Coriaria myrtifolia
| Coriaria myrtifolia | |
|---|---|
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| Leaves and mature fruits in July | |
| Scientific classification | |
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| Species: | C. myrtifolia
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| Binomial name | |
| Coriaria myrtifolia | |
| Synonyms[1] | |
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C. hermaphrodita Turra | |
Coriaria myrtifolia, called in English redoul, is a plant with poisonus fruits and whose leaves were traditionally used as raw material in tanning (making leather out of skins).
Name[change | change source]
The Spanish name emborrachacabras (that is, getting goats drunk) refers to the leaves' effect on goats that eat them. The French name (redoul) and Catalan name (roldor) come from Latin Rhus tyrius (Syrian or Tyrian sumac), referring to the leaves use in the traditional tannery industry, to make "Basil" leather.The honeydew from redoul is also toxic
Description[change | change source]
C. myrtifolia is a shrub to 2–3 m tall without hairs and with shiny leaves like the leaves of the myrtle (myrtifolia means "leaves like the leaves of the myrtle"). It produces small greenish flowers in spring (April to June) in racemes (a kind of inflorescence).
It produces fruits in early summer. The fruits look like berries but they are small nuts (achenes) protected by enlarged and colored petals; it is the same of all the species of the genus Coriaria.[2] Fruits cannot be eaten because their seeds are very poisonous.[3]
The plants of redoul can fix nitrogen from the air because they have bacteria in their roots.[4]
Where it grows[change | change source]
C. myrtifolia is found only around the western Mediterranean Sea, not too far from the coast but near rivers:[5]
- Southern Portugal.
- Spain, along the Mediterrean coast and mainly in Catalonia. In the Balearic Islands, it appears only in Ibiza.
- Southern France
- Italy, in the region near to France.
- Morocco
- Algeria
References[change | change source]
- ↑ Royal Botanic Gardens, Kews. "Coriaria myrtifolia". World Checklist of Selected Plant Families. Retrieved 23 May 2013.
- ↑ Tien-lu Ming and Anthony R. Brach. "Coriariaceae" (PDF). Retrieved 23 May 2013.
- ↑ The Free Dictionary. "Coriaria". Retrieved 23 May 2013.
- ↑ "Coriariaceae". Frankia & Actinorhizal Plants. Archived from the original on 28 July 2012. Retrieved 23 May 2013.
- ↑ Montserrat, Pedro (1958). "Root Nodules of Coriaria". Nature. 182 (475): 475. doi:10.1038/182475a0. S2CID 4251802.
Other websites[change | change source]
