Bizarre Plants :Dictamnus

The burning bush Dictamnus albus is a member of the Rutaeceae. Many

plants of dry locations are known to increase production of terpenes to

cool leaf surfaces by terpene transpiration. Dictam, however, produces

so much that it can undergo self-ignition (see burning bush stories in

Bible & Koran) .

It is thought that droplet formation in the leaf focuses sunlight to a

temperature that ignites terpenes which burn like a gas grill using the

stomates as valves.

Stinking Plants

Rafflesia arnoldii. Rafflesia was found in the Indonesian rain forest

by an Indonesian guide working for Dr. Joseph Arnold in 1818, &

named after Sir Thomas Raffles, leader of the expedition

Corps Flower Titan arum. with sharp points at the pollen

surface. One plant produces a billion grains of pollen that can

stay airborne for days spreading over an area of many miles.

Affects 75 % of all allergy sufferers.

Stinking Iris Iris foetissima. It is known as "stinking" because

some people find the smell of its leaves unpleasant when

crushed or bruised, an odour that has been described as "beefy"

Skunk cabbage Symphocarpus foetidus is one

of the many stinky plants in its family the

Araeceae.

Stinking Hellebore Helleborus foetidus, known variously as

stinking hellebore, dungwort, and bear's foot, is in Ranunculaceae,

native of the mountainous regions of Central and Southern Europe

The burping skunk tree

The elephant tree Bursera microphylla is native to Northern Mexico, Southern

California and Arizona, especially desert regions. It reaches 5 m in height. The foliage

is made up of long, legume-like leaves which are composed of paired leaflets. It flowers

in rounded yellow buds which open into small, star-shaped white or cream flowers

is a member of the Burseraceae, related to frankincense (Boswellia) and myrrh

(Commiphora) but unlike them it stinks (skunk tree).

When you tug on a

leaf it burps and

emits a fine spray

over 50 cmm

distance that is

foul fetid smelling

caused by amines

Buddha’s Hand Citrus medica

Buddha's hand, Citrus medica var. sarcodactylis (also known as fingered citron), is a fragrant citron variety in the Rutaeceae whose fruit is segmented into finger-like sections. The origin of Buddha's hand plant is traced back to Northeastern India.

Buddha’s hand is a citrus fruit popular in China and

Japan for its strong fragrance. It fails as a fruit since it’s

pretty much all zest and no pulp, but it has other uses,

Chinese Fleece Flower Fallopia ssp.

Okay, weird. It’s a root that looks like a little dude. But

that’s a rare, onetime fluke, right? It’s not like that’s

what this species typically looks like or anything??

Roots making a perfect couple made headlines in

2006 …. �

The Chinese Fleece flower is in the genus Fallopiain the family Polygoniaeceae, a relative of the infamous Japanese Knotweed Fallopia japonica. The Chinese use this plant in their traditional medicine for kidney health, strong bones and hair restoration, and as a mild laxative, and it’s.. Hey, wait a second…

“ I tell you, … it

is a sign, yeah, ah …

it’s an omen!” The end of

the world is close, oh Rose

Doll’s Eyes Actaea pachypodia

The Doll’s eye plant, also known

by the equally unsettling name

“white baneberry.” Just in case

you were actually thinking of

eating this thing, those eyeballs

are highly poisonous.

Actaea pachypoda (Doll's-eyes, White Baneberry) is a herbaceous perennial plant in the family Ranunculaceae, native to eastern North America. The berries contain cardiogenic toxins which can have an immediate sedative effect on human cardiac muscle tissue, and are the most poisonous part of the plant. Ingestion of the berries can lead to cardiac arrest and death.

Phototoxic Plants – Blister Bush

Blister bush, with its greenish-yellow umbrella-shaped

flowers, is perfectly harmless, until you touch it &

a cocktail of psoralen, xanthotoxin, bergapten and

other chemicals are brushed off the plant’s leaves onto

your skin.

Peucedanum galbanum, Blister Bush, is a plant in the family Apiaceae, Like

other members of the family like Heracleum or cow parsnip or Angelica

touching it can cause blistering if the irritant chemicals are exposed to sunlight

Blister bush isn’t the only plant that can cause

phototoxic reactions. Check out Amy Stewart Wicked

Plants: The Weed that Killed Lincoln’s Mother and

Other Botanical Atrocities,

Exposure of the chemicals to sunlight triggers from a

mild irritation to severe blistering requiring weeks to

heal. Three days later a red-purple rash and large

burn-like welts appear on your skin.

