For medicinal and poisonous properties of plants are known since ancient times. About 50% of the total number of drugs that are produced in the world as a raw material base used matters of plant origin. To provide a sufficient amount of herbal products used not only wild plants, but also artificially cultivated on plantations. Revenue from this kind of exploitation of forests and forest land are growing from year to year in the world. For example, Austrian Federal Forests reach annual revenue of about 40 million Euros of non-timber forest products (medicinal plants, forest fruits, etc.). In order to gain access to this way of rational exploitation of forests, necessary to know the inventory of medicinal, poisonous and edible plants.

The drug is dried herb or part:

– Flower (flos)
– Leaf  (folium)
– Above-ground part of the plant (herb)
– Root (radix)
– Rhizome (rhizoma)
– Tubers (tuber)
– Fruit (fructus)
– Seed (semen)
– Bark (cortex)

Blueberry (Vaccinium myrtillus)

Blueberry is a small shrub height of 20 to 30 cm and creeping root. The leaves are picked before ripening fruits, and dried on shady and airy place. The fruits are collected in the summer, after maturing, and dried in the sun. The leaves are used against the formation of uric acid, and for the treatment of vomiting, diarrhea, stomach cramps, coughing and diabetes. The berries are used in the treatment of hemorrhoids, anti-messy stools and poor appetite.

The leaves are an important remedy against diabetes. It is so effective that some called plant insulin. The leavs dried in thin layers in the shade or in the oven at 40 degrees °C. The leaves stained with hot water relieves inflammation of the urinary bladder and the urinary tract. We eat fresh berries or dried and inserted into brandy. Leave to dry them at 45 degrees °C. Of them we make and extract with brandy, squeezing juice or we make marmalade.

Juice is best for gargling, a marmalade cools the painful heat burning mouth and throat. The most effective is a raw juice. Dry the berries stop diarrhea, especially in young children, while fresh act as a mild purgative. In this way help in cases of constipation. Blueberries affect the vision and kept the retina. Dried berries stop bleeding hemorrhoids. Juice heals stomach and intestinal catarrh, helps in case of problems with the digestion and lack of appetite.

Mint (Mentha piperita)

Mint is used more than 300 years ago. Today is one of the most important cultivated medicinal, aromatic and spice plants. The world’s largest producers are the US, Russia, Bulgaria, Brazil and Japan. Mint is a hybrid of black and white forms. The seeds are propagated the vegetative.

Mint is used: leaf, above-ground parts of the plant in flower, essential oil and menthol. Essential oil in the whole plant has about 1.5% in the leaves about 2%. Mint is used for acute and chronic gastritis, flatulence and enteritis.

The oil is obtained by steam distillation of aboveground parts of mint in flower. It is a clear yellow liquid and easily movable, pleasant scent and taste that cools.

Menthol has a strong bactericidal effect. Spearmint oil is also used in the industry of sweets, alcoholic and soft drinks.