Sin .: four-leafed raven eye, crow berries, nail-eater, rannik, armor, culprit, crow, crow, crow's eye, crow grass berry, wolf berries, wolf eyes, cross-grass, cross-grass.
raven eye ordinary is perennial, which belongs to the category of poisonous and deadly. However, homeopaths and herbalists consider it healing, and therefore use it to treat various diseases.
The plant is poisonous!Ask the experts
In medicine
The raven eye is a poisonous plant. It is not included in the State Pharmacopoeia and is not used by official medicine.
AT traditional medicine The crow's eye is used to treat pulmonary tuberculosis, with excessive sweating, nervous tics and neuralgic pains. Homeopaths prescribe raven eye for laryngitis, broncho-pulmonary diseases, migraine, drowsiness, mental disorders, eye diseases, poorly healing wounds, heart palpitations and hearing loss.
Contraindications and side effects
The common raven eye is a poisonous plant, the use of which can lead to serious consequences and even death. The leaves of the crow's eye adversely affect the central nervous system, the rhizome of the plant provokes vomiting, the fruits adversely affect the heart. The most common symptoms of crow's eye poisoning include nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain, diarrhea, convulsions, dizziness, impaired breathing and cardiac activity, up to complete cardiac arrest.
In other areas
The raven eye is poisonous and is not used anywhere except in traditional medicine and homeopathy.
Classification
The Common Crow's Eye (Paris quadrifolia) belongs to the genus Crow's Eye (Paris) of the Melanthiaceae family. Previously, the Melantiaceae family (Melanthiaceae), and, accordingly, the common raven eye (Paris quadrifolia) belonged to the Liliaceae family.
The genus Crow's eye (Paris) has 26 species. Only 3 of them grow in Russia: the common raven eye, or the four-leaf raven eye (Paris quadrifolia), the whorled raven eye (Paris verticillata) and the incomplete raven eye (Paris incompleta).
Botanical description
The common raven eye is a perennial herbaceous plant with a long horizontal rhizome and a smooth erect stem 10-30 cm long. In the upper part of the stem there is a whorl of four almost sessile elliptical leaves, the length of which can reach 10 cm. Occasionally there are plants with five or six leaves. The base of the leaves is wedge-shaped, the tips are pointed. At the top of the stem is a single flower. Perianth two-row, yellowish-green, consisting of 8-10 leaflets, at the base of which are eight stamens. Columns - four. The flowering time of the common crow's eye is May-June. The plant always forms only one flower. In August, the fruit of the crow's eye ripens: a four-celled spherical berry, the diameter of which is 1 cm. The berry is black, shiny, has a bluish bloom. All parts of the plant are poisonous.
At the first frost above-ground part common raven's eye dies off. Only the underground rhizome remains, from which a new above-ground shoot grows in the spring.
The common raven eye propagates by seeds and vegetatively - by the growth of rhizomes. At favorable conditions forms a population of several square decimeters.
Spreading
The common raven eye grows in deciduous and mixed forests, on the slopes of ravines, meadows, pastures, among shrubs, along river banks. The plant prefers semi-shaded areas, rich in humus or moist loamy soil. It is also found in coniferous forests and forest-steppe.
Most often, the common raven eye grows in the middle regions of the European part of Russia, in the Caucasus, in Siberia, Ukraine and Belarus. Also grows in temperate climate zone Europe (excluding the southeastern part), the Mediterranean, Asia and North America.
Distribution regions on the map of Russia.
Procurement of raw materials
For medicinal purposes, homeopaths and herbalists use the common crow's eye herb. Harvesting is carried out during the flowering period of the plant. An alcoholic tincture is made from fresh herbs.
The raven eye is known as a poisonous plant that is best to stay away from, and only a few know that it has the ability to heal many ailments.
In our article, we will tell you what the raven eye looks like and where you can find it, as well as list its useful and dangerous properties.
Why is it called
The plant owes its name to the appearance of the fruit: it is blue-black and, framed by tepals, resembles a crow's eye.