Unusual PoisonsThe slobber weed: Pilocarpus pennatifolius stimulates the

salivary glands much more than the betel nut Areca catechu

(the nut causing red saliva that stains the street of Asia). Here

the secretion becomes so powerful that it interferes with

speech (ideal for political opponents!). Unfortunately, the

drooling (up to 2 pints) is followed by nausea & dizziness.

Drooling is also caused by the pencil tree extract. Pilocarpine

(an alkaloid used for glaucoma) is used to treat dry mouth &

also to stimulate sweat glands.

The Suicide Tree: Cerbera odollam is a relative of

Madagascan arrow poison tree Cerbera tanghin ( nuts that

are used in trials by ordeal). The tree grows at the SW coast

of India and has white jasmine-scented flowers. The nuts

look like green mangos & the white meat inside is full of

cardiac glycosides that stop the heart of a human within 4

hours. Widows & other religiously inclined people use these

nuts (mashed nut meat with brown sugar) as their last meal.

Also used to poison people since it has no bad taste & a

delayed action.

Pilocarpus: approx13

species in the Rutaceae,

from the tropics of S Amer.

Bizarre Plants

WB Emboden(1974): Bizarre Plants; magical, monstrous, mythical. MacMillan P. NY

Monstrous + stinky (amines): Amorphophallus titanum, Rafflesia

arnoldii, Aristolochia grandiflora (Humboldt), Welwitschia mirabilis,

Victoria amazonica, Aztecs’ handflower tree Cheirostemon platanoides

(related to Cocoa tree, Humboldt), Baobab (sausage) trees Adansonia,

boogam trees Idria columnaris (desert in Baja California), elephant or

skunk tree Bursera microphylla (Baja California; tug on leaf & it burps

out a foul smelling, fetid spray over a distance of 50 cm), squirting

cucumber Ecballium elaterum shoots fruit as a rocket over 3 m distance,

slimy mucilage with seeds sticks to the one who touched the fruit

Terpenes and air pollution

Exception

The production of

volatile terpenes is

highest in the early fall.

The terpenes are exuded

through the stomates &

often polymerize under

the influence of the UV

of the sun, creating the

blue haze the Smokies

are famous for.

It is generally accepted that the forests (called “lungs of the planet”) clean the

air of pollution, add oxygen & remove CO2 to restore an air that is pleasant to

breath. The opposite would be the smoky & stinky air of industrial places and

cities. However, there is an exception to this rule as observed from the forests

of the “ Smoky Mountains”.

Unknowns of Water: Water storage in Terminalia trees

Terminalia tomentosa has a remarkable

attribute: some members of the species store

water in the dry season. A survey conducted at

Bandipur National Park, India showed that

there is a girth dependent increase in the

frequency and amount of water storage.

A wikipedia picture file from October 15th 2007 shows this picture for

Terminalia tomentosa. Do not try this at home or with other trees!

Mechanism and ecophysiological

significance of this water storage

are not known

Terminalia elliptica has remarkably large-pored

vessels. The pictures on the right suggests a

large diameter that is no longer able to hold

water in by capillary action.

Higher plants invented propagation units called seeds

A seed is a small, but complete embryonic plant enclosed in a seed coat, usually with some stored food(exception the smallest orchid seeds). It is the product of the ripened female ovule and the fertilizing male pollen and hence a product of sexual propagation with its genes-mixing effect increasing the genetic diversity

of the offspring.

Lower plants have a propagation unit called

spore. A spore is a reproductive unit for

dispersal and surviving unfavorable conditions.

Spores form part of the life cycles of many

bacteria, algae, fungi and lower plants like

mosses and ferns.

The difference between spores and seeds is

that spores have very little stored food

resources compared with seeds.

