Plants are among the most abundant living things on the planet. Some are common, others rare and exotic, but the more their uses are studied, the more the discoveries are made. incredible benefits and properties that plants bring to life of human beings.
Modern botany and pharmaceuticals owe much to all plant species. People commonly use them as food and home remedies. One of the plants that are common in the Iberian region and have excellent properties is the Unciana, being very useful for infections, fungi and animal care.
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The Old Woman It is an herb native to the Mediterranean area whose scientific name is Dorycnium straight. Other names by which this plant is also known are yerba palo, odorless royal clover, king’s crosses, junciana carretón bravo and emborrachacabras.
Unciana is an herb of the legumes Fabaceae, that is, where the seeds are attached in the plant.
Of course, as most of these plants are perennials, they can live for more than two years. These types of herbs are also called vivacious. The plants Dorycnium they have more than 70 species among which only twelve are recognized, one of them being the Dorycnium straight.
Characteristics of the Unciana
This plant can reach between 40 and 160 centimeters in heightthe stems are straight or erect and woody at the base and the leaves are green, almost always glabrescent, that is, covered with hairs. They are also odd-pinnate with the shape of leaflets that are oval from twelve to twenty millimeters.
The stems are straight ascending with numerous branches and it blooms between May and July with flowers that have a foliose bract, the corolla being white-pink, with a cylindrical fruit with a smooth texture and a brown-purple color.
It has about seven or nine seeds. The grains are 1.2 millimeters long, oval in shape and brown with dark brown spots.
Cultivation and care
Like all wild plants, the old woman requires little careas it usually appears in humid environments such as grasslands, meadows and the banks of rivers. To sow it, neither great hydration nor much sun is required. The type of soil is not decisive either, although it is worth fertilizing it once a year and using fertilizer every two or three months.
The pollination of this plant is entomophilousbeing between July and August when the optimal seed collections are made. If it is to be reproduced in the nursery, it should be done with treatment in the spring time
It can also be sown with a stake, choosing the semi-woody ones in the apical zone. It must be treated with hormones and protect from the low temperatures of the spring night.
Properties and uses
The Dorycnium straight It has different properties, among which its antiseptic, digestive and antifungal qualities stand out.
For these reasons are used to treat stomach digestive problemsulcers and pain in general and prevents wounds from becoming infected, being highly healing. Eliminates different types of fungi with high effectiveness.
Many pet owners use it to cure skin problems in their dogs caused by various reasons. This herb is not toxic.
The Dorycnium rectum or Unciana occur in several Mediterranean countries and in much lesser quantity in North Africa, being widely used by popular culture to cure different conditions.
This plant has the great advantage of not representing risks in its use. However it is very important to inquire with the doctor when using doses of preparations with plants since the causes of different health problems must always be known.
There are many species of Dorycnium and sometimes they get confused with each other, so it’s important define well the characteristics of the corresponding plantAlthough they are from the same herbaceous family, they may differ in some properties and uses.
