I recently snagged some Oleander pods from the parking lot of a neighborhood restaurant. In California it is common to have plantings in parking lots.
Oleander has a reputation for killing people and animals. Some stories have a valid science component, others lean toward myth and urban legend.
The pods I snagged have dried and opened exposing their lovely seeds.
Why did I snag the seed pods? I use poison plant bits in my work. Some of the bits that I use are from plants banned in a few states. The reason for the ban is reactionary. A couple of kids decide to get high, use too much, have a bad reaction, and the plant is held responsible.
Each of the cups in my Poison Cup series has a small bag of bits from poisonous plants. These are a few of the bags included in the series.
The title of the series is actually Preservation. While the cups refer to the tea ceremony and poison goblets, the cups have been perforated making them a nice vessel for seedlings.
Treat with Respect contains the seed bag in the upper right corner of the above graphic.
The bag contains 11 Castor Bean seeds.
Additional image of the series can be seen on my website.
