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For the Tibetan village see Ombu, Tibet

Phytolacca dioica
Ombú in Fullerton Arboretum
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
(unranked):	Angiosperms
(unranked):	Eudicots
(unranked):	Core eudicots
Order:	Caryophyllales
Family:	Phytolaccaceae
Genus:	Phytolacca
Species:	P. dioica
Binomial name
Phytolacca dioica L.

Phytolacca dioica, commonly known as ombú, is a massive evergreen tree native to the Pampa of South America. It has an umbrella-like canopy that spreads to a girth of 12 to 15 meters (40 to 50 feet) and can attain a height of 12 to 18 meters (40 to 60 feet). Because it is derived from herbaceous ancestors, its trunk consists of anomalous secondary thickening rather than true wood. As a result, the ombú grows fast but its wood is soft and spongy enough to be cut with a knife. These properties have led it to be used in the art of bonsai, as it is easily manipulated to create the desired effect. Since the sap is poisonous, the ombú is not grazed by cattle and is immune to locusts and other pests. For similar reasons, the leaves are sometimes used as a laxative or purgant. It is a symbol of Uruguay and Argentina, and of Gaucho culture, as its canopy is quite distinguishable from afar and provides comfort and shelter from sun and rain.

The herb is categorized in the same genus as the North American pokeweed. The species is also cultivated in Southern California as a shade tree.

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Jorge Bucay at a book signing in Madrid in 2008

Jorge Bucay (born 1949) is a gestalt psychotherapist, psychodramatist, and writer from Argentina. His books have sold more than 2 million copies around the world, and have been translated into more than seventeen languages.

He was born in the Floresta neighborhood of Buenos Aires in 1949 to a modest family. He started working at the age of thirteen. In the course of his life, he has worked as a traveling salesman selling socks, books and sports clothing, as well as an insurance agent, taxi driver, clown, warehouseman, educator, actor, doctor on duty, host of children's parties, psychiatrist, group coordinator, radio collaborator, and television host.

In 1973, he graduated as a doctor from the University of Buenos Aires, and specialized in mental illnesses at the Buenos Aires Pirovano Hospital and at the Santa Mónica clinic.

He currently defines his job as professional helper. He divides his attention between attending therapeutic teaching conferences, which have taken him around the world, and the writing of his books, which he considers therapeutic tools.

Works[link]

His published works include:

• "Cartas para Claudia" (Letters for Claudia) (1986, 2nd ed. 2007)
• "Recuentos para Demián" (Stories for Demián) (1994)
• "Cuentos para pensar" (Stories for Thought) (1997)
• "De la autoestima al egoísmo" (From Self-Esteem to Egotism) (1999)
• "Amarse con los ojos abiertos" (Loving Oneself With Open Eyes) (with Silvia Salinas) (2000)
• "Déjame que te cuente" (Let Me Tell You) (2002)
• "Todo (No) Terminó" (It's (Not) All Over) (with Silvia Salinas) (2004)
• "El Juego de los Cuentos" (The Game of Stories) (2004)
• "Cuenta Conmigo" (Count on Me) (2005)
• "El Mito de le Diosa Fortuna" (The Myth of the Goddess of Fortune) (2006)
• "20 pasos hacia adelante" (Twenty Steps Forward) (2007)
• "El candidato" (The Candidate) (Winner of Premio de Novela Ciudad de Torrevieja in 2006).

Four books constitute his series, "Hojas de Ruta" (Roadmaps):

• "El camino de la auto-dependencia" (The Road of Self-Dependence)
• "El camino del encuentro" (The Road of Encounter)
• "El camino de las lágrimas" (The Road of Tears)
• "El camino de la felicidad" (The Road of Happiness)

His works have become bestsellers in Mexico, Uruguay, Chile, Costa Rica, Venezuela, Puerto Rico, Spain and Greece.

In 2005, he was accused of copying the fifth part of his book, Shimriti, from a text by Mónica Cavallé,^[1] though he later declared that it was "an absolutely involuntary error" while citing sources.

Awards and honors[link]

• 2006: Premio de Novela Ciudad de Torrevieja, winner, El Candidato

References[link]

1. ^ Friera, Silvina (2005), “Sería mejor si admitiera su error”, Diario Página/12, La Página, Buenos Aires, Argentina [02/12/2007]

External links[link]

• (Spanish:) Healthy Mind, Jorge Bucay's magazine
• (Spanish:) Amarse con los ojos abiertos Forum
• (Spanish:) Famous Quotes of Jorge Bucay
• (Spanish:) Biography