Saflax - Sweet clover - Melilotus officinalis - 250 seeds - Sacred magic plant of the Celts and proven in venous disorders. With germ-free and air-permeable coconut fiber substrate for successful cultivation. Worth knowing: The Celts regarded sweet clover as a sacred magic plant and a symbol of life force. Even the Hippocrats praised its healing properties. Today it is one of the most important medicinal plants in the therapy of venous diseases. Sweet clover can grow up to 150 cm high and blooms from June to September in multi-flowered clusters. Incidentally, the positive properties of sweet clover as a bee food plant are undisputed. In addition to the Latin name Melilotus, which means something like honey clover, there are also historical names of the variety, such as bee industry.. Active forces: Melilotus officinalis is recommended internally for complaints such as pain and heaviness in the legs, for night cramps in the calves, itching and swelling. External use is recommended for bruises, sprains and superficial bruises. In homeopathy, the plant is used for headaches and varicose veins. Sweet clover should not be used during pregnancy and during treatment with blood thinners. Tea: Pour 1 - 2 teaspoons of dried leaves with 150 ml of boiling water and strain the brew after ten minutes of steeping. Herbal pillow: The dried upper parts of the shoot with their flowers can be used to make a sleep-promoting herbal pillow. However, this can also trigger headaches in sensitive people. In the kitchen: A salad can be prepared from young stone clover leaves. However, the leaves are not to everyone's taste. Dried and ground to a powder, they are also suitable in small doses as a spice in quark dishes. Natural Place: The original home of the sweet clover is Central Europe and Asia. Cultivation: Direct sowing outdoors is possible from March to April or from September to October. Put the seeds about 0.5 to 1 cm in the soil and cover them accordingly. Keep the soil moist, but not wet. The germination period is two to three weeks. From a size of 5 centimeters, the seedlings can be pricked out and placed in a row spacing of 15 cm and in the row with a spacing of 5 cm. In the year of sowing, the plants develop pile-shaped primary roots that serve as storage organs for wintering. A deep pot should therefore be chosen from the start when keeping in a tub. Place: Sweet clover prefers a warm and sunny location in the garden or on the terrace if kept in a bucket. Care: Sweet clover is moisture tolerant and, after the youth stage, also very drought tolerant. Harvest the flowering herb and dry the collected goods, spread out in thin layers, at a maximum of 35 ° Celsius, because the scent only develops when drying slowly. Thereafter, it is recommended to store them in tightly sealed containers, protected from light and moisture. During Winter: Sweet clover is hardy and biennial. The re-growth after winter takes place from buds on the root head. Bonsai: No Picture credits: Because of technical limitations links are shown as text. 25246-melilotus-officinalis-seed-package-front-german.jpg - AnRo0002 - CC0 - creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/ 15246-melilotus-officinalis-cultivation-instruction-german.jpg - Frank Laue - © Saflax - saflax.de/copyright 15246-02-melilotus-officinalis.jpg - About © : Contact SAFLAX - - saflax.de/copyright 15246-03-melilotus-officinalis.jpg - Otto Wilhelm Thomé - Public Domain - creativecommons.org/licenses/publicdomain/ 15246-04-melilotus-officinalis.jpg - Joanna Boisse - CC-BY-SA-4.0 - creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0 15246-04-melilotus-officinalis.jpg - Joanna Boisse - CC-BY-SA-4.0 - creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0 15246-05-melilotus-officinalis.jpg - Joanna Boisse - CC-BY-SA-4.0 - creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0 15246-06-melilotus-officinalis.jpg - AnRo0002 - CC0 - creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/ 15246-07-melilotus-officinalis.jpg - AnRo0002 - CC0 - creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/