Democratic Sentinel, Volume 13, Number 5, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 22 February 1889 — The Poisonous Oleander. [ARTICLE]

The Poisonous Oleander.

The oleander with its beautiful x*osecolored flowers is a plant frequently cultivated, but there are not very mauy who know that the oleander belongs to the poisonous plants. It is well to remember, when cultivating it as a houseplant, that under some circumstances it is very noxious. Pliny sai l of the oleander that it was poisonous, and later discoveries have confirmed this. In Madrid, a few years since, there was a case of poisoning by eating birds broiled on oleander leaves. Iu the south of Italy and SpaiD, the scraped rind of the trea is usrd as a rat-poison and to drive away noxious iuseets. In both countries, the localities where oleanders grow are generally malarious. Iu Northern Africa, wheie they lend an especial charm to the scanery along the banks of the river, they arc not suffered to grow near human habitations, and in this respect are really boycotted. It is remarkable that even bet s avoid the oleander. — Demorest.