The garden purslane is a famous plant that is grown for culinary and medicinal purposes, especially popular in the East.
Another commonly used name of portulaca gardening is dandur.
The homeland of the plant is not known for sure, it is considered that this is India. Portulaca grows wild in Ukraine, in Russia and in the countries of Central Asia. Cultivated almost everywhere: throughout Europe, in Australia, in the Middle East and in China. Portulaca gardening is highly valued due to its beneficial and nourishing properties.
Garden purslane: description
Garden purslane - this plant is of the portulacaceous family, which reaches a height of not more than 30 cm. It has a creeping reddish stem, small fleshy scaphoid leaves and yellow small inflorescences, collected in bunches. Purslane fruit is an egg-shaped seed boll, where small black seeds ripen. The plant blooms in June-August, the seeds ripen in September.
Did you know? There are two options for the origin and translation of the name of the plant: the first is "pulli pied" from lat. "chicken leg", because of what the purslane in the people to this day is called chicken leg or flea. The second option is the word "portulla", which is translated from Latin as "collar".
Young leaves and shoots of portulaca contain many alkaloids, glycosides, vitamins C, E, K, PP, minerals, carbohydrates, proteins, organic acids, as well as important macro and microelements, such as iron, calcium, magnesium, manganese, sodium and zinc.In addition to everything else, norepinephrine and dopamine are found in the leaves of the plant. Seeds contain unsaturated fatty acids: linoleic, oleic, palmitic, as well as starch and cellulose.
Did you know? The beneficial properties of purslane are appreciated by Hippocrates, who believed that this is a plant that can effectively cleanse the body. He prescribed it for the elderly and the sick during the recovery after long illness. Portulaca was mentioned many times in the works of Avicenna. The leaves of the plant healed wounds, insect bites and snakes, and were used for sleep disorders, beriberi, dysentery, liver and kidney diseases. Portulaca seeds used against lichen. It was also believed that if we put the purslane in his bed, then the person would not have dreams. In Russia in the XIX century portulac was used in men's monasteries and closed boarding houses. He was added to the food of novices in large quantities, because they believed that purslane dulled sexual arousal.Today portulac occupies an important place in the culinary traditions of the Caucasus, Asia and the Mediterranean countries. Portulaca greens taste tart and sour, have a refreshing effect and quench thirst.
Young shoots and leaves are consumed raw and boiled, added to soups and salads, stewed and fried. In Australia, portulaca seeds are fried and eaten, as we have sunflower seeds. Portulaca is also grown in flower beds for decorative purposes. In medicine, shoots, leaves and seeds of the plant are used. 
Plantula seed placement in open ground
Cultivation of purslane from seeds is possible in almost any household plot, subject to a few simple principles.
When to sow seeds
Since the gentle shoots of the plants do not tolerate spring frosts and require a lot of light, only when the soil warms up sufficiently, can the purslane be planted in open ground. This usually occurs between the end of May and mid-June, depending on the climate zone.
Choosing a place for landing
Portulac loves sunny places and blooms only in conditions of sufficient light. Place for planting should not be low, the plant does not tolerate stagnant water. It grows well in wet sandy places, but easily tolerates drought. Before planting a crop, it is important to determine on which soil the purslane grows best, based on the objectives of planting.
So, for cultivation of dense and nutritious green deciduous weight in the culinary purposes well fertilized soil will be required. However, this will cause damage to flowering and seed ripening - on fertile soils it will be scarce. Vegetable predecessors for portulaca will be good predecessors for which fertilizers were previously applied. Does not like peat soils. 
Portulaca Sowing
Garden purslane is distinguished by rather simple agrotechnics, its cultivation from seeds does not require complicated measures. The seeds of the plants are very small, so they need to be sown on the surface, deepening by 0.5 - 1 cm. It is better to mix the upper layer of soil with sand. Sow the seeds in small grooves, with respect to the distance between rows of about 50 cm. It is not recommended to make fertilizers before and during planting.
Growing garden purslane through seedlings
You can grow purslane garden and seedlings. Then in late March - early April, seeds are sown on the ground surface in transplanting containers. At the bottom of the planting tank lay a layer of drainage of small gravel. Land for portulac should be mixed with sand in equal parts, in order to avoid the death of seedlings from the black leg.
