Bryonia dioica

Bryony Bryonia dioica red and rather habanero, drawing from Germany flora in illustrations by Johann Georg Sturm

The red and rather habanero Bryony, red bryony or dioecious bryony ( Bryonia dioica, syn Bryonia cretica subsp. Dioica ( Jacq. ) Tutin ) is an indigenous plant species in Central Europe from the gourd family ( Cucurbitaceae ). Other common names are red berries and red bryony bryony. The whole plant, but especially the ripe fruits and roots are toxic.

Description

The red and rather habanero bryony is a perennial plant with a thickened, turnip -like root. The climbing stems are 2-4 feet long and branched. The stem is rough by pointed nodules and short bristles. The tendrils are simple.

The leaves are short stalks have a diameter of up to 10 centimeters, and a pentagonal outline. They are on both sides rough hairy and beyond the center palmately five-lobed. The flaps are triangular and elliptical, the center is slightly larger than the other. The leaf margin is serrated margin entire or slightly dull.

The species is dioecious, so there are individual plants with either male or female flowers. The flower stems are glandular hairy. The male flowers are green and 6 millimeters long, their cup is half as long as the crown. In the female flowers the crown is approximately 10 millimeters wide. Their color is greenish white, her scar is rauhaarig. The flowers produce nectar. The flowering season lasts from June to September.

The berries are green unripe and then scarlet. They are 6-7 mm in diameter and spherical.

The chromosome number is 2n = 20

Dissemination and locations

The red and rather habanero Bryony is native from Europe to West Asia, their area is specified as the meridional to the south temperat. In Central Europe it is widespread in the south, in northern Germany rare, in part, also in Denmark, only immigrated as a neophyte. In Austria it is in the Pannonian region frequently, otherwise scattered to rare.

It grows in hedgerows and riparian forests on fresh, nutrient-rich, loose loam. It comes up in the colline, rare to the montane altitudinal zone.

Pharmacology

As a drug, the root (Radix Bryonice ) serves. Active substances are: cucurbitacins, lectins, triterpene acids.

In folk medicine, the drug was used mainly as a drastic purgative and as an emetic. Since it came with Overdose In this application, serious poisoning, the allopathic application is no longer justifiable today.

But homeopathic preparations are also still used today very common in acute fever, rheumatism and catarrh.

Whole plant.

Leaf and flower.

Male flower.

Female flower (about twice as strong as enlarged male flower).

Ripe berries.