Bee Plant

BOTANICAL NAME:

• Borago officinalis

FAMILY:

• Boraginaceae                                     

SYNONYM(S):

• Onosma Bracteatum wall

URDU NAME:

• Gaozaban  

REGIONAL NAME:                  

• Bengali: Gaozaban
• Arabic: Taharatul Sanulshur, Lasanulaaur
• Persian: Gaozaban
• Hindi: Gojihva
• Pashto: Gaozaban
• Kashmiri: Kazabun

UNANI/TIBBI NAME:

• Lisan-al-saur

ENGLISH NAME:

• Borage
• Beebread
• Bee plant

HABITAT:

• Baluchistan, Quetta, Naraikotal, N.W.F.P.

DESCRIPTION:

• Plant 30-60 cm high hispid annual or biennial, erect plant.it is mainly cultivated but also grows wildly on wasteland
• Flowers blue or purple, trumpet shaped are symmetrical and grows in loose forked cymes at interval on the stem
• Calyx consist of five separate, green linear lanceolate sepals
• Corolla is star shaped and composed of five blue petals which are ovate lanceolate in shape, 10-15 cm in length and 5-8 cm wide with an obtuse apex and crenate margin
• Upper leaves are sessile or shortly stalked and silky white beneath
• Lower leaves exhibit a decurrent petiole, have a darjgreen upper surface with a grayish green lower surface
• Nut let ovoid rough 4mm and acute

PART USED:

• Dried leaves and flowers

TASTE:

• Leaves: cucumber like, acrid
• Flower: tasteless

TEMPERAMENT:

• Hot 1°, moist 1°

PERIOD OF OCCURRENCE:

• This plant occurs during November to January

PROCEDURE & TIME OF COLLECTION:

• Plants are uprooted, washed and flowers separate .These is then dried under shades. Leaves are removed from the dried plants

CONSTITUENTS:

Leaves:

• Acetic, lactic, and malic acid
• Alkaloid
• Mucilage
• Pentose
• Resin
• Cynogenic material
• Vitamin c
• KNO3
• Calcium oxalate

Flowers:

• Carbohydrates
• Proteins
• Tannins
• Ca2+, Fe2+, Mg2+, K+, and Na+

SUBSTITUTES:

• Gul-e-surkh/rose (Rosa damascene mill.)
• Badranjnoya/mountain balm (Melissa parviflora benth)
• Kasni/chicory, succory (cichorium intybus linn)
• Balchhad/calerian (nardostachys jatamansi)

ACTIONS AND USES IN UNANI SYSTEM OF MEDICINE:

Pharmacological action:

• Expectorant, Demulcent, Diaphoretic, Cardiac Tonic, Refrigerant, Alterative, Diuretic, Emollient, Febrifuge, Laxative

Therapeutic uses:

• Relieves restless in fever, functional palpitation of heart, irritation of bladder and stomach, in bronchial asthma, jaundice, dry cough, cold, catarrh, rheumatism, syphilis, leprosy and urogenital ailments

DOSES:

• Leaves: 4-6 gm
• Flowers: 5-7 gm

CORRECTIVES:

• Sandal sufaid/ sandalwood(santalum album linn )
• Murabba halela (terminalia chebula rtz.)
• Sumaq/sumach (rhus coriaria)         

IMPORTANT UNANI FORMULATIONS:

• Khameera abresham sada
• Arq-e-gaozaban
• Khameera gaozaban
• Ambari jadwar
• Ood salibwala

ASTROLOGY:

• Moon