Ipomoea ivy (Ipomoea hederacea L.) is a genus of flowering plants of the Convolvulaceae family. Sometimes the plant is referred to under obsolete botanical names included in the synonymy of the genus: farbitis (Pharbitis), quamoclite (Quamoclit), moonflower or calonyction (Calonyction) and some others.
The plant comes from the tropics of America. Widely distributed in the countries of the Latin American continent. In the USA it is a malicious weed in most states, found in England and Israel.
Ipomoea ivy – an annual herbaceous plant, refers to weeds.
The stem of morning glory is ivy thin, pubescent, wraps around other plants or spreads along the ground, up to 3 meters long.
Stem root.
The leaves are simple alternate, pubescent, deeply divided into 3 lobes (sometimes five-lobed or heart-shaped).
The flowers are funnel-shaped, located on the stems one at a time or collected in groups of 2-3 flowers. The color of the petals is from white to blue and pink-purple.
The fruit is a spherical box with 4-6 seeds. Seeds are ovoid, slightly tetrahedral.
Ipomoea ivy propagates by seeds and fruits. One plant can form up to 11 thousand seeds. In the soil, weed seeds remain viable for a long time.
Ipomoea ivy grows in places with disturbed vegetation: on wastelands, roadsides, along fences. However, the best conditions for weed development are on cultivated land. Clogs crops of soybean, cotton, tobacco, corn. The harmfulness of Ipomoea ivy is due to a decrease in crop yields (the weed competes for light, moisture and minerals, physically inhibits the vertical growth of cultivated plants) and clogging of the resulting crop.
The dense tubers of Ipomoea ivy are very rich in unique biologically active substances. Often they are used as food, because they resemble the taste of sweet frosted potatoes. Today, some parts of the plant are used for medicinal purposes.
Chemical composition
In the leaves, stems and tubers of morning glory there are vitamins A, B, C, PP. Also contains iron, zinc, calcium, phosphorus. In addition, the plant contains alkaloids, which are toxic, as well as psychotropic substances, therefore, Ipomoea should be used carefully for medicinal purposes. There are a lot of ascorbic acid in her leaves.
Infusions and decoctions are used in the treatment of wounds as a hemostatic agent and for constipation.
In folk medicine, Ipomoea sweet potato is used, namely the root crop of this plant. It is rich in vitamins, minerals and starch, therefore, it fights well with diseases of the gastrointestinal tract, improves digestion. It also has a calming effect on the nervous system, normalizes blood pressure. It is excellent for feeding patients with diabetes and helps to normalize blood glucose levels.
It is part of the M-Vita ultra.