Fern sporangia called sori are

packages containing many spores

Bizarre Plants: the largest & weirdly shaped seedMaldives or Seychelle Islands : source of unusual seed

coco-de-mer seeds first mistaken as eggs of griffins (Georg

Eberhard Rumpf 1682 named it Cocus maldivicus): most

important aphrodisiac & antidote like the benzoar (ideal

goblet material). Rudolf II German Emperor (1650) payed

4000 florins = 5000 gold thalers (dollars) for a seed

1742 French landed from Mauritius, 1768 that the

islands interior was explored & confirmed as the source

of coco-de-mer, the Seychelles’ nut Lodoicea palms

(daughter of Troy’s king Priam)

difficult to germinate; first Kew RoyalGarden plants

were pre-germinated in Seychelles & then grown in

1854 , hurrah ==> a yellow horizontal shoot projects

parallel to soil surface for 3 m before horizontal shoot

develops & root grows. Horizontal shoot rots away &

seedling cannot be traced back to seed.

Jelly-like endosperm of nuts is a delicacy for the rich.“Surely, Sir, it is

Priam’s daughter”

Pythagoras – one of the first European vegetarians did not

only abstain from meat, he didn’t eat beans either (the bean of

his time’s Europe was not the American Phaseolus but Vicia faba

– the broad bean).

P. believed that humans and beans were spawned from the same

source, and he conducted a scientific experiment to prove it.

He buried a quantity of beans in mud, let them remain there for a

few weeks, and then retrieved them. He noted their resemblance

to human fetuses, thus convincing himself of the intimate relationship between beans and humans. To eat a bean would

therefore be akin to eating human flesh.

Equally, to crush, smash, or dirty a bean would be to harm a

human. Thus the very strict rule to abstain from beans.

Myth: Pythagoras died refusing to run through a bean field.

Why are bean seeds so special?

We know from the labs of Botany I that Phaseolus or

the now so common garden beans have already a

primary leaf showing in their dormant embryos

inside the seed. This is truly unusual.

Botanical Jewelry: Seeds

The garden bean Phaseolus (upper

panel) has multiple color varieties

in its native Ecuador. Also kidney

beans (2) do not have to be red and

lima beans (3rd panel) occur in

many shades other than white.

Beauty & Toxicity are often close together

Voila, the toxic (hemagglutinins) but

soooo oh irresistably pretty seeds of the

1. rosary pea Abrus precatorius,

2. unique castor beans Ricinus communis

3. coral bean Adenanthera pavonina.

http://waynesword.palomar.edu/ww0901.htm

Botanical Jewelry http://waynesword.palomar.edu/ww0901.htm

Most people think of natural jewelry as shiny pieces of corals, pearls and precious

or semiprecious stones, polished and set in gold or silver. Who would ever believe

that some of the most unusual and striking jewelry comes from plants? Most

bot. jewelry is made from seeds which are drilled and strung into necklaces

Ear rings in dolphin shape made from

the exploded seed of the toxic plant

Hura crepitans – the sandbox tree

Arango created his bold jewelry from tagua nuts, a botanical alternative to ivory (a.k.a. vegetable ivory), a seed that comes from the ivory-nut palm or tagua palm which grows in the humid tropical forest of South America.

Phytelephas aequatorialis or Tagua nut – ivory plant

Female palms bear large, brown fruits, the

size of grapefruits or melons. Each fruit is

studded with numerous horns and contains 4

large seeds. The seeds have an outer shell

(seed coat) and a large white endosperm.

which is pulpy and sweet--food for people.

Mature, dry seeds are so hard that it

requires a hacksaw to cut one in half.

A place to see the beautiful South American ivory-nut palm (Phytelephas

aequatorialis), is the Napo River of Ecuador, a major tributary of the Amazon.

It typically grows under large rain forest trees along streams.

The white, dried endosperm inside the seeds of

ivory-nut palms contains a substance called

hemicellulose that becomes so hard and dense

that it can be carved and polished like elephant

tusks. 1865 ship sailing from South America to

Hamburg carried a load of tagua nuts as ballast.

tagua fruit cut open to expose 4 seeds

Botanical Jewelry http://waynesword.palomar.edu/ww0901.htm

Fruits of rudraksha

(Ruda’s = Shiva’s eyes)

Elaeocarpus angustifolius

have an iridescent blue

coating, which is used as a

prayer bead and good-luck

charm by religious hindus

like the sadhu on the right.

The fruits are 2 cm in

diameter and are coated

with a wax that scatters

blue light similar to what

we know from Laurintinus

berry Viburnum tinus.

