Alias fairy palm, overlord tree, flame, fire palm, jade hibiscus
The source is Opuntia dillenii (ker-gavl.) Haw., a plant of Opuntia in Cactus family, and the whole plant is used as medicine. It can be harvested in all seasons. Fresh or sliced and dried.
Sexual taste is bitter and cold.
Functions: clearing away heat and toxic materials, removing blood stasis and swelling, invigorating stomach and relieving pain, and relieving cough. Used for gastric and duodenal ulcer, acute dysentery and cough; Externally used to treat mumps, mastitis, carbuncle and furuncle, snake bite, burns and scalds.
Usage and dosage of fresh products1~ 2; Apply appropriate amount of fresh products for external use, and apply them to the affected area.
The sting contains poisonous juice, which can easily cause allergic symptoms such as redness, swelling, pain and itching after being stabbed.
Cactus is a big family, with at least two thousand members. Its hometown is in America, especially in Mexico, which is known as the "cactus kingdom" and cactus is praised as "Xiantao" by Mexicans. There is also the habit of taking cactus fruit as fruit in Yunnan minority areas in China. There is a beautiful local legend: a huge Shan Ying flies around looking for a place to live with a snake in its mouth. When Shan Ying landed on a cactus full of yellow flowers, he never wanted to leave. Since then, Mexicans have established their own home-Mexico City in this vibrant place. The design on Mexico's national emblem is based on this legend.
History of cactus
Cactus flowers are native to South America and the continent of North America, and they can be found in Ontario, Canada at 50 degrees north latitude and Santa Cruz, Argentina at 50 degrees south latitude.
According to relevant information, after Columbus 1496 discovered the New World 1540, the cactus was first brought to Europe by sailors from Caribbean islands in South America, and was introduced to Japan 1669. In 1840, the Botanical Dictionary published in England recorded that there were 400 cultivated species of cactus. At that time, cactus flowers had developed from wild introduction to artificial cultivation, and the original wild cactus had been improved into special ornamental flowers through horticultural cultivation.
Characteristics of cacti
Cactus mostly grow in arid environment. Some of them are cylindrical, with a height of 10 meters and a weight of about 20,000 to 30,000 Jin. They stand tall and spectacular. Some prickly cactus, some of which have a life span of more than 500 years, can grow into a giant ball with a diameter of two or three meters. People split its upper part and dig soft and juicy stem meat to quench their thirst. Cactus also has a special ability. In the dry season, it can go into a dormant state without eating or drinking, so as to minimize the consumption of nutrients and water in the body. When the rainy season comes, they wake up very sensitively, and their roots immediately become active, absorbing a lot of water, making the plants grow rapidly and blossom and bear fruit quickly. The roots of some cactus plants turn into carrots, which can store 70 to 80 kilograms of water. Someone once put a cactus in a dry paper bag for more than two years. Although some of it shriveled, one kind of cactus was put into a pot, and after watering, it quickly grew new roots and resumed growth. Cactus is appreciated by human beings for its wonderful structure, amazing drought tolerance and tenacious vitality.
Strange stems and bright flowers. Although the grotesque cactus with sharp spikes makes people daunting, the flowers they produce are particularly delicate and colorful. Like a whip, the Moonlit Queen has large white flowers with a diameter of 50 to 60 centimeters. Known as a "flash in the pan", Epiphyllum is an epiphytic cactus plant native to tropical forests in Central and South America.
Cactus wins with flowers is only one reason why cultivators like it, and thorns and fluff with different shapes and colors are also favored by many viewers. In particular, some bright red and golden thorns and snow-white fluff varieties are even more varied. No wonder some people call them "living handicrafts".
Multiple uses
People often think that cactus is only used as an ornamental plant and has no use, but it is not. The fruits of many cactus plants can not only be eaten raw, but also be made into wine or dried. In the Mexican market, some tender stems of flaky cactus can be sold as vegetables. The wooden trunks of some columnar cacti have always been used as building materials by Indians. Cactus flaked stem nodes can not only be used as livestock feed, but also its viscous juice can be used as a purifying agent to clean water. In some places, some cactus with dense thorns are planted beside the house as barbed fences.