The Latin name of the plant is Paris quadricfolia, in honor of the hero ancient Greek myths Paris, who kidnapped Helen the Beautiful, thereby unleashing the Trojan War. 
Did you know? The raven eye was previously considered magical and was used in witchcraft and conspiracies.
This plant is well known and has many folk nicknames: wolfberries, crowberry, sprouts, cuckoo's tears, uskopnaya grass.
What does the raven eye look like: a botanical description
It is a perennial herb. The stem is straight, from 10 to 50 cm high. The leaves are wide, elliptical in shape with pointed ends, up to 10 cm long, located at the top of the stem.
Flowering occurs in May-June with single yellowish-green flowers. The fruit is a black-blue berry with several seeds that ripens from late July to early August.
During frosts, the aerial part dies off; only the rhizome remains, which will give new shoots in the spring. Reproduction occurs through seeds and rhizome growth. 
Where the raven eye grows
Crow's eye habitats - fertile lands deciduous and coniferous forests. It prefers areas with moist soil and rarely penetrating sunlight, therefore it grows among shrubs and on the banks of rivers.
This herb is widespread in the Caucasus, Belarus, Ukraine, middle lane Russia.
Chemical composition
The berries and roots of the plant contain a high content of poison - paristifin and paradin, the leaves are the least poisonous.
Among the safe substances in its composition are:
- glycosides;
- alkaloids;
- flavonoids;
- steroids;
- saponins;
- pectins;
- vitamin C;
- organic acids.
Benefit: medicinal properties
Although this herb is poisonous, a small amount of it can be beneficial to a person.
Thanks to his chemical composition she is capable of:
- act calmly;
- relieve spasms;
- heal wounds;
- remove inflammation;
- normalize the work of the kidneys and intestines.
Application in medicine
In official medicine, the raven eye is recognized as containing poison and dangerous, its use for the manufacture medicines forbidden.
In folk - use it useful qualities, but with caution. Roots, leaves and berries are taken for decoctions, which are used to treat tuberculosis, migraine, and neuralgia.
The plant is widely used in homeopathy. From its aerial parts, preparations are made that treat headaches, inflammation of the larynx, and conjunctivitis.
Important! Due to the toxicity of the crow's eye, treatment with it should be done only after consulting a doctor and strictly adhering to the dosage of the medicine.
What is dangerous raven eye: harm
For humans, all parts of the plant are dangerous:
- juice irritates mucous membranes;
- berries negatively affect the work of the heart and blood vessels;
- leaves harm the nervous system;
- rhizome provokes nausea and vomiting.
It is also possible to get poisoned if the dosages of medications, in the manufacture of which this poisonous plant was used, are not observed. 
Symptoms of poisoning
Poisoning may be accompanied by the following symptoms:
- colicky pains;
- diarrhea;
- convulsions;
- sudden nausea and vomiting;
- violation of the heart rhythm;
- migraine;
- paralysis.
At the first symptoms of poisoning, the patient must be given first aid. It is necessary to wash his stomach and give adsorbents. Intravenously, it is necessary to inject anestezin, and to restore the work of the heart - strophanthin. 
Important! In case of poisoning with a crow's eye, drugs with a laxative effect are prohibited.
Contraindications
Preparations based on this poisonous plant are categorically contraindicated:
- children under 12;
- women during pregnancy and lactation;
- people with impaired kidney and liver function.
Procurement and storage of the crow's eye
raven eye - seasonal plant. It is used fresh during the flowering period, which lasts from mid-May to mid-June.
For harvesting for future use during flowering, plants collect its leaves, stems and berries. They should be dried in the sun and kept hanging in a dry, dark place. 
Preparation of infusions and tinctures
In the treatment using traditional medicine methods, infusions and tinctures from this plant are widely used to help cope with various ailments.
Leaf tincture
The leaves are used to make a tincture suitable for the treatment of tuberculosis, constipation and neuroses.