The seeds have many

faces ( the faces of Shiva,

see below)

Euphorbia lathyris or Caper spurge

All parts of the plant, including the seeds and

roots are poisonous. Handling may cause skin

irritation as the plant produces latex. While

poisonous to humans and most livestock, goats eat

it and are immune to the toxin. However, the

toxin can be passed through the goat's milk

is an erect biennial plant of European origin growing up to 1.5 m tall, with a

glaucous blue-green stem and decussate opposite lanceolate leaves.

This plant is a good source of copious

amounts of latex.

Since the latex is an emulsion of hydrocarbons

in water, this plant was investigated as a

possible source of making petroleum.

But then the oil prices dropped again and ...da

da da

Dragons blood - red resin

is a bright red resin that is obtained from different species

of a number of distinct plant genera:

Croton, Dracaena, Calamus rotang and Pterocarpus.

The red resin has been used since ancient times as

varnish, medicine, incense, and dye.

Peter James , Nick Thorpe (1994): Ancient Inventions, Ballantine books, New York

The resin of Dracaena species, "true" dragon's blood,

and the very poisonous mineral cinnabar (mercury

sulfide) are often confused and some call anything that

was bright red "dragon's blood". Voyagers to the Canary

Islands in the 15th century obtained dragon's blood as

dried garnet-red drops from Dracaena draco, a tree

native to the Canary Islands and Morocco. The resin is

exuded from its wounded trunk or branches. Dragon's

blood is also obtained by the same method from D.

cinnabari, which is endemic to the island of Socotra.

Bizarre Plants: Dragon blood plants

Draceana sanderiana Resin called Dragon blood Draceana draco (Canaria)

Dragon blood plant Draceana draco (Canarian Islands) dragonier

The dragon who guarded the garden of the Hesperides. Draco was

venerated plant of the guanches- extinct natives of the Canarian Islands

The lucky bamboo

is small relative of

the mysterious

dragon blood tree

(3) Vegetative Propagation “Do not try this at home”

Plants consider vegetative propagation the safer method. When they

have to choose between asexual and sexual propagation, the clearly vote

for the first one. There are many plants that rarely produce flowers:

One reason for this behavior is that the assimalated organic substances

are drawn to the geophytic organs rather than the flower.

Potatoes Solanum (Lycopersicum) tuberosum. In large

potato fields you find very few plants that are flowering.

Horseradish Cochlearia armoracia flowers

but hardly ever produces seeds since the

growth of storage roots has absolute priority.

Buttercups of Ranunculus ficaria flower in early spring

but hardly produce any fruits. They propagate by small

visible bulblets that form near leaf nodes at the stem.

Jerusalem artichoke, Topinambur Helianthus tuberosum. Flowers

in late summer but never succeed making seeds store inulin in tubers

The only plants that do the locomotion ….

Cuscuta (Dodder) about 100species of

yellow, orange or red (rarely green) parasitic

leafless (minute scales) plants placed in the

morning glory family, Convolvulaceae.

The seeds are minute and produced in

large quantities. They have a hard

coating, & survive in soil for 5–10 years.

Germination can occur without a host, it

zooms in on the smell of nearby plants

Beware of chlorophyll-free plants ���� they are like animals

Pinedrop = Pterospora andromedea grows in coniferous forests

native to North America. It is in the family Ericaceae. The upper

portion of the red stalk has a series of yellowish, bell-shaped

flowers face downward.

They exist for most of their lifecycle as a mass of fleshy roots in

relationship with mycorrhizal fungi that is described as either

parasitic by different experts.

They are thus described

as mycorrhizal heterotrophs.

Coralroot orchids, Corallorhiza, are leafless, relying

entirely upon symbiotic fungi within their coral-shaped roots

for sustenance. Because of this dependence they cannot be

successfully cultivated. Most species do not produce

chlorophyll, and do not depend on photosynthesis for energy.

Holoparasites have virtually no chlorophyll & are completely

parasitic & include 4,100 species in 19 families of flowering plants

Beware of chlorophyll-free plants ���� they are like animals

Indian Pipe or Monotropa uniflora, also known as the Ghost

Plant, is a herbaceous perennial, classified within the Ericaceae.

It is native to temperate regions of Asia & North America. Unlike

most plants, it is white and does not contain chlorophyll. Instead of

generating energy from sunlight, it is parasitic, more specifically a

myco-heterotroph. Its hosts are certain fungi that are mycorrhizal

with trees, meaning it ultimately gets its energy from

photosynthetic trees. It can grow in very dark environments as in

the understory of dense forest. The complex relationship that

allows this plant to grow also makes propagation difficult.

