Corydalis solida

Scientific description

Taxon: Angiospermatophyta (Magnoliophyta)
Class: Dicotyledonatae (Magnoliatae)
Subclass: Magnoliidae (Polycarpicae)
Order: Papaverales
Family: Fumariaceae
Common name: Corydalis
Origin: Northern Europe

Description:
It is a perennial, vernal herbaceous plant. With well-developed, hard, and compact bulbs. The stem is succulent, fleshy, erect, unbranched, and rarely exceeds 20cm in height, green or reddish-brown in color. Sometimes two stems can develop from the same rhizome. The stem leaves are usually in pairs and petiolate. The inflorescence is a simple, erect, terminal raceme, usually multiflowered, dense. The purple flowers - with a short, curved spur, the upper lip twisted at the edge - are numerous. It blooms in March-April. The fruit is an ovate-lanceolate capsule, 1-3cm long. The seeds are globose, black, shiny.

Propagation: seeds or bulbs.

Ecology:
Common from the plain to the mountain areas, in meadows, shrubs. It loves shade and thrives on rocky slopes with moderate nitrogen soils.

Use:
It is a toxic plant, due to bulbocapnine, it also contains active substances such as corydaline, corycavine. The bulbs are used medicinally. Preparations from corydalis have an action on the nervous system, they are also used to help with heart conditions, but they also help the gastrointestinal tract. Juice can be obtained from the stems and flowers. It is also an ornamental plant, with horticultural importance, used for landscaping courtyards, gardens.

Threat: As a medicinal plant, Corydalis is little known in our country. It is a native species, mentioned in the Red List of superior plants in Romania (Oltean et al., 1994). Currently, the species is threatened by the replacement of grasslands and shrubs with arable land and grazing.

Creative writing inspired by Corydalis Solida

Written by Andreea Tote

The Love from the Sunken Monastery

On the outskirts of the village of Remetea, there once stood a monastery, a sanctuary for a community of monks. Whenever the three rivers—Tisza, Tur, and Someș—overflowed simultaneously, with their waters uncontrolled at the time, the monastery would become completely isolated from the surrounding inhabited areas for long periods.

Near the monastery, in an ancient oak forest, grew the brebenel—a delicate and discreet flower. As it developed, it would unfold its slender leaves in a vibrant, fresh shade of green. Its small, fragile blossoms displayed soft pastel hues of pink and purple, creating a graceful and refined visual spectacle. Upon first encounter, its subtle fragrance would gently envelop your senses, offering a moment of enchantment, as if in a magical garden.

Legend has it that this garden was born from the tragic love between an orphan girl, skilled in the healing arts of medicinal plants, and a young man of noble descent—perhaps even a prince. Though their love was genuine, it was never accepted. After their death, white brebenel bloomed from the girl's grave, a symbol of purity and sorrow, while violet brebenel grew from the boy's grave, a sign of longing and unfulfilled love.

The monastery itself did not escape a tragic fate. Repeated floods saturated the ground so thoroughly that, one day, the building collapsed and was swallowed by the waters. It is said that until the very last moment, a monk rang the bell without pause. Even today, legends say that every seventh year, the tolling of that bell can still be heard echoing from the depths.

And the young lovers? It is believed that they, too, continue their love beyond time, meeting again and again in the form of the delicate brebenel flowers that bloom each spring— a silent reminder of a love that never ended.

3D Interactive View

Authentic Specimen