The miracle tree, which is also known as castor oil plant or ricinus, manages to win friends in the gardening world with its beautiful leaves, unusual flowers and infructescence. You should know about its seeds!

As beautiful as the seeds look, they are also poisonous

This is what the seeds look like!

The seeds, which ripen after the flowering period, which lasts from August to October, have the following characteristics:

  • are in capsule fruits
  • reddish brown to dark brown or blackish brown in color
  • marbled
  • bean-shaped or oval
  • 1 to 2 cm tall
  • smooth-skinned
  • hard-shelled

Castor oil - a proven laxative

The oil contained in the seeds of the castor is a proven remedy in medicine. Castor oil is obtained by squeezing the seeds. It is yellowish in color and free from toxins due to the manufacturing process.

The taste of the oil is mild but pungent and unpleasant. That's how it should be. This tells the body not to take large amounts of the oil.

After ingestion of a small dose of castor oil, bowel movements occur after 2 to 4 hours. The oil also has a draining effect. The effect as a laxative is known in many countries.

A protein that can cause death

But consuming the bare seeds is strictly discouraged! The seeds are highly toxic! The seed coat contains an active ingredient called ricin. This is a protein. When consumed, it causes red blood cells to clump together and paralyzes the respiratory center. Death can occur within 2 days.

The seeds taste pleasant

What is particularly insidious about the seeds is that they do not taste unpleasant. They even taste good. Therefore, you should be particularly careful if you own a castor bean plant and have children and pets in the household! There is currently no known antidote for ricin.

symptoms of poisoning

On average, 20 seeds are lethal for an adult. For children, depending on their body weight, as little as 1 seed can be deadly. Symptoms of ricin poisoning are as follows:

  • bloody diarrhea
  • kidney pain
  • Liver damage to liver failure
  • Vomit
  • nausea
  • mucosal irritations
  • cramps

Harvest and store the seeds

When the seeds are mature in the fall, the three-lobed capsule fruits burst open. Then you can harvest the seeds. They should be kept safe if you are going to sow them. These seeds can germinate well for up to three years.

Sow the seeds

Sowing these seeds is easy as pie. You can tackle the whole thing between January and July:

  • Leave to swell for 1 day
  • Sow 1 cm deep
  • keep moist
  • put in a bright, warm place
  • Germination time: 1 to 2 weeks

tips

If you plant or sow the miracle tree, you should definitely wear gloves. Otherwise, you could get skin irritation due to the toxins it contains.

Category:

Vegetable garden