Pargañas i rebentabueyis: Phytolacca decandra

Quandu allegamus pola primel ves al Valli mos susprendió la variedá de prantas que ain. Pa primerus dela toñá junta las gargantas i regatus i mesmu enos desagüis ai una pranta que era la primel ves que la viamus i que mos resultó estraña pol colol tan huerti que tienin los sus frutus: la Phytolacca decandra.

When we first arrived to the Jerte's Valley, the variety of plants surprised us. At the beginning of the autumn near the pass, streams and drainage channel close to the river, there was a plant we found it very strange at first sight due to the intense colour of its fruits: Phytolacca decandra.

Matu de prantas en una gavia/Plants in a ditch

Ya pol espetu dava que no era provincia i en buscandu a tentu del su origi, vidi que vien d'América i que amás ya estava destendía pol norti estremeñu ya nel sigru XVIII. Los librus de botánica d'esti sigru la dan corrienti ena Vera i en los montis d'Ávila con Estremaúra, asseñalandu Candelea. Costa que vien dela Virginia i que allí se consumi, peru que aquí alvertimus de que es envenenosa i no ai que hazel usu d'ella sin conocimientu.

Because of its appearance I thought it was not autochthonous and looking for its origin, I saw that it came from America and what is more, it was already extended in the north of Estremadura in the eighteenth century. The books about botany from this century show the common locations in the Vera and in the hills linking Ávila and Estremadura, marking Candeleda. It appears in Virginia where this plant is consumed, but we warn you that this poisonous plant should not be consumed under any circumstances.

Detalli dela oja/Detail of the leaf

Sobre el nombri vernáculu en estremeñu, ná vos pueu dizil, ya que no ei síu escapás de decumental el su nombri. En castellanu dizin hierba carmín, en gallego herba tintureira i en portugués namás tintureira peru no sé si en Estremaúra tendrá angún nombri comparanti pol usu delos bagus pa tintal. Por esti gastu, el de tintal, i el de ciertus usus melecinalis, el cultivu d'esta pranta saltó delos jardinis alos campus ata adatal-si alas bondais d'esta tierra.

Regarding the popular name in Estremaduran, I cannot say anything, since I was not able to find out anything about it. In Castilian Spanish it is called hierba carmin, in Galician the name is herba tintureira and in a similar way in Portugal they called it tintureira, but I do not know if there is an Estremaduran name related to the use of the fruits as colouring. Due to its use as colouring, and to other medicinal uses, the farming of this plant became more and more common until it got used to the advantageous conditions of this land.

Pranta a aflorecel/Plant blooming

Pol su origi, enque en aparencia no es dañina pal ambienti ondi se cría, sí que es envadiora ya que la su fortaleza i el gustu que tien polos sitius frescus i con agua has otras especiis propias no puean convivil, comu no sean helechus o çarças o árvolis de ribera. Comu otras prantas que vedremus en siguientis endilgus, el esparramamientu d'esta pranta se da polos brotis dela raís i pola ación delos páxarus, de má que si no ai un cudiu acupa lindis, barrancas i gavias mu facimenti si halla agua i frescu.

Apparently it does not seem to be harmful for the environment, yet it certainly is an invasive plant, for its strength and its taste for the cool and wet places making it difficult for the autochthonous flora to live together unless they are blackberries, ferms or trees from the riverbank. Like other plants we will see in the next articles, the seeds' spreading is promoted by the birds, so if we are not careful these plants can invade bounderies, ravines and ditches where they can fin water and cool place very easily.

Primerus frutus/First fruits

La pranta múa bastanti dendi que prencipia a cobral florencia pa primavera, reverdeciendu los tronchus i las ojas que s'esparraman pa cogel tola lus que puean. Alogu ya pala terminación del veranu, los tallinus múan del verdi i al morau comu si s'enreara a colal sangri por ellus i los frutus, que alo primeru se aparecin alos pan-i-quesitus quandu son verdis, s'enviertin en bolas morás mu ressaltantis en rezimus comu si huera uvas, abangandu-si la pranta pol pesu delos rezimus essus. Toa esta volución la poemus vel nel reportagi fotográficu duranti varius mesis a destintas prantas del Valli.

This plant changes a lot since it starts to bloom in spring, growing green again and spreading its leaves so that it can get all the sunlight it needs. At the end of the summer, the barks turn from green into purple like blood flowing inside it, at the beginning the fruits look like mallow's fruits when they are green, then they become bigger outstanding purple balls like a bunch of grapes and bending as a result of its weight. We can see all these evolutions in the next plants from the valley we are going to show you in the following articles.

Bagus maúrus/Ripen fruits

DATUS DELA PRANTA/PLANT'S DATA

Nombri científicu/Scientific name: Phytolacca decandra.

Nombri corrienti/Common name: Carminera.

Familia/Family: Phytolaccaceae

Floración/Flowering period: ?

A TENTU DELAS RETRATAÚRAS/ABOUT PICTURES

Sitiu/Place: El Conventu, Garganta la Lus (Cabeçuela/Cabezuela del Valle), El Cordel (Nava'l-Conceju/Navaconcejo), Las Mingarras (Nava'l-Conceju/Navaconcejo).