Gasoline from a plant? Tree Tuesday - Kind off
Today is Tree Tuesday - well, it is where I am for about an hour and a half.
Since I am (almost) cheating on the day, I decided to cheat on the tree part as well.
Did you see the picture? It does look like a tree, right? Tall, reaching higher than the house.
It is so tall that it grew right out of the picture!!!
It must be a tree!!!
But no. It is: Fire Sticks, Euphorbia tirucalli 'Rosea', Red Pencil Tree, Pencil Tree, Milkbush, Milk Bush, Finger Tree, Sticks of Fire 'Rosea' Resembling sea coral
All those names are for the same plant - the one pictured here. And it does have a couple of names which call it a tree.
But, alas, it is not. It is a succulent which will grow and grow and grow - until it is taller than your house.
Native to Africa, it can thrive with little water which makes it a popular plant in drought-ridden southern California. It is a pretty plant, but watch out. Its sap is poisonous and can cause skin rashes and blindness if one gets it in the eyes.
Personally, I don't grow it since there are too many little kids at my place. But if I had livestock, as in cattle and goats - they seem to like to eat it.
Another interesting fact is that the sap can be converted to gasoline. Now, that would be an interesting project to pursue since it can grow on land where nothing else will thrive. And it grows fast and is a renewable resource.
This is a plant a modern homesteader or prepper should consider - that is if they can figure out how to convert the sap to gasoline. Of course, they have to live in a warm climate.
The plant was also used for medicinal purposes but it seems that the research leans toward it being more harmful than useful. Personally, I would look for a more proven plant medicine.
Have you used this plant to feed to your animals? If yes, did you harvest it and take it to them - or did you take the animals to the plants?
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I wouldn't grow a plant that could blind me--I'm too careless. Also, how does it not hurt animals that eat it? Perplexing, considering we use animal studies as first-line trials in drug development. Interesting article. I'll be sure to stay away from milkbush, or whatever else it is called.
I agree that it seems odd that cattle can eat it - I had found the cattle feed info on one website when I was looking for its proper name and didn't question it since sometimes items poisonous to one species are just fine for another.
So, I did a bit more research after your comment (and I should have done it before) and found this article https://pubs.acs.org/doi/full/10.1021/bk-2013-1127.ch001?src=recsys
Here, it says that cattle does not like it so much and that it is used for corral fencing. Also as firewood and as a ground cover in areas where nothing else will grow.
I di
That's a very interesting article. Usually, I believe in the wisdom of folk remedies, but sometimes they can be deadly--arsenic and mercury used to be popular remedies, weren't they? Article does say the latex exuded by the plant is caustic. So, my instincts are probably good--cattle agree with me :)
I would never have guessed it wasn’t a tree
It sure looks like one
It does, doesn't it! some of the succulents out here just grow like crazy. Makes me think of when I lived in Germany and we were so proud of having tiny little cacti and succulents growing... Here, they turn into monsters in no time!
They are cute and mince when small but this one in your shots has character and style :)
it's first time to see that plant? tree? hehe
Thanks for sharing miss @mariannewest ❤️❤️❤️
You are welcome!! There are so many plants in the world and it is so much fun to explore them all!
Gas from a plant? Better not let Shell know bwahahahaha!
I know, right? they probably already bought the patent for the process and stuck it into a drawer to never be seen again...
I have some of these growing at my house. I always used the 'Pencil tree' name. I have quite a variety of different Euphorbia's. All of them have that white poisonous sap.
That is true -they do. This one seems to me especially worrisome since it is often grown on sidewalks where little kids play or ride their bikes - right at eye level and you know kids - let touch, lets break it off ... Or even just breaking it off by accident...
Yup, we have those around my house as well. Had no idea about the gasoline feature! Pretty cool!
I think you need a lot for making gas - but that is a cool feature if you have a bunch of land nothing else will grow on...
first time i tried to take a cutting from the firestick plant, i almost cried! seeing the white sap "bleed" out took me by surprise. thankfully i didnt touch it, i had no idea it was so harmful to us but i did feel like i was hurting the plant. never again.
I don't think you will hurt the plant - but be careful with it.... people have gone blind from getting the sap into their eyes.
scary to think I was so close to such a harmful substance, and had no idea! I think plants have feelings. At least thats what I tell myself when I see one I HAVE TO HAVE and buy from a big box store. "It was sad in the concrete building, I had to rescue him" is my favorite excuse.
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This sounds like a plant for the west range of the east coast of northern half of Australia. If, CSIRO have one and States and Feds allow it to be bred. That is the sort of project we would have loved out in the garage when I was in my twenties. Trying different methods of extracting a gasoline oil from a fast growing plant.
ANY YOUNG AUSSIES READING!!!
We have plenty of inexpensive land by waterway in south QLD, neat Texas, west of apple country, or just over the border in the old tobacco lands around the sapphire diggings, Ashford, etc.
Thank-you @mariannewest. 😇
Resteemed.
Thank you, Simon. I know that Australia is very careful what plants you can bring in and such. But you hve plenty of dry, hot land - that is for sure!!
We do. I know too well. In one of the comments I was talking to someone that questions asked of info-blog often bring out more info in comments which themselves could maybe go up as blogs. A story of desert walking, to replace an engine part, and trying to find a known of bend in a railway track, so as next train in one direction slows, a man might hitch-hike a ride to town, to get part, borrow a bicycle and then head off into desert/bush to refind vehicle and replace and drive with bicycle back to owner. Sort of tale 😊