The ingredients for her are simple: 50 g dried or fresh leaves crow's eye and 500 g of alcohol. It is necessary to fill the raw materials with alcohol and leave for 20 days in a dark, cool place, after this period, strain.
Reception is carried out 3 times a day, 20 drops, diluting the tincture with a small amount of water. The course of treatment should be no more than 14 days, then a break of at least 10 days is necessary. After that, it is possible to repeat the course if necessary. 
Berry tincture
With heart failure, a tincture of berries is well suited for treatment. To do this, you need crow's eye berries (10 pieces) and vodka (500 ml). Insist berries on vodka for 15 days.
Perennial herbaceous plant with a long creeping rhizome, dressed in vaginal leaves. The stalk of the crow's eye is straight, erect, 15-30 cm high. Leaves, mostly in number 4 (occasionally 5, 6, 8 - as an exception), in a whorl, in the upper part of the stem, broadly elliptical, obovate, short - pointed, almost sessile with three veins and their converging ramifications. Flowers - one for each plant. Perianth consists of two rows of leaflets: 4-6 outer, wider, and 4-6 inner narrow yellowish. The latter remain near the fruit - a bluish-black berry. Crow's eye blooms in May-June.
Where the raven eye grows.
Grows in shady, mostly deciduous forests, thickets. The raven eye is widespread in forest areas and in the forest-steppe.
You will not meet dense thickets of a crow's eye - it grows singly, only sometimes, walking along the damp slope of a shady ravine in a dense forest, you will find a dozen plants, then again, after about a hundred meters, you will stumble upon a different sides brood of cross-grass.
In autumn, the crow's eye is visible from afar, it is easier to find it, and in the spring, in May, when it is necessary to collect leaves, it is not so easy to see it in thick grass.
Collect the whole plant during flowering and insist fresh in alcohol.
The raven eye is a very poisonous plant; causes severe diarrhea, vomiting, especially berries and rhizomes.
The raven eye is used in folk medicine.
The people use alcohol tincture of the crow's eye for pulmonary tuberculosis, as an appetite stimulant and enhances intestinal motility. In 1 glass of water, dilute 2 teaspoons of this tincture and take 1 tablespoon every 1-2 hours, but not more than one glass during the day. Excessive doses cause vomiting. It is claimed that taking such a tincture has a calming effect on the nerves.
One of its popular names is cross-grass. It is quite common in the forests tall plant with four wide leaves arranged crosswise, and in the center where they converge - a single lilac-gray berry, blackening by late autumn. A very poisonous berry, like the whole plant, along with a long and creeping rhizome.
Folk use of the raven eye plant.
Serious grass, life-threatening, and serious diseases are treated. Crow's eye grass, collected during flowering, is used for neuralgia, migraine, pulmonary tuberculosis, ascites, convulsions, metabolic disorders, and berries - for heart disease and some other diseases.
I do not advise self-medication, but I will give a few recipes as an example.
The use of the raven eye plant for concussion.
The tincture is being prepared. 4 tablespoons of dried grass pour 0.5 liters of vodka, insist in a dark, warm place for 9 days. Take 5 drops from a pipette in a glass of water 2-3 times a day.
Crow's eye in nervous tics.
2 tablespoons of vodka tincture of leaves prepared according to the indicated recipe, diluted in a glass of boiled water and drink 1 tablespoon every 2 hours during the day until the annoying tick under the eye or other similar twitches in the body completely disappear. Sometimes a few doses of the medicine are enough for the tic to go away.
The use of the herb raven eye for convulsions.
Just dilute in a glass of water 2 tablespoons of vodka tincture of crow's eye leaves and also take 1 tablespoon every two hours. In severe convulsive conditions, the same dose can be taken every hour (but not more than a glass per day).
The use of the raven eye plant in heart failure.
10-12 fresh berries insist in 0.5 liters of vodka for 15 days. Take 20-30 drops in a glass of water 3 times a day. The course of treatment is 3 weeks, after which it is necessary to take a break for 10 days. If necessary, you can conduct several such courses.
