By: Ivana Dragica |
Bear’s garlic - perfect for spring cleansing of the organism |
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All fans of garlic will be thrilled by bear’s garlic - which has a much stronger scent than its tame cousins.
This is a wild plant with a Latin name of Allium ursinum which grows in moist deciduous forests, valleys and along streams up to 1900 meters above sea level.
It is also known under the names ramsons, buckrams, broad-leaved garlic, wood garlic, bear leek or wild garlic.
It was named bear’s garlic because it is a true spring treat for bears that have just woken up from their winter slumber.
Bear’s garlic grows in height from 20 to 40 cm, and in the soil, it has an upright and thin bulb that is white or yellow in color.
If by chance you come across a garlic scent during a walk trough the forest, you have found bear's garlic.
Healing properties of bear’s garlic
Because it grows in the early spring, bear’s garlic is perfect for spring body cleansing.
Today, many give it an advantage over the garlic, because it grows in the wilderness, is not contaminated and has more healing benefits than garlic.
Bear’s garlic contains allicin, essential oils, alisulfide and polysaccharides.
Young leaves contain 20 to 50 mg of vitamin C and carotene.
Eating fresh bear’s garlic binds toxins and fat from the blood, blood vessels, intestines and stomach and expels them out of the body.
In the form of tinctures it absorbs fats and helps to cleanse the body of the high levels of LDL cholesterol.
Bear’s garlic is understated, but effective remedy for lowering high blood pressure.
Using this plant allows liver to get a rest from drugs and stabilizes blood pressure for two to three months.
Medicinal parts of the plant are young spring leaves that are harvested in April and May and underground bulbs that are collected in the summer and autumn months.
You can dig up the little plants and plant them in your garden, and they do not require any additional care at all.
Cures geriatric problems
Bear’s garlic is ideal for older people because it improves bowel function, in treatment of acute and chronic diarrhea, lazy bowel syndrome and hard stool.
Bear’s garlic wine is an extremely healing agent for the elderly suffering from persistent pulmonary catarrh and related breathing problems.
It can even cure serious forms of pulmonary catarrh and breathing problems related with it.
It is also recommended in cases of pulmonary tuberculosis and dropsy, from which older people often suffer. Furthermore, it has beneficial effects on the urinary system.
Bear’s garlic can be used as a bath for treating eczema, dermatitis, hematomas and wounds. It is not recommended for pregnant women and nursing mothers.
The healing properties of bear’s garlic:
- improves memory
- helps with pulmonary catarrh and other respiratory ailments
- prevents vascular diseases
- has beneficial effects on the stomach and intestines
- removes parasites
- helps with insomnia and dizziness
- purifies the body
- improves the skin appearance
- helps with osteoporosis and arthritis.
Be careful when picking bear’s garlic, because it has toxic counterparts: crocus, hellebore and lily of the valley. They look similar, but their scent is very different.
Crocus grows in the meadows only in the fall, and the lily of the valley has a similar habitat, but it has different and thicker leaves.
If you are unsure, consult with an experienced person.
Bear’s garlic in cuisine
You can use it for making salads, soups, sauces, pesto, or use it as a seasoning for cheese and spreads.
You can find it in fresh form on some markets, and in health food stores you can buy various food items made of bear’s garlic.
It is best to eat it fresh and it is not advisable to dry it because then it loses its medicinal properties. You can freeze it, but it is best to put it into oil if you plan to preserve it for prolonged periods of time.
You can store bear’s garlic in your refrigerator for 10 days.
Bear’s garlic tincture
Fill the bottle up to the neck with finely chopped bear’s garlic leaves or bulbs, cover them with a 40 percent home-made brandy and leave the mixture in the sun for at least three weeks.
Four times a day, drink ten to fifteen drops of tincture mixed with a little water.
Bear’s garlic leaf tincture is made in the spring, when it is its season. Bulb tincture is made in the fall, because that is the period when bulbs contain the most medicinal ingredients.
Bear’s garlic pesto
Ingredients:
- 100 g of bear’s garlic
- 30 ml of olive oil
- 20 g of parmesan
- 20 g of nuts
- salt and pepper
Preparation:
Mix all ingredients and blend them with a stick mixer. Pesto can be used for making pasta, soup, as an addition to sauces or separately spread on a slice of fresh bread.
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