Mordovian ordinary

The species epithet "ritro", introduced by Linnaeus in the nomenclature, was borrowed from the work of Lobel , in which this word was used as a generic epithet. Traditionally in Europe, the popular word ritro denoted different types of mordovia, growing in southern Europe . In the writings of Theophrastus, the plant is referred to as lat. Rytros , Dioscorides, and Pliny called him Lat. Crocodilium . Previously, other Russian names were used for this species: Black wasp, or Black sedge ^[2] . However, in modern Russian, the name "Black sedge" refers to a completely different plant Carex nigra of the sedge family .

The natural range covers the south of Europe (from Austria , the Czech Republic and Slovakia in the north to Spain , Italy and the Balkans in the south) and part of Eastern Europe , the Asian part of Turkey . It is found in Turkmenistan and the Chinese Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region ^[3] .

In Russia, common muzzle is common in the south of the European part , in the North Caucasus and in Western Siberia . In the central part of Russia - in the chernozem strip , to the north - a rare alien at the limestone outcrops ^[4] .

Grows on steppes and dry meadows. Often confined to chalk and limestone outcrops ^[4] .

As an ornamental and honey plant, they are cultivated almost everywhere in the world ^[3] .

Perennial herb 30–80 cm high.

The root is unbranched, thick.

Stem up to 1 m high, simple or somewhat branching in the upper part, white-green.

Leaves are alternate, 6–20 cm long, glabrous or slightly cobwebby on top, dark green, whitish-yellow, oblong, deeply pinnately separate from below. The lower stem and basal leaves are petiolate, the rest are sessile, gradually decreasing to the apex of the stem. Fractions of leaves oblong-ovate, lanceolate or linear, sharp, prickly on the edge.

Tubular flowers , 2 cm long, are a single-flowered basket , have a multi-row wrapper consisting of three types of leaflets. The outer leaflets are bristle-shaped wrappers, shorter than the inner ones. The middle ones are almost equal to the outer ones, they look like leaves, rhombic at the apex and narrowed to the base into a long petiole. Internal - lanceolate, bare keel, pointed, ciliary at the edges, equal in length to the corolla tube. A crested cup made of short bristles. Corolla is blue, tubular, more than half dissected. Five stamens, anthers blue. Pestle with a single, single-rooted hairy ovary , half to half bifurcated column, and stigma bent down. The flowers are collected in a large spherical multi-flowered (up to 200 flowers) head 2.5 (3) -4 (5) cm in diameter, devoid of a common wrapper. The heads are located singly at the ends of the stem and branches. It blooms in July - August.

Fruits - narrowed cylindrical achenes downward 7-9 mm long with hairs pressed upwards. Achenes are provided with a crest of bristles. The fruits ripen in August - September.

Fruits contain alkaloids : α- and β- echinopsin (up to 1.5–2.0% in seeds) and echinopsin; fatty oil (up to 28%) ^[5] .

Honey plant .

The plant is bred in the gardens as a decorative .

In medicine

Medicines from the fruits of the common muzzle, containing echinopsin, are used for diseases of the central nervous system : paresis , plexitis , radiculitis and hypotension ^[6] . “Echinopsin nitrate” was used as a tonic (analogue of strychnine nitrate) ^[7] .

The species possesses extraordinary polymorphism ; various researchers have identified a number of its varieties differing in morphological characters and originating from different regions of the general natural range . In the dry steppes and semi-deserts of western Kazakhstan , a form with extremely narrow leaves grows, distinguished as Echinops ritro f. litwinowii Korsh. On the territory of Southern Altai , in the vicinity of Lake Zaysan and Tarbagatai , a broad-leaved variety Echinops ritro var. latilobus kryl. , the leaves of which are shallowly simply peristonadrezheny (not twice). For the southern regions of chernozem Russia, Russian Mordovian is characteristic - a variety of Echinops ritro subsp. ruthenicus ( M. Bieb. ) Nyman , previously isolated as a separate species of Echinops ruthenicus M. Bieb.

• Bobrov E. G. Rod 1567. Mordovian - Echinops // Flora of the USSR : 30 tons / started at hand. and under chap. ed. V. L. Komarova . - M .; L .: Publishing House of the Academy of Sciences of the USSR , 1962. - T. 27 / ed. volumes B.K. Shishkin , E.G. Bobrov . - S. 30-32. - 653 s.
• Gubanov I.A. et al. 1325. Echinops ruthenicus Bieb. ( E. ritro L. pp) - Russian Mordovian // Illustrated identifier of plants of Central Russia. In 3 t . - M .: T-in scientific. ed. KMK, Institute of Technology. ISS., 2004. - T. 3. Angiosperms (dicotyledonous: dicotyledonous). - S. 389. - ISBN 5-87317-163-7 .