Crow's eye contraindications.
Do not exceed the indicated dosages. Do not use for insomnia. Monitor blood pressure for hypertension.
The raven eye is not indicated during pregnancy.
Crow's eye (Paris quadrifolia L.) is a perennial herbaceous plant from the lily family with a long and thin horizontal rhizome, a thin and tall stem. Four broadly elliptical leaves are collected in one whorl at the top of the stem. Each plant produces only one flower, raised on a ribbed pedicel above the leaves, blooming for a very long time. New above-ground shoots grow from the lateral buds of a long creeping rhizome. The fruit is a single berry, similar to a large blueberry, but the resemblance is only external - the berry is poisonous.
There is a raven eye in forests, more often in deciduous, rich in moisture. Flowering time: May-June.
Grass and berries have bad smell. Berries of sweetish unpleasant taste. All parts of the crow's eye are poisonous: leaves, roots, stem, berries. The juice of the plant, which has fallen on the mucous membrane, causes inflammation.
Rhizomes, leaves and fruits of the crow's eye contain glycosides (paridin, etc.), alkaloids, saponins were found in the rhizomes.
The plant is not used in scientific medicine. It is better known as folk remedy. Its berries and leaves were used as a strong laxative and emetic. Berries were eaten from boils. Among the peasants at the beginning of the century there was a belief that by taking the crow's eye, you can be cured of a hernia. His alcohol tincture was considered a good remedy to increase appetite. The herb was used for headaches, dizziness, drowsiness. In Chinese medicine, the rhizomes have been used in the treatment of cancer.
In veterinary medicine, a decoction of dried berries was used to water horses with foot and mouth disease.
In the old days, yellow paint was obtained from the leaves of the plant, and green from unripe, crushed berries.
The raven eye is a poisonous plant. As a result, the independent use of this plant is unacceptable!
Crow's eye four leaf
The four-leafed raven eye is poisonous!
Latin name: Paris quadrifolia.
Family: Trillium - Trilliaceae (formerly: Liliaceae - Liliaceae).
Folk names: crow, crow berries, cross-grass, bear berries, rannik.
Used parts: the whole plant with a rhizome.
Pharmacy name: crow's eye herb - Paridis herba (formerly: Herba Paridis).
Botanical description. A stem about 30 cm high extends from a horizontally running rhizome in the soil. At the bottom it carries a scaly leaf split in two, and at the top - a whorl, as a rule, of 4 ovate-rounded leaves with mesh venation and a pointed tip. True, plants with 3 or 5 leaves in a whorl often come across. Above the leaves is a single unattractive greenish star-shaped four-membered flower. Much more conspicuous than a flower, a black pearl-like fruit the size of large berry blueberries.
These berries - however, like the whole plant - are slightly poisonous!
Walking with small children, you need to make sure that they are not tempted by the berries of the crow's eye. Nothing bad will happen from one or two berries, but with more possible poisoning with vomiting and diarrhea.
True, cases of fatal poisoning by the crow's eye are not known. Crow's eye blooms from May to June. The fruits ripen in July and August. It occurs in shady deciduous forests, among shrubs, in hedgerows and on damp rocks.
Active ingredients: saponins, organic acids.
raven eye - beneficial features and application
Both official and traditional medicine practically do not use the crow's eye, but homeopathy still appreciates it.
Side effects: All parts of the plant, especially the berries (least of all the leaves), are slightly poisonous. In case of poisoning, diarrhea, colic, bouts of dizziness were noted; therefore self-medication is prohibited.
From the history of the plant. In the Middle Ages, it was believed that "bewitched" people could be "disenchanted" with the help of a crow's eye. Berries were worn on the body or sewn into clothes to protect themselves from the plague and other contagious diseases, for which they were collected from August 15 to September 8. But, in general, the crow's eye was feared and therefore rarely used. In Mattiolus, for example, you can read: "Some say that these berries can put you to sleep if you eat them. I would not want to try them: you might not wake up."
