Visit the Zoo Ostrava to see magical herbs

The St John’s Night, also called Midsummer Night, which falls on the night of 23-24 June, celebrates the summer solstice. Plants are in full bloom and the herbs are drawing power from Mother Earth. They share it generously with bees and butterflies, who are busy pollinating one flower after another, because they are pollen plants that insects are attracted to. According to legends, one should collect nine plants at this time. Unfortunately, our ancestors did not leave a list of the specific nine herbs to collect on the Midsummer Night. However, what is very important is the number – the magical nine. You can pick herbs such as thyme, lemon balm, lavender, basil, lovage, mullein, houseleek and plantain.

You should definitely include St John’s wort, which is even called after St John. The medicinal glory of this plant dates back to ancient Greece. The Medieval reformer of medicine, Paracelsus, describes it as the best medicine in the world. Even in today’s phytotherapy we find a wide range of uses and we can rightly say that its healing properties are excellent. Hypericin, its active ingredient, promotes breathing of the cells, thus improving the metabolism and benefiting all organs of the body. However, many of these species are rarely found today in cities and gardens unless they are part of herb gardens. Modern, short-cut lawns are becoming a green desert. They do not provide living conditions or shelter for any animals. Birds, bees, butterflies and other animals are starting to disappear from the cities. The same applies to many common plant species. The only creatures and flowers able to survive in this grass monoculture are referred to as pests and we destroy them chemically…

All of these herbs can be found in the Ostrava Zoological Garden, both wild in the woods and on meadows, and planted in the exposition of medicinal plants in the greenhouse complex of the Zoo, where they are part of the guided tours.

http://www.zoo-ostrava.cz/