hard-boiled eggs (with dill, oil or mayonnaise), and dried - to pumpkin, squash, zucchini and cucumber dishes, also for casseroles vegetables and rice.
Borage is popular in German cuisine, where it is added to soups - tomato, potato, mutton dishes, cinnamon, minced meat, herbal sauces, cottage cheese dishes, scrambled eggs, omelette and vegetables, e.g. cucumbers, white beans, eggplants, sauerkraut, kohlrabi. In France, tea is made of fresh borage or herb harvested before flowering and fermented.In Russia, it is added to mushrooms, cold vegetable soups, Ukrainian borscht, it enhances the flavor of stuffing for dumplings, salads, liqueurs and wines.
Borage is a good neighborhood for strawberries as it contributes to their better growth.Planted among tomatoes and roses protects them from pests.It is also a honey herb, so it is worth growing in the bee flight test areas.
Growing and caring for borage
• soil - light, well-drained
• position - sunny, does not like soaking leaves while watering
• reproduction - by sowing in April, directly into the ground in rows every 30-40 cm to a depth of 1-2 cm.Seeds germinate after approx. 2-3 weeks, often unevenly.Under natural conditions, borage breeds self-seeding - it can even be a nuisance weed. Seeds for personal use can be harvested at the beginning of September
