The Notorious Castor Bean

By J. A. Young

To see the hand-shaped foliage of Ricinus communis, or castor bean plant, is to witness a plant of amazing duality - some might even say duplicity. Ricinus communis - a botanical name that sounds a bit like poisonous Communist - should send up some red flags to gardeners, and not simply in the form of its unusual red blooms. Although grown for its striking appearance and ability to yield castor oil, the mottled colored seeds of the castor bean plant contain one of the most deadly poisons known to man or beast; ricin is a toxic protein known as a lectin and is found in castor bean seeds.

The problem of the castor bean seeds is their attractive appearance - particularly so to children. The fruit of the castor bean plant is a spiky tuft of ball shape capsule that contains the seeds. The seeds themselves are about the size of a black bean, but their appearance is speckled or mottled with various colors, making them stand out to children, who have been known to eat them. It is believed that merely four of these small beans are enough to kill an adult. Ricin is extremely deadly and gardeners with small children should probably avoid growing the plant. In fact, ricin is considered far more poisonous than both cyanide and rattlesnake venom.

And yet, one cannot term this unusual plant a horticultural fiend because it has a very positive bi-product known to the world as that foul-tasting stuff - castor oil. Although castor oil is not ingested as frequently as it once was (to keep kids regular), it is used in making nylon, motor oil, paints and varnishes, and is renowned at doing so. Castor plants garner high praise for this extremely useful oil that is derived from the seeds. Once the valuable oil has been extracted, the remaining seed cake is where the ricin is found.

Gardening with castor plants will certainly add an attractive feature to any garden where the climate allows them to thrive, but gardeners should take great care with them to avoid problems. Young children and pets should be kept away from the plants. Although castor plants have a bad reputation, they are an important plant for their economic contributions globally and industrial uses in many areas.

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