20 Graines Vipérine commune, vipérine vulgaire, Echium vulgare

Common viperine, vipers grass, vulgar viperine, echium vulgare |

Common viperine or vulgar viperine or serpentine1 (Échium vulgare L.) is a species DE Plants Dicotyledons de la Famille des Boraginaceae, originally fromEurasie.

20 seeds

It is a herbaceous plant biennial widespread in most temperate regions of the world, in wasteland and disturbed land. It often behaves like a weed of cultures. It is a toxic plant in high doses, especially for livestock, due to the presence ofPyrrolizidinic alkaloids.

The common viperine is a herbaceous plant, erected, hairy, with leaves with a single protruding rib, the basals being petiolate lanceolate oval, narrow sessile superiors.

It is Hermaphrodite.

Inflorescence is a Grapped of Cymes Uniparous Scorpioids. The flowers have a variable color depending on the age, from pink to stadium buttons in bright blue at maturity. There is a white form (Albiflora). They have five unequal, very protruding stamens (with red nets and yellow anthers).

The fruit is a Nucle (type ofAKENE sclerified), brown in color, with angular contours and with triangular section, on the surface decorated with many protuberance. This nucle, 2.5 to 3.0 mm long by 1.25 to 1.5 mm wide, contains only one seed. The nucleles are grouped by four (tetrakenes)2. The seeds are very small (400 seeds weigh 1 g^{[réf. nécessaire]}).

According to theory of signatures (Corolles with unequal lobes vaguely resembling open jaws and bifid styles evoking a snake language)13, this plant was supposed to treat viper bites. In fact, it contains an alkaloid paralyzing like the curare, theechine or cynoglossine, but in quantity so small (0, 0017 percent of the weight of the fresh plant) that it is harmless for humans14.

The Pharmacopoeia However, uses the infusion to calm cough (dried flowers with depurative, pectoral and diuretic properties)15.

Contents subject to the CC-BY-SA 3.0license. Source : Article common viperine of Wikipedia in French (Authors)