The raven eye is a poisonous plant, noticeable and very beautiful. However, it is not just poisonous - it is critically dangerous for human life, although some craftsmen manage to use it as medicinal product. So what is this interesting plant? Should I be afraid of it, and if not, how to use it? Full information about the raven eye will be provided below.
Description of the wolf eye
Wolf's eye, or, more correctly, crow's berries, is the collective (more precisely, folk) name for a group of plants that are mostly toxic or highly poisonous, and at the same time resemble their harmless forest counterparts in appearance.
These are the plants:
- The common belladonna, better known as belladonna;
- Daphne;
- raven eye;
All these plants are deadly poisonous, however, they are sometimes used in medicine. In addition to them, the list includes non-poisonous or almost non-poisonous common dereza, honeysuckle, buckthorn and snowberry. Sometimes Wolfberries also include other shrubs and herbs that grow red, black or even white fruits that are inedible or poisonous.
If poisoning with wolfberries occurs, you should immediately consult a doctor.
If this is not possible, you can try to provide first aid yourself, although this is not recommended. You need to act in stages, observing the utmost caution and care.
The poisonous properties of these berries are due to the content of the poison coccognin and the saponin paristifin in them. To remove the poison from the body, you should drink about a liter (for an adult, for a child - depends on weight) pure water, better pre-diluted with potassium permanganate, and induce vomiting. You can also use an enema, although it is strictly forbidden to take a laxative.
Before rehabilitation activities, you should drink a few tablets activated carbon, counting like this - 1 tablet per 10 kg of body weight. You can also use Smecta in case of poisoning or Enterosgel, as sorbents.
In order to stop vomiting when all the poison has already left the body, you can take Metoclopronid. There are contraindications, so before using, you should consult your doctor. To eliminate stomach irritation, it is recommended to drink something enveloping - oatmeal, liquid jelly or take Almagel.
If there are various spasms of the intestines, any antispasmodic, for example, No-shpu, should be used. To restore the water balance, it is worth drinking plenty of clean boiled water or saline. If you need medical intervention, you can use Regidron.
After removing the first symptoms, it is better to go to the hospital and follow a sparing diet for a week. If convulsions or fainting have begun, in no case should you try to relieve the exacerbation on your own. We live in the 21st century, now mobile communications work fine, and an ambulance arrives on average in 10 minutes, so you should not self-medicate or endanger the life of another person with your inept methods. Caution - the juice of wolfberries, if it comes into contact with the skin, causes burns.
Crow's eye plant: a brief description
Paris quadrifolia in Latin, and in our opinion - the common raven's eye can be attributed to the genus of the raven's eye and to the melantium family. Very poisonous and critically dangerous to life. This is a perennial herbaceous plant of the class Monocots, there are 26 varieties of crow's eye.
In our middle lane, 3 species grow:
- Crow's eye is ordinary, it is also four-leafed;
- The raven eye is whorled;
- Voronin's eye is incomplete.
When used, it can have toxic and narcotic effects. Nowadays, this plant is well studied by botanists and is occasionally added to medicines, despite the fact that it is not in the State Pharmacopoeia.
His healing properties have been used in folk medicine since ancient times, and during epidemics it was believed that the berries of the crow's eye can be sewn into clothes, and then the pestilence will not touch you.
According to official botanical description, raven eye, aka raven's eye, cuckoo's tears, parida grass is a herbaceous plant whose length ranges from 10 to 40 cm. The rhizome is usually quite long and horizontal. The stem is usually erect, without downiness, ribbed, it forms a leaf knot (scientifically called a whorl) of 4 leaves about 10 cm long. The leaf arrangement is usually symmetrical.
At the top of the stem is a single flower. Its perianth (frame) is two-row - 4 green outer leaves, 4 inner yellowish-green leaves, smaller than the outer ones. The flower includes 8 stamens and 4 columns.
