The Cretaceous horse It is a plant that goes by various names, but often it is known as viboreraas with several of the species of the horse and that in turn belong to the Boraginaceae family.
In ancient times it has been a very famous plantsince it was believed that this was an excellent remedy to heal the bites left by snakes. The scientific name that this has, receives other names, such as girdles of the field, sucker that is hairy, chupamiel de la Castilla, the tail of the cat, cimarrona bojarra and also tongue of the ox.
Features Cretaceous horse
Viborera is one of the names that has been given to this plant because it has an extraordinary resemblance to the shape of the head of the viper. On the other hand, ox tongue refers to how rough it is. Because it is very hairy, when you touch the plant it has a texture that is quite similar to that of an ox’s tongue.
This is a biennial plant that measures approximately 40 to 80 cm long. It has a very peculiar stem that allows it to be differentiated from any other kind of plant, since it is covered by a class of hairs sticky that have a fairly rough texture, apart from being very thick.
Its leaves are very elongated, shaped similar to that of a spear, and are of the sessile class. The combination of the leaves and flowers of this plant it makes it look like the shape of a viper’s head. When the flowers come out they have a beautiful purple color and as their development continues, the color turns into a blue or in many cases a violet.
This color change is one of the signs that indicates the state of its growth at that precise moment. The shape of the masses is like a kind of tube that expands to the extreme. The resemblance is much more similar to the viper if inside the flowers there are at least 5 stamens that are more extensive than its corolla, which when protruding have the appearance of a viper’s tongue.
The flowering of the Cretaceous horse It only happens in a couple of months and is from June to July. Regarding the fruit it produces, it is like an achene that has about four seeds inside.
Collection and habitat
The viborera can be found at the ends of roads and paths. The seeds that the plant generates spread and then grow spontaneously in these kinds of places. As usual, are accompanied by another class of plants that are considered as a vegetation that is stumbled. The presence of this class of plants that are humanized, is due to the appearance of a large amount of residues that are organic that come from livestock and agriculture.
Since this kind of land is altered by people to be able to carry out different activities at the agricultural level, They have dirt roads that are used to move the necessary machinesvehicles or a trail mode. Usually the Cretaceous horse It appears in this kind of area and its diet is based on the remains of organic products that are generated by these activities.
It is a plant that comes from the Mediterranean from the western part. In the Spanish field, the viborera can be found in Alicante, Gerona, Murcia, Valencia, the Balearic Islands, Barcelona and Tarragona. In another class of places it may be found on the roads that belong to agricultural lands in the company of another class of plants that are rural.
For harvesting, it is very important that it is carried out before flowering occurs or after it has begun. In the month of April they are already fully prepared to be collected and also preserved. The flowers are the parts that tend to have the most use in this plant.
Uses
Many people use the leaves of this plant when they are fresh for the preparation of salads that have more nutrients. However, when the leaves are old it is not advisable to use them. The stem of this plant contains many pyrrolizidine alkaloitieswhich makes consuming them become dangerous.
Long before people can place the leaves as part of a salad, it is best to be sure that they are fresh and in the best condition. Flowers on the other hand, have a high mucilage content and therefore, they can be used for the preparation of infusions that are diuretic, healing, emollient and also pectoral.
It is used primarily as a cleanser. The viborera has alkaloids that are excellent for a diuretic remedy. People who suffer from obesity or who consume too many carbohydrates, often suffer from fluid retention and that is why infusions made with Cretaceous horseare commonly used as a treatment for these types of conditions as well as for rheumatic pain.
It is also important to mention that it is an excellent plant for pectoral treatments. The leaves and flowers, as they contain mucilages, are excellent demulcent properties. Therefore, it is ideal to treat a cough and diseasessuch as bronchitis since it acts as an expectorant.
remedies
Not only can it be used as a treatment for conditions that are internal and this is because has a lot of allantoinwhich makes it an ideal plant for the preparation of external remedies.
This is a substance used since ancient times for the preparation of various creams in cosmetics and also for the preparation of certain ointments due to the high amount of properties that are healing, rejuvenating as well as regenerating for the skin. Best of all, these properties are combined with mucilage. as well as tannins, so that its effect can be enhanced.
The oil that can be extracted from the seeds produced by the viborera, contains many omega 3 fatty acids or being more specific, it has a substance called steanidonic acid. It is an oil that is ideal for making anti-inflammatory treatments as well as for acne treatments and also to improve the general appearance of the skin.
Many people in ancient times used to think that This is a plant that has many magical properties. Having an appearance similar to that of the viper, it was believed that it was the best medicine to treat the bites that these animals left. However, over the years it could be shown that this was a totally false fact.
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