Introduction
| We see how scattered scrubs are increasingly formed by rhododendron and juniper. |
| In the most humid parts, among the junipers you will see a plant with split leaves and a sprig of beautiful blue flowers (July and August). It is the monk's-hood (foto), or poisonous grass. ATTENTION: The whole plant is VERY TOXIC, especially rhizomes (roots) and seeds. In case of ingestion of some part of the plant, death may occur after one or two hours later, as a result of arrhythmias or respiratory paralysis caused, sometimes, by pulmonary edema. The prognosis is very serious. The monk's-hood was already known in Asia more than 2,000 years ago, where it had been used as poison used with arrows and as a murder agent. In Europe, it had been used in executions in the Middle Ages. |
| It grows within pastured and moist grasslands forming clays that cattle do not eat. Aconitin is the active ingredient and has medicinal properties that only experts can use when they know exactly the content of this element. |
| The dominant shrub, the juniper, is the dwarf variety (50 cm) of the junipers we know in the average mountain (1-5 m) and grows in subalpine meadows. It is this low stinging plain with acicular leaves with a clear line. The astringent fruits are used to marinate meat or drought to make sauces. |
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