Willow Magic

by Ilene Sternberg

http://www.bluestem.ca/willow-article1.htm In the fifth century B.C., the Greek physician, Hippocrates, wrote that chewing bark of a willow tree could relieve pain and fever. (No wonder s uirrels don!t get headaches." In #$%&, the effective ingredient, salicin, was successfully isolated fro' willow bark. (oward the end of the #&th century, (he Bayer Co'pany in Ger'any trade'arked a stable for' of acetylsalicylic acid, calling it )aspirin,* the )a* fro' acetyl, )spir* fro' +piraea (the salicin they used ca'e fro' 'eadowsweet, +piraea ul'aria, subse uently rena'ed ,ilpendula ul'aria", and )in,* a co''on ending in drug no'enclature. In the %-th century, over one trillion aspirin, the first 'edicine created by techni ues of 'odern che'istry, were consu'ed globally to regulate blood vessel elasticity, reduce fevers and aches, prevent cardiovascular ail'ents, affect blood clotting, or ease infla''ation. Native .'ericans and early settlers used willow bark for toothaches and applied it to the source of other pains. But they also recogni/ed that you can actually grow a whole new tree by taking a ste' and sticking it in 'oist soil. (he hor'ones in willows cause rapid rooting, and they discovered these sa'e hor'ones could induce rooting in other plants, too. 0illow water (o harness this power, they 'ade a tonic called )willow water* by collecting willow twigs, tri''ing the leaves, i''ersing the ste's in a pail of water, and pouring the water on newly planted trees, shrubs, and bedding plants. Co''ercial rooting preparations contain a synthetic for' of indolebutyric acid (IB." and growing tips of willows contain high concentrations of IB., depending on the uantity used and length of ti'e you soak the'. .ny willow (+ali1" tree or shrub species will work. .nother discovery2 In the 3anuary, %--4 issue of (he .vant Gardener, a 'onthly newsletter to which you can subscribe for 5%46year at Horticultural 7ata 8rocessors, Bo1 4$&, New 9ork, N.9. #--%$, editor (ho'as 8owell notes that gardeners reported all sorts of plants growing re'arkably better when given regular doses of tiny a'ounts of aspirin (# part to #-,--- parts water: larger doses actually proved to1ic",* and that (he .gricultural ;esearch +ervice is investigating the reasons behind aspirin!s beneficial effects. 8lants 'ake salicylic acid to trigger natural defenses against bacteria, fungi, and viruses. .spirin thus is an activator of <+yste'ic .c uired ;esistance! (+.;". However, plants often don!t produce the acid uickly enough to prevent in=ury when attacked by a 'icrobe. +praying aspirin on the plants speeds up the +.; response. (ests have shown this works on 'any crops, producing better plants using less pesticide. )It also 'akes it possible to successfully grow 'any fine heirloo' varieties which were discarded because they lacked disease resistance.* 8owell says.