The Snow Plant or Sarcodes sanguinea is a

flowering plant in the heath family. It is a

parasitic plant that derives sustenance and

nutrients from mycorrhyzal fungi that attach

to roots of trees. Mycorrhizal fungi are

themselves symbiotic parasites that help

plants fix nitrogen from the atmosphere in

exchange for nutrients from plant roots.

What kind of plants do we have on earth? A collection.

Hydnora africana is an achlorophyllous

plant native to southern Africa that is

parasitic on the roots of members of the

Euphorbiaceae family. The plant grows

underground, except for a fleshy flower that

emerges above ground and emits an odor of

feces to attract dung beetles and carrion

beetles. The flowers act as traps for a brief

period retaining the beetles that enter, then

releasing them when the flower is fully opened

Welwitschia mirabilis is a plant

living in remote areas of the

Namib desert . It is in the

subdivision of Gnetophyta in

the Gymnosperms related to

conifers. The plant is a living

fossil & was named after the

Austrian botanist Friedrich

Welwitsch who discovered it

in 1859. Two ever-growing

leaves (toilet paper plant)

The weirdest plants on earth

The weirdest plants are often also very rare leftovers (living fossiles) of

bygone times. Their presence is a great treasure – a true “Jurassic Park”.

The tallest seed plants are Eucalyptus trees in the Myrtaeceae family. The giabnt

redwood Sequoia giganteum reaches 135 m & stem thickness of 12 m, coastal or

evergreen redwood Sequoia sempervirens has same height but lesser stems

Welwitschia endemic to Namib

Amorphophallus corpse plDarlingtonia is an insect trapper Rafflesia attracts by cadaverine

Dionaea musc. trap distribution

Buddha’s Hand Citrus medica

Buddha's hand, Citrus medica var. sarcodactylis (also known as fingered

citron), is a fragrant citron variety in the Rutaeceae whose fruit is segmented

into finger-like sections. The origin of Buddha's hand plant is traced back to

Northeastern India.

Buddha’s hand is a citrus fruit popular in

China and Japan for its strong fragrance. It

fails as a fruit since it’s pretty much all zest

and no pulp, but it has other uses,

Compass plants

Prickly lettuce Lactuca seriola is a

compass plant. If you look at it from

the east or west it looks broad but

when viewed form the North it looks

like flattened by a car.

Another compass plant is Silphium

laciniatum (Compass Flower, or

Rosinweed)- a sunflower native to

the Prairies of Dakota. Like lactuca

it aligns leaves in N-to-S direction.

The rule that moss is growing on the northern side of

trees is false for more than one reason. Moss prefers

shade and th shade is from all sides ina dense forest.

Second, what is growing on the northern side of tress

is the green algae Pleurococcus. It cannot deal with

direct sunlight and prefers N.

Bizarre Plants: the largest & weirdly shaped seedMaldives or Seychelle Islands : source of unusual seed

coco-de-mer seeds first mistaken as eggs of griffins (Georg

Eberhard Rumpf 1682 named it Cocus maldivicus): most

important aphrodisiac & antidote like the benzoar (ideal

goblet material). Rudolf II German Emperor (1650) payed

4000 florins = 5000 gold thalers (dollars) for a seed

1742 French landed from Mauritius, 1768 that the

islands interior was explored & confirmed as the source

of coco-de-mer, the Seychelles’ nut Lodoicea palms

(daughter of Troy’s Priam

difficult to germinate; first Kew RoyalGarden plants

were pre-germinated in Seychelles & then grown in

1854 , hurrah ==> a yellow horizontal shoot projects

parallel to soil surface for 3 m before horizontal shoot

develops & root grows. Horizontal shoot rots away &

seedling cannot be traced back to seed. Jelly-like

endosperm of nuts is a delicacy for the rich. “Surely, Sir, it is

Priam’s daughter”

The flying Zanonia fruit served as a template for the first

non-stalling airplane trianer (STOL)

