The miracle tree, also known as the castor bean plant or castor bean, manages to win friends in the gardening world with its beautiful leaves, extraordinary flowers and fruit heads. You should know about its seeds!
What do miracle tree seeds look like and what do they contain?
Miracle tree seeds are bean-shaped, 1-2 cm large, reddish-brown to black-brown in color and contained in capsule fruits. They contain the highly toxic castor protein, which can cause fatal poisoning, but also the medicinally used castor oil.
This is what the seeds look like
The seeds that mature after the flowering period, which lasts from August to October, have the following characteristics:
- found in capsule fruits
- colored reddish brown to dark brown or black brown
- marbled
- bean-shaped or oval
- 1 to 2 cm tall
- smooth-shelled
- hard-shelled
Castor oil – a proven laxative
The oil contained in the seeds of castor bean is a proven remedy in medicine. Castor oil is obtained by pressing the seeds. It is yellowish in color and free of toxins due to the manufacturing process.
The taste of the oil is mild, but burning and unpleasant. That's how it should be. This tells the body that you should not take large amounts of the oil.
After taking a small dose of castor oil, bowel evacuation occurs after 2 to 4 hours. The oil also has a dehydrating effect. Its effect as a laxative is known in many countries.
A protein that can lead to death
However, consuming the mere seeds is strictly not recommended! The seeds are highly poisonous! 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
The most insidious thing about the seeds is that they don't taste unpleasant. They even taste good. Therefore, you should be particularly careful if you own a castor bean plant and have children or pets in your household! There is currently no known antidote for ricin.
Symptoms of poisoning
On average, 20 seeds are fatal to an adult. Depending on their body weight, just 1 seed can be fatal for children. The following symptoms occur when poisoning by ricin:
- bloody diarrhea
- Kidney pain
- Liver damage up to liver failure
- Vomiting
- Nausea
- Mucosal irritations
- Cramps
Harvesting and storing the seeds
When the seeds are ripe in autumn, the three-lobed capsule fruits burst open. Then you can harvest the seeds. They should be stored safely if you plan to sow them. These seeds can germinate well for up to three years.
Sowing the seeds
Sowing these seeds is child's play. You can tackle the whole thing between January and July:
- Let it soak for 1 day
- Sow 1 cm deep
- keep moist
- place in a bright, warm place
- Germination time: 1 to 2 weeks
Tip
When you plant or sow the miracle tree, you should definitely wear gloves. Otherwise, you could suffer skin irritation due to the toxins it contains.
