In the Americas, there is a local endemic plant: poison guava. Its fruit looks a lot like a green apple, but if you eat it, it will cost you your life.

Poisonous guava contains a series of toxins, one of which can react with the protease of the human body, causing the protease to lose its original function, thus disturbing the growth and differentiation of cells, so that the human body will experience discomfort in a short time. Symptoms, such as: swelling, inflammation, severe pain and other symptoms, if the rescue is not timely, or if the amount of eating is large, it may lead to human death.

What many people don't know, however, is that the fruit of the poison guava is only the least toxic part of the tree's body.

Poison Guava Tree

If the poisonous guava tree is accidentally broken, the poisonous guava tree will ooze out white sap. These white sap is highly poisonous. If it is dripped on the body, it will make the skin seem to have a disease like madness, so It is also known as "Mad Euphorbia", and the local people also call them "the tree of death".

It is said that when European colonists came to this continent, the local natives used the sap of this tree as a poison to smear the arrows in order to protect their homeland, making the opposing troops fearful.

Poison guava trees are even more poisonous because their venom is easily soluble in water. When it rains, the rain will mix with the venom and flow down the tree. If you happen to be sheltering from the rain under a poison guava tree, your skin will be corroded. . It is said that unwitting tourists are poisoned every year to avoid the rain.

Since the poisonous guava tree is so poisonous, wouldn't it be possible to burn it clean with fire? But the local indigenous people will advise you not to do this, because the poison guava tree is really poisonous, and the smoke from burning the wood can temporarily blind people and sometimes lead to permanent blindness.

In addition, cutting down poison guava trees is also very dangerous, because the dust and sap of the trees may volatilize into the air and land on the surface of human skin and mucous membranes, causing human poisoning.

It is precisely because the poison guava tree is so rogue that it was named "the most dangerous tree in the world" by the Guinness Book of World Records.

Advantages of Poison Guava Trees

Although the poison guava tree is very domineering, not only can't eat its fruit, you can't even touch it, but in fact it is also a very good tree.

First of all, because it is very poisonous, some birds will hide on guava trees when they encounter natural enemies, and some natural enemies will not dare to approach at this time. Avoid predators.

Furthermore, the root system of guava is very developed, which can firmly hold the surrounding soil, and they usually grow on the beach by the sea, which can protect the local beach from the erosion of waves or wind, and is a very good sand control plant.

And the wood of the poison guava tree is very good and can be used as furniture, but when felling and cutting this wood, the trees should be treated in advance to make their venom evaporate.

Why do plants produce venom?

In our impression, many animals produce venom for self-protection or predation, but why do plants also produce venom?

In fact, they produce venom for the same reason as animals, but also for self-preservation.

We know that plants can't move, which makes them incapable of parrying herbivores. In order to reduce grazing by herbivores, some vegetation has evolved features such as sharp spines and venom. For example: Many eucalyptus trees are poisonous, so there are fewer animals in the eucalyptus forest, and only koalas can adapt to the environment here.

In addition, even some poisonous plants depend on animals for their survival. For example, gymnosperms depend on dinosaurs for food to help them spread their seeds farther. Scientists have found, however, that while gymnosperms are toxic to mammals, they are not to dinosaurs, suggesting that they have retained the mechanism of symbiosis during evolution.

Poison guava trees are poisonous to humans, but lizards and some birds can feed on them, helping them spread their seeds.