For regular readers, you may be familiar with the annual manroot battle at Camp Ramshackle. This past weekend Eric and the boys took a proactive strike against our garden nemesis.
Although the vine is quite lovely in appearance, the manroot leaves noxious spiky seedpods that can pierce through leather gloves.
Eric took the plant by the stalk...
...unearthed the manroot and disposed of the hoary head. Hopefully, this preemptive strike will reduce the massive yard invasion typical in spring.
Previously:
Posts
I have always known them as wild cucumber plants. Be careful with that root. The root is a very very strong hallucinogen.
ReplyDeleteIn high school, a friend told me a story of eating a piece that was half the size of a quarter that caused him to have vivid hallucinations. He hallucinated a party in his room with some friends and was upset when they would not tell him how they were disappearing and walking through the walls. Later, his mom found him waiting outside in the dark for his school bus; for him, it was daylight outside. He stopped doing all drugs after that experience.
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteHey Mike! Yes this is a toxic plant - but was used in various ways by native americans (so says wikipedia at least -http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Manroot ) it is purported to be hallucinogenic but I think your friend's experience sounds to me more like jimson weed which also has spikey seed pods and similar leaves. That stuff is pretty wicked and creates full-blown visual and auditory hallucinations characterized as a waking dream. You can't tell realty from fantasy.
ReplyDeletehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jimsonweed
I used to think my multi-year battle with a Pepper Tree and its never ending suckers was bad, but your war against this plant sounds much worse. Hopefully you got it all.
ReplyDeleteI'm sure I didn't get it all yet but I am determined the we will get the upper hand this year.
ReplyDeleteWe have a pepper tree too, and it is mild compared to these vines. We also have about 10 or 12 olive trees which give the pepper tree a run for it's money in the sucker department. I sometimes feel like I'm running up the down escalator.