Bladder-senna. Espantalobos

Description:

It is a large shrub or small tree that reaches 4 or 5 m in height and with branches with a fluffy or hollow heart. The fruit is very characteristic, as it is a globose legume at maturity, as if it were inflated, 4-9 cm long and with a papery appearance, that is, like paper.

Habitat:

It is a companion species of holm oaks, gall oaks and beech trees, typical of somewhat humid Mediterranean climates and that always grows on basic substrates. It appears more or less dispersed, since it never forms dense forests or stands, and lives between 300 and 1200 m of altitude.

Notes:

The ripe fruit is globose and when it dries it becomes a natural rattle, a characteristic from which most of its common names come. In popular medicine, the leaves of the wolfsbane in infusion favor the transit of minor waters (diuretics), major waters (laxatives), the vesicular expulsion of bile (cholagogue) and intestinal gases (carminatives). They also cleanse the kidneys (depuratives) and fight (fever) and stomach pain (analgesics). However, its fruit is quite toxic and can cause vomiting (emetic) if ingested.