Medicinal use of cactus
Every100g of edible cactus contains about A220 of vitamin A, 0/6mg of vitamin C/kloc-0, 6g of protein/kloc-0, and 2.7mg of iron, which can generate 25kcal-30kcal of heat. In recent years, many countries have begun to treat arteriosclerosis, diabetes and obesity with cactus, and achieved good results. It is said that this is mainly because the vitamins contained in cactus can inhibit the absorption of fat and cholesterol and slow down the intake of glucose.
Cactus as a medicinal herb was first recorded in Compendium of Materia Medica written by Zhao Xuemin in Qing Dynasty. According to the book, cactus is light in taste and cold in nature, and has the functions of promoting qi and blood circulation, clearing away heat and toxic materials, relieving swelling and pain, invigorating spleen and stopping diarrhea, calming the nerves and inducing diuresis, and can be used for treating various diseases both internally and externally. According to the Herbal Prescription written by Liu Shanshu in the Qing Dynasty, cactus is bitter and cold, and it is not difficult to cure five hemorrhoids and diarrhea, and children are bald and rubbed with sesame oil, and insect sores and scabies are washed safely. "Seeking the Original of Materia Medica" contains: cold, eliminating the new, and washing hemorrhoids. Luchuan Materia Medica records the functions of diminishing inflammation, detoxicating, expelling pus and promoting granulation, and is used to treat sores, carbuncle, swelling and cough. "Lingnan Herb Collection Record" records: "Cactus is baked and ironed to treat tuberculosis at the beginning of breast carbuncle. In Minnan Folk Herbs, it is said that a proper amount of fresh whole cactus grass should be applied to the affected area to cure palmar furuncle thoroughly. "Guangxi Chinese Herbal Medicine" contains: cactus stops diarrhea and treats enteritis and diarrhea. "Mindong Materia Medica" contains: it can remove phlegm, relieve intestinal toxicity, strengthen stomach, relieve pain, nourish, relax tendons and activate collaterals, heal wounds and stop bleeding. Treat intestinal wind, hemorrhoids, bleeding, lung carbuncle, gastropathy and traumatic injury. Hunan Pharmacology records that cactus can relieve swelling and pain, promote qi and blood circulation, eliminate dampness, reduce fever and promote granulation. The Picture Book of Medicinal Plants in China records that if the cactus skin is mashed, it can be used to treat fire injury and acute mastitis. Decocting water can cure dysentery. Classified Herbs contains: specializing in treating gas pain, detumescence toxin and malignant sores. "Guizhou folk prescription and medicine collection" contains: cactus is a stomach-strengthening and nourishing agent, which can also replenish spleen, relieve cough and soothe the nerves. Treat heart and stomach gas pain, snake injury and edema. It can be seen from the data records that cactus has a remarkable effect on treating furuncle and swollen poison. The existing reports are used for the adjuvant treatment of nephritis, diabetes, palpitation and insomnia's disease, arteriosclerosis, hypertension, obesity and liver diseases besides dysentery, asthma, stomachache and intestinal hemorrhoid bleeding.
indoor cultivation/culture
Cactus has been widely transplanted from wild to indoor cultivation, which reflects a trend of urban residents to choose potted flower varieties. Because of the limited building area and dry air, it is often difficult to cultivate large or delicate potted flowers. Only some small, drought-tolerant, simple management and high ornamental value varieties are most suitable, and cactus plants just meet these requirements.
For indoor potted cactus, it is advisable to choose small spherical species with many flowers. In cultivation, this kind of plant should not be considered drought-tolerant, and its normal watering and fertilization should be ignored. Indoor cultivation can create a high-temperature, high-humidity closed space with lead wire and plastic film on the windowsill. Most cacti not only grow fast but also have glittering and translucent color under such conditions.