+cientists first encountered the +.; pheno'enon in the #&>-s. .fter encountering a pathogen, plants use salicylic acid as a key regulator of +.; and e1pression of defense genes. )?nly recently have co'panies begun 'arketing salicylic acid and si'ilar co'pounds as a way to activate +.; in crops@to'ato, spinach, lettuce, and tobacco a'ong the',* according to 8owell. ).;+ scientists are studying plants! defenses, such as anti'icrobial 'aterials like the protein chitinase which degrades the cell walls of fungi, and nuclease en/y'es which break up the ribonucleic acid of viruses. (hey!re also testing aspirin and other +.; activators which could be effective against nonA'icrobial pests such as aphids and rootAknot ne'atodes,* 8owell says. )(his 'ay be the 'ost i'portant research of the century. +ti'ulating +.; defenses with aspirin or other activator co'pounds could result in increased food production and the eli'ination of synthetic pesticides.* He reco''ends we e1peri'ent by spraying so'e plants with a #2#-,--- solution (> aspirins dissolved in 4 gallons of water", leaving other plants unsprayed. (ests have shown that the +.; activation lasts for weeks to 'onths. (+ort of ho'eopathic heart attack prevention for your plants." (hings to do2 Bake your own willow water2 Casily root a/aleas, lilacs, su''ersweets (Clethra spp." and roses by gathering about two cups of pencilAthin willow branches cut to #A> inch lengths. +teep twigs in a halfAgallon of boiling water overnight. ;efrigerated li uid kept in a =ar with a tightAfitting lid will re'ain effective up to two 'onths. (Dabel =ar so you won!t confuse it with your ho'e'ade 'oonshine." ?vernight, soak cuttings you wish to root. ?r water soil into which you have planted your cuttings with the willow water. (wo applications should be sufficient. +o'e cuttings root directly in a =ar of willow water. Bake a fresh batch for each use. 9ou can also use lukewar' water and let twigs soak for %4A4$ hours. Ilene +ternberg is a freelance writer and a'ateur gardener with a certificate of 'erit in orna'ental plants fro' Dongwood Gardens, 8ennsylvania and a for'er garden guide at 0interthur in 7elaware.

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Apa Salcie
n secolul al cincilea, medicul grec, Hipocrate, a scris c scoara mestecat de salcie ar putea calma durerea si febra. (Nu e de mirare c veveriele nu au dureri de cap.) n 182 , ingredientul eficiente, salicin, a fost i!olat cu succes din scoara de salcie. "pre sf#r$itul secolului al 1 %lea, firma &a'er din (ermania, )nregistra o form stabil de acid acetilsalicilic, numindu%l *aspirina*, *o* de la acetil, *spir* din "piraea (salicin le%au folosit au venit de la cretusca, "piraea ulmaria , redenumit ulterior +ilpendula ulmaria), $i *)n,* un final comun )n nomenclatorul de droguri. n secolul 2,, peste un trilion de aspirine, primul medicament creat prin te-nici moderne de c-imie, au fost consumate la nivel global pentru a reglementa elasticitatea vaselor de s#nge, reduce febra si dureri, pentru a preveni boli cardiovasculare, afectea! coagularea s#ngelui, sau u$ura inflamaia. Nativii americani $i primii coloni$ti au folosit scoara de salcie pentru dureri de dini si au aplicat%o la sursa de alte dureri. .ar ei, de asemenea, au recunoscut c poate cre$te de fapt, un arbore )ntreg nou dac luau o tulpin $i o lipeau )n sol umed. Hormonii din slcii cau!a rapid a )nrdcinrii, $i au descoperit c ace$ti -ormoni ar putea induce de asemenea )nrdcinarea )n alte plante.

Salcie de ap /entru a valorifica aceast putere, au fcut un tonic numit *apa salcie*, prin colectarea de nuiele de salcie, tunderea frun!ele, tulpinile cufundarea )ntr%o gleat de ap, $i turnarea de ap pe copaci nou plantate, arbu$ti, plante $i paturi de )nrdcinare. /reparate comerciale de )nrdcinare conin o forma sintetic de acid indolebut'ric (0&1) $i diferite tipuri de slcii aflate )n cre$tere conin concentraii mari de 0&1, )n funcie de cantitatea utili!at $i de durata de timp de absorbie. 2rice specii de salcie ("ali3) arbore sau arbust va funciona. 2 alta descoperire4 n ianuarie, 2,,5 emisiunea de (ardener 1vant, un buletin informativ lunar la care v putei abona pentru 6 257an la /rocesoare -orticole de date, &o3 58 , Ne8 9or:, N9 1,,28, editor ;-omas /o8ell ia act de faptul c grdinari au raportat tot felul de plantele care cresc e3trem de bine atunci c#nd se administrea! do!e regulate de cantiti mici de aspirina (1 parte la 1,.,,, de pri de ap< do!e mai mari de fapt, s% au dovedit to3ice), *$i c "erviciul de =ercetare 1gricol investig-ea! motivele care stau la ba!a efectelor benefice ale aspirinei. /lantele fac acid salicilic pentru a declan$a sistemul natural de aprare )mpotriva bacteriilor, ciupercilor $i viru$ilor. 1spirina este, astfel, un activator de *re!istene sistemice dob#ndite* ("1>). =u toate acestea, plantele de multe ori nu produc acidul suficient de repede pentru a preveni rnirea )n momentul atacrii de un microb. /ulveri!area de aspirina asupra plantelor accelerea! rspunsul "1>. ;estele au