Landings covered with glass and provide a temperature of at least 20 ° C. When 2-3 leaves appear on the seedlings, they are thinned, and the top layer of soil is sprinkled with sand. We can not allow stagnation of moisture in the soil, it causes root rot and decay of young shoots. In order to prevent the development of rot, plantings can be treated with fungicides containing copper. 
A little later, another thinning or transfer of a part of the seedlings into another container will be required. The sprouted seedlings are planted in June, when the risk of spring frosts will pass and at least 10 leaves will appear on the seedlings. Since this is a creeping plant, in order to properly set a purslane on a seedling, it is necessary to maintain a distance between seedlings of at least 25-30 cm.
Before planting, about a week and a half to two, it is useful to harden the seedlings. Containers with plants should be brought out into the street during the daytime and left, gradually increasing the tempering time from 10 minutes to several hours.
Important! Soil for portulaca should not contain peat; no fertilizer is also required. Otherwise, the seedlings either will not appear at all, or will die from fungal infections, not having time to get stronger.
Caring for garden purslane
Good illumination is the only fundamental condition for how to grow a garden purslane of good quality. The rest of the plant is not capricious. It should be watered moderately, it tolerates drought well. 
With insufficient watering, the stems will be thin and unfit for human consumption. With excessive watering, the plant may not bloom, or bloom very late, ripening deteriorates. For the same reason, fertilizing is highly undesirable. If the purslane is planted after vegetable crops, then the supply of nutrients will be sufficient. It is necessary to periodically loosen the soil and weed from the weeds.
Collecting and using portulaca greens
The purslane growing on a home bed can be eaten after a month after the emergence of mass shoots. Before the plant begins to bloom, it is completely cut off along with the leaves. To get portulac seeds, you need to leave a few plants until September, without breaking off their leaves and shoots. After cutting the plants grow back, which makes it possible to re-and sometimes the third harvest, depending on climatic conditions.
Like all lettuce, purslane is not stored for long, it warms in the heat and low humidity. At the same time, the content of vitamin C drops sharply. The product is stored for about 7-10 days at a temperature of 0 ° C and a relative humidity of about 95-97%. For culinary purposes portulac is used in various salads, soups, added to meat, fish and vegetable dishes. Young portulaca greens are salted, canned or marinated. Also, the plant can be used as a seasoning and insist on wine - it turns out a vitamin drink.
Important! Garden purslane is prone to running wild, you need to make sure that wild plants do not grow on the beds.
Medicinal properties of garden purslane
Garden purslane is very popular in eastern countries, where it is considered a "blessed" plant, because it is an effective prophylactic against various diseases. Useful qualities are explained by the rich chemical composition of purslane. The leaves contain carotenoids that synthesize vitamin A in the body, which is responsible for the skin and organs of vision. The presence of vitamin C and nicotinic acid helps strengthen the immune system.
Did you know? 100 g of portulac contains 65 µg of vitamin A, the daily need of the body in which is 800 µg, and 20 µg of vitamin C, with a daily rate of 60 µg.It has been scientifically proven that due to the presence of norepinephrine and dopamine, the purslane causes vasospasms, thereby increasing blood pressure. Because of this, purslane can stimulate the activity of the heart muscle and stop internal bleeding. The plant has a hypoglycemic effect (lowers the level of sugar), so it is recommended for people with diabetes.
In folk medicine, the purslane garden is widely used for various diseases. Dried and ground seeds with honey are used in the treatment of bronchial asthma. Tincture and decoctions of portulac leaves and stems are used for gallstone disease, kidney and bladder diseases, diabetes mellitus and colds fever. Pounded leaves are used as compresses for treating wounds, burns and insect bites.Leaves and shoots of plants can be used for eye diseases. Purslane seeds are used to prepare an ointment that helps with psoriasis and neurodermatitis. Systematic use of portulac leaf lettuce reduces blood cholesterol and helps prevent the formation of atherosclerotic plaques.
There are also contraindications to the use of purslane for medicinal purposes. You can not use it to those who suffer from hypertension and bradycardia. Contraindicated in people with increased convulsive activity and patients with a tendency to diencephalic crises. It should also be borne in mind that purslane stimulates the release of insulin and causes hypoglycemia, which can cause poor health and even fainting in people with low hemoglobin.