Potting soil requires calcareous sandy soil or sandy loam with good drainage and ventilation. Don't water the newly planted cactus first, just spray it several times a day, then water it a little after half a month, and then water it normally after a month when new roots grow. When the temperature is low in winter, the plants should be watered sparingly when they enter dormancy. After spring, with the increase of temperature, the dormancy of plants is gradually released, and watering can be gradually increased. Apply decomposed thin liquid fertilizer every 10 day to half a month, and do not apply fertilizer in winter.
Under the general residential conditions, it is not difficult to make full use of space, cultivate dozens of pots of various cacti and arrange a small "cactus garden". At the turn of spring and summer, all kinds of cactus on the windowsill bloom with dazzling flowers. After work, people can rest under such conditions, which can not only eliminate fatigue, but also enjoy natural beauty.
National flower of Mexico
Mexico is known as the "cactus country". Cactus is the national flower of Mexico. According to legend, cactus was given to Mexicans by God. Cactus has the reputation of "desert hero flower". There are more than 2,000 species of cacti in the world, about half of which are produced in Mexico. In the harsh environment, no matter how poor the soil is and how dry the weather is, the cactus on the plateau is always full of vitality and soaring straight up, which constitutes a unique feature of Mexico. Don't try to infringe it with any pests and diseases. It has thorns all over its body, tenacious vitality and tenacious character. It doesn't care about water, waterless, hot weather and cold weather, but it can produce bright and beautiful flowers on the emerald palm-shaped stem. This is the symbol of the strong, brave, unyielding and fearful Mexican people. In order to show the elegant demeanour of cactus and carry forward the spirit of cactus, a cactus festival is held in the Milpa Alta area near the Mexican capital in mid-August every year. During the festival, the government seat is decorated with lanterns and colorful decorations, and restaurants are set up around it to display and sell all kinds of cactus food.
Radiation protection of cactus
Cactus grows in the tropics and has a strong absorption effect on strong light. There are visible light and invisible light in the strong light, and the electromagnetic radiation of computers and mobile phones is also invisible light, which is easily absorbed. In addition, its thorns will emit negative ions to neutralize the harmful effects of positive ions. In fact, the acupuncture of cactus placed near the computer monitor can only absorb dust. However, it really likes this kind of radiation, and it will grow well near the radiation source, especially when the sun shines. So small potted cactus can also be absorbed, just a matter of quantity, you can put more pots. In addition, the strongest area of computer radiation is the keyboard, so it is more suitable to put a pot next to the keyboard, but you should be especially careful with your hands. The back of the computer screen is also a strong radiation zone.
Water storage function
There is a layer of wax on the surface of cactus, and the leaves have evolved into needles, which reduces the evaporation of water.
Cactus has evolved fleshy tissues, waxy skin, sharp spines and specialized roots, which enable them to have all the growth advantages in this difficult ecological environment. The trunk acts as a reservoir, which can expand and contract according to the amount of water it stores. The wax protective layer on the skin can keep moisture and reduce water loss. Sharp thorns can prevent thirsty animals from treating it as a free drink.
They usually develop many shallow roots, only a little below the surface, and the root distribution can extend to several feet around them to absorb water as much as possible. When it rains, cactus will send out more roots. When there is drought, its roots will wither and fall off to preserve the water supply. Edwards said: "cactus is more closely combined with water than with the soil where it grows." When growing, the cactus risks losing water to the soil, so it has to separate itself from the soil. "
Alien invasive species
At the end of the Ming Dynasty, cactus was introduced to China, and now it can be seen all over the country. In the coastal areas of South China and the dry-hot valley in southwest China, cactus has defeated the local native plants and become a dominant community, where the original natural vegetation landscape may never be seen.
In Australia, the invasion of cactus is more harmful, and the local government and people have taken various measures to fight cactus, with little effect. Later, the problem was solved by introducing the natural enemy Gabe Crassus caterpillar from South America.
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