artat c aceste lucrri pe multe culturi, produc plante mai bune folosind mai puin pesticid. *.e asemenea, este posibil s creasc cu succes mai multe soiuri tradiionale frumoase, care au fost respinse, deoarece nu aveau re!isten la boli.*, "pune /o8ell. 2amenii de $tiin au )nt#lnit prima data fenomenul "1> )n 1 ?,. .up o )nt#lnire cu un agent patogen, plantele folosesc acid salicilic ca un regulator c-eie al "1> $i ca e3presie a genelor de aprare. *.oar de cur#nd au )nceput companiile de mar:eting cu acid salicilic $i compu$i similari, ca o modalitate de a activa "1> )n culturile de ro$ii, spanac, salata verde, $i tutun la r#ndul lor*, potrivit lui /o8ell. *2amenii de $tiin 1>" studia! de aprarea la plante*, cum ar fi materialele antimicrobiene, cum ar fi c-itinase de proteine, care s degrade!e pereii celulelor de ciuperci, $i en!imele care descompun p#n $i nuclea!a de acid ribonucleic de la viru$i. "unt de testare, de asemenea, aspirin precum $i ali activatori "1>, care ar putea fi eficace )mpotriva duntorilor non%microbieni, cum ar fi afidele $i nemato!ii de rdcin% noduri *, /o8ell spune. *1cest lucru poate fi cercetarea cea mai important a secolului. "timularea de aprare "1> cu compu$i activatori de tipul aspirinei sau ali activatori ar putea duce la cre$terea produciei alimentare $i eliminarea pesticidelor sintetice. * @l ne recomand un e3periment prin pulveri!area unor plante cu o soluie de 141,,,,, (? aspirine di!olvat )n 5 litri de ap), ls#nd alte plante netratate. ;estele au artat c activarea "1> durea! sptm#ni sau luni. (An fel de prevenire -omeopat a atacului de cord, pentru plantele dvs.) Bucruri de fcut4 1sigurai%v propriul preparat de ap salcie4 nrdcinea! u$or a!alee, liliac, summers8eets (=let-ra spp.). $i trandafiri prin colectarea de apro3imativ doua ce$ti de ramuri de salcie subiri c#t un creion, tiate la lungimi de ?%C cm. Nuiele bgate )ntr%o cantitate de 2 litri de apa clocotita $i inute peste noapte. Bic-id refrigerat pstrate )ntr%un borcan cu un capac etan$ va rm#ne )n vigoare p#n la dou luni. (etic-etai%l, astfel )nc#t s nu%l confundai cu celelalte borcane din cas.) /este noapte, bgai buta$ii care dorii s%i )nrdcinai, apoi turnai apa slcie )n solul )n care ai plantat buta$i dvs. .ou aplicri ar trebui s fie suficiente. Anii buta$i fac rdcin direct )ntr%un borcan cu ap salcie. +acei un lot nou pentru fiecare utili!are. /utei folosi, de asemenea, ap cldu $i lsai nuielele la macerat pentru 25% 58 de ore. 0lene "ternberg este un scriitor independent $i grdinar amator, cu un certificat de merit )n plante ornamentale din Bong8ood (ardens, /enns'lvania $i un fost g-id de grdin la Dintert-ur, )n .ela8are.