Yellow Flowers on the Motorway in Granada

In May the yellow flowers of the Spanish Broom make the motorways very attractive. This plant is very hardy and manages to survive very well in the harsh conditions at the side of the road. This species is native to the Mediterranean in southern Europe, southwest Asia and northwest Africa,  where it is found in sunny sites, usually on dry, sandy soils. The latin name is Spartium junceum and is considered an invasive weed in some countries.

One Spanish broom plant can produce hundreds of seeds. This plant uses bursting of the seeds pods in order to disperse the seeds as far as possible from the parent plant. The ripe seeds are flung due to an inner tension when the pods dry out. The continuous crackling of the bursting seed pods  on a hot, sunny July day is readily noticeable. The side of the seedpod facing the sun dries out more quickly than the side in the shade, causing the pod to buckle and pop open. The Spanish name for this plant is retama.

I attempted to find information about how to make a broom from Spanish broom but most artisan brooms are made with hazel or broomcorn.