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Wicked Plants at the Brooklyn Botanic Garden

An evil tree grows in Brooklyn! Okay, maybe not, but the Brooklyn Botanic folks have planted what they're calling Wicked Plants, and they'll be on view from May 31st through September 6th. But don't get too close, the over 50 plants have the capacity to injure, poison, and irritate humans. Here's what to expect if you have the courage to show up: "In ten areas throughout the Garden, on-site text and the Garden’s first-ever audio tour, featuring its science and horticulture staff, share facts, advice, and tales of close encounters with wicked plants. Visitors will learn about such botanical menaces as monkshood (Aconitum sp.), a member of the buttercup family used to tip spears for killing prey—and people; ricin (Ricinus communis), an extract of the castor bean that was used to poison a Bulgarian dissident in the 1970s; and the jumping cactus (Cylindropuntia fulgida), which terrorizes hikers by seeming to leap onto clothing or exposed skin." And don't forget the Venus Fly Trap, which nearly killed Rick Moranis in Little Shop of Horrors!

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  • To make Hydrangea's blue add aluminum sulfate to the soil.

  • mocanlagunas

    There's a talk this 31st by Amy Stewart, the author of the book with the same name. I haven't read it yet, but check her website. She even has a very funny trailer for the book...

    Link to the trailer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MP0PGf4a8GY

  • r1b2

    Fantastic. Can't wait to visit with my family.

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