Coral Bean plant

Description:

Often referred to as the "Mamou plant", this colorful species is indigenous to the south eastern portion of the United States, specifically the state of Louisiana. This plant typically grows to a height of 16 ft in the right climate, hot and humid. In other areas, it may only mature to a height of 3.9 ft. It has a bulky, woody root system, that if left rooted for long enough, can be difficult to dig up. It's leaves are 15-20 cm in length, and 6 cm wide. The leaves are yellowish-green in appearance, and are divided into 3, 2.5-8 cm arrowhead shaped leaflets. The coral bean trees have a smooth, light gray bark, and boast big, tubular, red-colored leaves that grow in long spikes. The optimal breeding time for this plant is from April, to July. This plant gets its name from its pods, which produce bright red seeds. The seeds are toxic, and cannot be consumed, as they contain alkaloids such as erysopine, erysothiopine, erysothiovine, erysovine, erythrinine, erythroresin, coralin, erythric acid, and hyphaphorine. If consumed, these toxic alkaloids can cause paralysis.

Habitat:

The Coral Bean plant is best suited to live in hot climates. You can find them in forest clearings, hammocks, and other disturbed areas. They flourish in areas that have sandy soil, and moderate salt tolerance. You can commonly find them in well-drained soils along the shoreline, near rivers and streams. But, due to their preference for dryness, they are usually pushed back pretty far from the shore. They have been discovered all along the gulf coast in states like Texas, Oklahoma, Mississippi, Arkansas, Georgia, Florida, South Carolina, and North Carolina; but are most commonly found in Mamou, Louisiana.

Notes:

The use of this plant as an herb is not usually recommended, but is has been documented that the Native Americans used the roots and seeds to treat a variety of ailments and extracts have been used to make cough syrups, especially in South Louisiana. Creek women used an infused version of the root to ease bowel pain, the Choctaw used a decoction of the leaves as a general tonic, and the Seminoles used it as a treatment for rheumatic and digestive problems. The plant itself cannot be eaten raw, but if boiled, the leaves and flowers can be eaten, and have a similiar taste to spinach.