This principle was used to build a monoplane in 1903 in cooperation

of botanists with the Austrian airplane pioneer Ignaz Etrich

(designing strategy called biomimetics) ands in 1912 the motorized

glider “Taube” which had a stall speed of less than 10 mph (idiots

could fly this one). Unfortunately this design was not fit for tight turns

– the developing strategy of fighter planes

Zanonia macrocarpa (Syn. Macrozanonia macrocarpa

(Blume) Cogn., Alsomitra macrocarpa M.Roem.) alias Javan

cucmber is a vine in the cuccurbitaceae. The fruit - a maple-

like samara - has thin dry wings with 13 cm wing span and

can fly with only a slight turn distances of up to 50 m. The

plant was first described under the name Zanonia macrocarpa

in 1825 by Carl Ludwig Blume

The “Taube” of the famous Lieutenant Plüschow was the

only plane of the Imperial Navy in Tsingtao, in 1914 a German

colony in China. Before Tsingtao was overwhelmed by superior

numbers of Japanese & British ships & troops he flew his badly

damaged plane for 250 miles into China & continued on foot

The Devil’s Claw

Harpagophytum procumbens,

also Devil's Claw, is in sesame

family, native to South Africa.

The plant's large tuberous roots

contain steroid & are used to

reduce pain and fever, and to

stimulate digestion. Europeans

used it to treat arthritis.

The horrifying seed pods are designed

to latch on to the feet of passing

animals, which will then transport

them to another location before

crushing them underfoot and releasing

the seeds.

http://aayuni.tumblr.com/post/4832997867/9-creepy-plants-that-shouldnt-exist

Chinese Fleece Flower Fallopia ssp.

Okay, weird. It’s a root that looks like a little

dude. But that’s a rare, onetime fluke, right? It’s

not like that’s what this species typically looks

like or anything?? Roots making a

perfect couple made headlines in 2006 …. �

The Chinese Fleece flower is in the genus Fallopia

in the family Polygoniaeceae, a relative of the

infamous Japanese Knotweed Fallopia japonica.

The Chinese use this plant in their traditional

medicine for kidney health, strong bones and hair

restoration, and as a mild laxative, and it’s.. Hey,

wait a second…

“ I tell you, …

it is a sign, yeah, ah …

it’s an omen!” The end of

the world is close, oh Rose

Doll’s Eyes Actaea pachypodia

The Doll’s eye plant, also known by

the equally unsettling name “white

baneberry.” Just in case you were

actually thinking of eating this thing,

those eyeballs are highly poisonous.

Actaea pachypoda (Doll's-eyes, White

Baneberry) is a herbaceous perennial plant in the

family Ranunculaceae, native to eastern North

America. The berries contain cardiogenic toxins

which can have an immediate sedative effect on

human cardiac muscle tissue, and are the most

poisonous part of the plant. Ingestion of the

berries can lead to cardiac arrest and death.

Some plants have been around since the beginning of recorded time

(3000 BC): they saw the building of the pyramids, the rise and the

fall of Rome, the Mongols, the USA and USE, they saw it all ….

Plants in today's world: aphrodisiac eaten to extinction

An African plant called White’s ginger (Mondia whitei ), wrongly referred to as

“white ginger.” mukombero in Kenya, where it is said that chewing the root of

or drinking it in tea form can boost virility and stamina in the bedroom.

Mukombero is available in Kenyan markets for as little

as one euro, making it much cheaper than Viagra or

other pharmaceuticals, which are too expensive for

most Kenyans.

A study in 1998 (cited by Infonet-biovision) found that

the plant had disappeared from South Africa and central

Kenya. Now, it is getting rarer still. “I am overwhelmed

by the demand,” a man who collects & sells mukombero

Watai, head of bioprospecting for the Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS), told that

mukombero is being grown as a ” cash crop ” in Florida and China but did not identify

actual companies growing the plant. “The Chinese must have obtained it from the

region without informing communities he said. The KWS itself runs a small factory to

commercialize the plant.

Stinging Hairs

For a long time we did not know what caused

the stinging sensation of Urtica dioica? It was

first shown that formic acid was inside the hairs

but that alone does not cause such effects!

