In rural areas, wild sorghum is the most common plant you can see by the roadside, because it has extremely strong vitality. It is widely cultivated in China, with the Northeast region having the most. Many people consider wild sorghum as a weed, but if you learn how to turn waste into treasure, you will discover that wild sorghum can not only be used to make brooms, but it is also a type of traditional Chinese medicine with the effects of promoting blood circulation, dispersing stasis, dispelling wind and dampness, and relieving pain!
【Making brooms with wild sorghum】
Wild sorghum is the seeds that fall off from the previous year and sprout along with corn and sorghum the following year. It has long stems, small spikes, easily detachable grains, dense and flexible branches, and is durable. People like to use it to make brooms.
To make a broom, it usually takes about thirty to forty stalks of wild sorghum. Each time, five or six stalks are gathered and straightened, the cow tendon rope on the handle is wrapped around the base of the sorghum spike, forming a cross shape, and the cow tendon rope is tightened by stepping on it with the foot.
Then, one end of the hemp rope is clipped at the intersection of the cow tendon ropes, the part of the rope is stretched by biting it with the teeth, and both ends of the sorghum spike are held in both hands and slowly rotated upwards. The hemp rope also wraps around in circles, tightly binding the bunch of wild sorghum.
Repeat this process five or six times, paying attention to other details, repeatedly grasping and trimming, until the handle of the broom is red and white, smooth and firm, and the spike is dense, delicate, and durable. Only then can the wild sorghum broom be considered complete.
In addition, wild sorghum brooms have another special use. In previous years, when young people in rural areas got married, the elderly in the family always tried their best to prepare a brand new "scattered head" in advance, which is a sorghum broom with the handle end not trimmed and the spikes tied in their original uneven state.
On the day of the wedding, a red cloth strip is tied to the handle of the broom, along with garlic bulbs that are said to be able to "ward off evil spirits" in folk beliefs, as well as branches of evergreen cypress and leaves of oleander.
【Medicinal value of wild sorghum】
Chinese medicine believes that wild sorghum has the effects of promoting blood circulation, dispersing stasis, dispelling wind and dampness, and relieving pain. It is commonly used to treat rheumatism, injuries, stomach pain, and skin diseases.
1. "Yunnan Medicinal Plants": "Promotes qi circulation and relieves pain, activates blood circulation and disperses stasis. Used to treat chronic gastritis, injuries."
2. "Selected Yunnan Medicinal Plants": "The whole plant dispels wind and dampness. Used to treat rheumatic pain."
3. "Yunnan Medicinal Plants": "Used to treat skin diseases: grind the roots of wild sorghum into powder, mix evenly with sesame oil, and apply to the affected area."
4. "Directory of Medicinal Plants in Yunnan": "Used to treat chronic nephritis, injuries, and skin diseases: take an appropriate amount of wild sorghum roots, decoct and take orally or apply externally."
5. "National Compendium of Chinese Medicinal Plants": "Used to treat injuries, rheumatic pain, and chronic nephritis. Take 6-12g of the roots, decoct and take orally. For skin diseases with pus, take 9-15g of the roots, crush them, mix with fresh sesame oil, and apply to the affected area."
Wild sorghum is also used in modern clinical practice to treat measles, indigestion, gastrointestinal bleeding, hemorrhoids, and menstrual irregularities.
【Pictures of wild sorghum】
