Flower Power Garden Hour 52: Plant Defenses

Flower Power Garden Hour

Poisons, spines and secondary metabolites….plants have numerous ways of ensuring they are protected and dispersed. I sit down with botanist Jonathon Holguin and we discuss some of our favorite ways plants protect/disperse themselves. Why does Stevia taste sweet, what are the compounds in stinging nettle and what happens when you get Euphorbia sap in your eye? Some of these defenses we encounter often while hiking, and others we hope to never experience -- such as Giant cow parsnip or Monkshood poisoning. Others are essential in our everyday life… such as coffee and chocolate.

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