Plant
Spanish Broom
Spartium junceumAlso known as Rush Broom, Weaver's Broom
Spanish Broom is a tall Mediterranean shrub with flexible rush-like green stems, sparse leaves, and fragrant yellow pea flowers. It colonizes sunny rocky ground and disturbed slopes, and it can form invasive stands well beyond its native range.
yellow pea flowersrush-like stemsMediterranean shrub
—observations
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—peak records
Not EvaluatedConservation statusIUCN Red List categoriesLCNTVUENCREWEXNot Evaluated — not placed on the risk ladderRed List categories, explained →
Diet & preyPhotosynthesis supplemented by nitrogen-fixing root bacteria and nutrients from dry, often poor soil
Predators
- seed-feeding beetles
- browsing mammals
- sap-sucking insects
ThreatsSevere frost, prolonged waterlogging, land conversion in native habitat, and control programs where invasive
HabitatsMediterranean scrub, rocky slopes, roadsides, rail embankments, quarries, and other sunny disturbed ground
Life spanA woody perennial that commonly persists for several decades
Classification
- FamilyFabaceae
- SpeciesSpartium junceum
Range data is not available yet.
Interaction riskHigh
- Low
- Moderate
- High
- Very high
- Why interaction risk is high
- Seeds and other plant parts contain toxic alkaloids and should never be swallowed by people or pets.
- Why it is dangerous
- Quinolizidine alkaloids in the plant can cause serious gastrointestinal, neurologic, and cardiac effects after ingestion.
- How to recognize a risky encounter
- Confirm tall green rush-like stems bearing fragrant yellow pea flowers and flattened seed pods.
- What to do
- Keep children and pets from chewing the plant, wear gloves during removal, and seek poison advice after ingestion.
Responsible observation
- Identify: Match the nearly leafless green stems with fragrant yellow pea-shaped flowers.
- Contain: Do not move pods, seeds, or cuttings from established stands into uninvaded habitat.
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