Well, that would make sense - Proboscidea lutea = Ibicella lutea according to
Gordon Cheers' CP listing. Is P. louisianica carnivorous like (or unlike?)
I. lutea - if so what's the mechanism?
>As to killing sheep well...... They are a noxious weed in New South Wales and
>except for the inner Melbourne area. The pod is very tough and sharp when it
>dries and can hook into the sheep's jaw or hooves which is probably very
>painful. I think the main problem was that the pods got caught up in the wool
>and used to break the shearing combs, which didn't impress the shearers.
I remembered Barry told me that it was a weed - that's why I was reluctant
to buy one (apart from the plant's rather nondescriptness... ;-) ) According
to an old gardening book I've got, the pods were pickled - any tried them??
(The ones on display looked pretty woody/stringy - probably young pods were
used - something like capers (which are flower buds?)).
BFN
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| John Taylor [The Banshee] | Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology |
| rphjt@minyos.xx.rmit.oz.au | *EX* Department of Applied Physics |
| MOKING IS A HEALTH HAZARD. | Melbourne, Victoria, AUSTRALIA |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------------+
/