This item I have come across one too many times during night hiking, and it can cause immense pain if you grab onto it or run into it and even worse if you try to climb it. It is known as Devil's Walkingstick (Aralia spinosa), it has thorns that go around in circles every few increments. It is found in the North-East areas in the deciduous forests so it can blend in sometime with other saplings until you hit it haha.
This plant just takes a bit of imagination to think of uses for it and such.
First off all this plant can be planted around your house or in areas that you would like to prevent burglars or trespassers of entry because as stated before this plant makes it's point. The plant can also cause irritations or rashes to some people.
Here are some of my ideas;
It could also be used for survival animal traps to pin the animal for retrieval.
You could cut the tree into sections and use for caltrops.
You could even strategically plant it in the perimeters of your property to make it so that people would stray from even the general direction of your facilities.
It would provide a good place of concealment and function as a deterrent for someone that you may be hiding from.
You could also shave off some of the spikes and utilize it as a metsubushi
This is only the Tip of the Devil's Walkingstick, there's plenty more that can be done.
*Important note: this plant is not to be consumed because many of it's parts are poisonous unless properly cooked, so it's best not to try.
Now's your turn to shed some light in the field of the kusa; like what areas that it may like to grow in in the forest such as in lighting or soil and other details?
3 comments:
My first thought is to find out what parts are poisonous and how the can be used. If possible coat the larger thorns with the poison(or another) and use as blow darts, among many other things.
Depending on the poison used mixed with the sharp pointy thorns, the possibilities are endless.
Forgot to add, think Vietnam style traps used by Vietcong and you'll be thinking in the right direction. I must say I am loving the plant. Where is it most found.
It is mostly found in deep moist soils, and located in the forest understory and at the edges of forests. They can grow in groups by sprouting from the roots as well so if you find one you will probably find more, it is like bamboo in that sense as it grows from a central roots and will spread.
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