Urtica dioica is harmless when compared with tropical

nettles like Urtica stimulans (Java) & Urtica crenulata

(India) & the worst Urtica urentissima (Timor) which

also cause skin irritations but in addition affect the nervous

system in the area with paralytic cramps & permanent

damage to nerves. Dogs refuse to search for game after

experiencing the burning sensation of nettels, geese seem

to be insensitive, larvae of some butterfly too

Mimicry of nettle leaves by dead nettels alias Lamium species

pict

There are other plant families with stinging hairs

Hydrophyllaeceae Wigandia urens , Euphorbiaceae

Jatropha urens have stinging hairs while many members

of the Urticaeceae (glass plants, hops) have none. Other

plants like Primula obconica cause dermatitis

Do plants kill? Sure. Are they predators?

Predation describes a biological

interaction where a predator

attacks & feeds on its prey. The

act of predation always results in

the death of the prey.

Is Ficus bengal. a predator?

Insectivorous plants are certainly

predators since they kill and feed

on them poor little insects.

Gurmar – “you shall miss sweetness forev … an hour”

Gurmar or Gymnema sylvestre is a vine native

to the tropical forests of India where it has been

used as a natural treatment for diabetes. for nearly

two millennia. Gurmar has also been shown to

reduce the blood sugar levels and even the

amount of insulin necessary to control blood

sugar. According to research done by Persaud et

al.1999, the raise in insulin levels may be due to

regeneration of the cells in the pancreas

Gurmar – a vine growing in the rain forests of the Indian subcontinent

means “sugar destroyer” or “sweetness destroyer”. When eaten, the

leaves take away your ability to taste sweetness. The major bioactive

constituents of Gymnema sylvestris are a group of oleanane-type

triterpenoid saponins known as gymnemic acids. Gymnemic acids are

causing the blackage of the sweetness-receptors.

Chana dal- the miracle bean for diabetics

Chana dal

Desi chickpeas have a markedly

higher fiber content and hence a very

low glycemic index which may make

them suitable for people with blood

sugar problems. The desi type is

used to make Chana Dal, which is a

split chickpea with the black skin

removed. This is done by soaking the

whole chickpeas and removing the

loose skins by rubbing.

It is known that Vit A (made from plant carotenoids) plays an important

role in the control of insulin, which is controlling the blood sugar levels.

Also biotin (a vitamin of the B series) seems to increase the effectiveness

of insulin action.

Quiz about Plants 1. Which plant is the smallest flowering plant?

2. Which plant has the largest single flower on this planet?

3. Which plant has the largest leaves? …

4. Which plants have no leaves? ………………………………………

5. Which plants have no roots? ………………………………………

6. Which plant makes only two leaves although keeping it > 100 years?

7. Which earthly plant produces the largest seeds?

8. Which plant family has the smallest seeds?

9. Which plant has the longest-living seeds?

10. Which plant has the edible fruit with the most calories?

11. Which plant produces the largest edible fruits?

12. Which creature is largest living being on earth?

13. Which creature is longest living being on earth?

14. Which creature is longest living plant on earth?

15. Which plant species was the first one in space?

16. Which is the oldest recent (old but still around) flowering plant?

17. Which plant is the tallest monocot?

18. Which plant is the tallest dicot?

19. Which plant has the deepest roots and how deep do they go?

20. Which creature is the largest being by area?

21. Which creatures are the longest beings in the ocean?

Quiz about Plants

1. Which plant is the smallest

flowering plant?

Wolffia arrhiza – the small relative of the

duckweed Lemmna being only 0.5 mm across.

Quiz about Plants

2. Which plant has the largest single flower

on this planet

Rafflesia , a stinky parasitic plant from the

Mediterranean region.

Quiz about Plants

3. Which plant has the largest leaves? …

The Raffia palm. This imposing African palm has the largest

leaves of any tree. IT has leaves that measure up to 20 m in

length. They are the source of raffia, a natural fiber

Quiz about Plants

4. Which plants have no leaves?

1. there are the lower plants like mosses,

which do not have real leaves.

Quiz about Plants

4. Which plants have no leaves?

1. there are lower plants like mosses,

which do not have real leaves.

2. there are desert plants and deciduous

trees in our area that drop their leaves

part of the year.

3. there are parasitic plants like

coralroots and pinedrops that are pale

and have no leaves, just scales

4. there are cacti that have modified

leaves appearing as spines.

Quiz about Plants

5. Which plants have no roots? …

A.Lower plants ( bryophytes) have no

real roots.

B. There are parasitic plants like

Cuscuta (dodder) or mistletoe that

absorb nutrients from their hosts.

C. there are duckweeds like Wolffia

arrhiza.