In the middle lane, this plant usually blooms from July to August, other varieties in May-June. When it gets colder, the part of the flower that is above the ground usually dies off. new escape in the spring it grows from a rhizome, securely hidden under the earth.
A brief description will be incomplete if we do not mention that the common raven eye, which reproduces in 2 ways - either vegetatively, that is, by growing the rhizome, or, like all other plants, by seeds. In encyclopedias, you can find a drawing of this plant and a scheme for its reproduction.
Benefits of raven eye berry
The fruit of the common crow's eye is a spherical four nested berry. Its diameter is approximately 1 cm, it is shiny, black in color, and covered with a bluish coating. The berry usually ripens in August. It should be remembered - the berry of the crow's eye is poisonous! It is especially dangerous for children whose body is not yet strong and body weight is not large.
Since their immunity is very fragile, the likelihood of death increases significantly.
Outwardly, the fruit of the crow's eye resembles blueberries or blueberries, so in the forest you should be careful not to accidentally bring home the crow's eye instead of other completely harmless berries. Especially it is necessary to look after small children, who have a dangerous habit of putting everything that does not lie well into their mouths.
The berry is the most dangerous part of the plant, but fortunately, the crow's eye fruit tastes and smells unpleasant, some people even feel dizzy, nauseous and have a headache from its smell. That is why animals also disdain the berries of this plant. By the way, interesting feature- birds eat raven eye berries in large quantities, and are not poisoned. Why? Botany and ornithology do not yet know the answer to this question. Alas, children often confuse the beautiful black fruits of the crow's eye with blueberries or blueberries.
Therefore, a person should immediately go to the hospital if he notices the following dangerous symptoms in himself or his child:
- Stomach ache;
- Diarrhea;
- Vomit;
- Dizziness;
- Convulsions or paralysis.
The berries of the Crow's eye can cause disturbances in the work of the heart, or even stop it. Therefore, it is forbidden to use it in medicine, however, if a person wants to take a chance and trust traditional medicine, he should exercise maximum caution. Despite the fact that the berries are deadly, they contain such useful substances as vitamin C, organic (citric and malic) acids, flavonoids. In folk medicine, craftsmen make an alcohol tincture from fresh crow's eye leaves. The plant is sometimes prescribed by homeopaths for drowsiness, mental disorders, wounds that are difficult to heal, or for various hearing disorders. In Russia, herbalists occasionally used the common raven eye to treat tuberculosis.
What does the raven eye plant look like?
If you find pictures, you will notice: the flower is interesting because it is based on absolute symmetry, so that it can rightfully be called one of the most beautiful and deadly plants in our forests. Some artists, including Shishkin, even tried to draw this plant on their canvases.
Raven eye:
- This is a fairly tall plant with broad ovate leaves that have pointed tips.
- The flower is single, it is at the top and looks completely unremarkable.
- In appearance, this flower resembles a small four-pointed star, in the center of which there is a small black spherical berry.
As a rule, the common raven eye settles alone, however, occasionally you can see up to 30 of these plants growing very close to each other, but this is more an exception than a rule.
Where does the raven eye predominantly grow?
This plant has a wide distribution area, including the temperate zone of Russia, the Caucasus and Siberia, Ukraine and Belarus. The raven eye grows, including in the northern and central parts of Europe, in the Mediterranean and in North America.
Most often, the raven eye can be found:
- On the slopes of ravines;
- In the pastures;
- In the meadows;
- Along the banks of the rivers;
- Among trees and bushes.
In deciduous and mixed forests, the plant prefers to settle in semi-shaded areas that are rich in humus, loam and well moistened. The raven eye plant can occasionally be found in the forest-steppe or in coniferous forests.
Crow's eye - a poisonous plant (video)
In conclusion, it is worth noting the unique compatibility of very dangerous poisons and useful components of this plant, which allows it, along with a beautiful view, to be the focus of not only scientific medicine, but also in demand among herbalists.