Wolffia vs Lemna duckweed

Quiz about Plants

6. Which plant makes only two leaves

although living more than 100 years?

Welwitschia mirabilis. This South African desert plant

produces only 2 leaves, which keep during its whole world.

Quiz about Plants

7. Which earthly plant produces the

largest seeds?

Coco de Mer, Seychelles nuts

Quiz about Plants

8. Which plant family has the smallest

seeds?

The orchids.

Quiz about Plants

9. Which plant has the longest-living seeds?

Arctic Lupine were found frozen in the soil of the

Canadian Yukon were estimated to be 10-15,000

years old. Nevertheless, they did germinate into

new plants

Quiz about Plants

10. Which plant has the edible fruit with the most

calories?

Avocado has 750 cal per pound. On the other hand

cucumber has only 70 cal /pound.

Quiz about Plants

11. Which plant produces the largest edible fruits?

Of course, the pumpkin Cucurbita pepo reaching

up to 180 pounds followed by melons with 45

pounds.

Quiz about Plants

12. Which creature is largest living being on earth?

The giant Sequoia or

Sequoiadendron

giganteum; specimen

“General Sherman” is 83

m tall with a trunk of

24.22 meters

circumference.

Quiz about Plants

13. Which creature is longest living being on earth?

Lichens in

Antarctica were

shown to be older

than 10,000 years

growing 3.4

mm/century.

���� Xanthoria

Quiz about Plants

14. Which creature is longest living plant on earth?

Pinus longaeva –

the Bristlecone pine

form the SW of the

USA.

Quiz about Plants

15. Which plant species was the first one in space?

It was Arabidopsis

aboard the Soviet

spaceship Salute 7

in 1982.

Quiz about Plants

16. Which plant is the oldest recent (species old but still

around) flowering plant?

Gingko biloba first appeared

all over the world 180

Million years ago. 300

years ago, when the

Kaempfer discovered it for

the West, it was extinct in

the wild except for some

monasteries in China.

Quiz about Plants

17. Which plant is the tallest monocot?

It is the

giant black bamboo

Phylostachys nigra

reaches up to18 m

tall.

Quiz about Plants

18. Which plant is the tallest dicot?

Eucalyptus regnans at Mt. Baw

Baw, Victoria, Australia, is

believed to have measured 143 m

(470 ft.) in 1885. Formerly,

another Australian eucalyptus, at

Watts River, Victoria. almost

certainly had been over 150 m

(492 ft.) tall."

Quiz about Plants

19. Which plant has the deepest roots and how deep do they go?

The deepest roots were found

with a Ficus species in South

Africa reaching 120 m deep.

The official, confirmed record

is with the 10 m tall Shepherds

tree

Boscia albitrunca from the

Kalahari Desert with roots

measuring 68 m long.

Quiz about Plants

20. Which creature is the largest being by area?

A giant fungus of the

species Armillaria ostoyae

(honey mushrooms) in the

Malheur National Forest in

Oregon was found to span

8.9 km2 (2,200 acres), which

would make it the largest

organism by area.

Quiz about Plants

21. Which creatures are the longest beings in the ocean?

These are the giant kelps

Macrocystis pyrifera, which may

reach a length of over 100 ft (30

m). This majestic giant of the

kelp forest grows faster than

tropical bamboo—about three to

five inches each day.

Macrocystis vs Nereocystis (our bullkelp)

Quiz about Plants

22. Which plant is known as the burning bush

(as e.g. told in NAfrican traveller stories, Bible & Koran)?

The

burning bush , Dictam or

Dictamnus albus

is a member of the Rutaeceae

(Citrus family).

Dictam, produces terpenes to

cool its leaves during sunny

days. It does that to such an

extent that it can undergo self-

ignition (see burning bush

stories in Bible & Koran) .

Quiz about Plants

23. Eating which plant takes away the taste of sweetness?

This plant is

Gurmar or

Gymnema sylvestris

In the mint family containing

triterpenoid saponins known

as gymnemic acids

Quiz about Plants

24. Eating which plant makes a typical sour tasting sweet?

This is – among others – the

miracle berry

Synsepalum dulciferum

The berry has a low sugar

content and contains a

glycoprotein molecule called

miraculin

Thank you for your participation !!!

Everybody knows – of course -

that Botany is sooo cool!