7 Plants That Attack or Are Considered Haunted

We all love our plant collections, resting in the shade under a tree for some downtime, stopping to smell the flowers, and the fresh air they provide so we can breathe. But not all of our flora friends are friendly, some fall into the frenemy group as they have been known to kill other living beings, eat animals, used as poison, and in some cases have spread disease to humans. 

Here are 7 plants, forests, fun facts, and urban legends that have a darker side in nature that you may not know about.

While all plants are susceptible to plant diseases, some can spread diseases to humans whether it is from a scratch on our skin that allows bacteria in, or worse. A few diseases plants can spread to humans include:

• Rose Pickers Disease (sporotrichosis)

• Pepper Mild Mottle Virus (PMMoV)

• Phaeohyphomycosis & Keratitis

• Black Mold

While more of an urban legend, some plants have urban legends around them and appear to be haunted due to the sordid events that happened there giving each their own sitgma. A few famous ones you can visit, if you dare, include:

• Devil’s tree in New Jersey which is said to curse anyone that touches it due to the history of violence including a killer farmer.

• Angel Oak is the largest oak tree east of the Mississippi river, and it is the final resting place of slaves and native Americans that come back to protect the tree and possibly haunt anyone that tresspasses.

• Freetown-Fall River State Forest in Massachusetts is widely considered haunted for its paranormal activity. Ghost hunters frequently visit in hopes of capturing the supernatural which you can find across travel communities including this one on TripAdvisor.

• The Florida Devil Tree is the site of one of Florida’s most renown and horrible serial killers. Some legends say the tree convinced Gerard John Schaefer to commit the murders, and other urban legends claim that people have tried to cut the tree down due to it being haunted, but it breaks chainsaws and becomes indestructible. 

Some plants are toxic when touched like Poison Ivy and Poison Sumac, but none pack a punch like the Gympie-Gympie that is considered the world’s most painful plant. While it has heart shaped leaves that look inviting, each one is covered in silica hairs that can pierce your skin and inject a venom that can cause pain lasting for months.

There’s also the Manchineel which is nicknamed “The Tree of Death”. While it looks like an apple tree that you’d see around the world, the fruit may cause blistering and even death. It’s similarities to fruits we eat regularly have tricked everyone from pirates and conquistadors or unknowing tourists across the Caribbean.

When hiking across the US and Asia, beware of the Giant Hogweed. Coming in contact with it can cause blistering and severe rashes, and even lead to permanent scars or blindness. It’s called giant because it can reach heights of 18 feet tall. 

Fun fact: There is a collection of poisonous plants in Alnwick Gardens where visitors can see and learn about 100+ toxic plants. 

While some plants climb and strangle their hosts like Ficus and Kudzu, others are far more sinister and take the nutrition out of their hosts. Many are stunning like the Indian Paintbrush, Rafflesia, Nuytsia, or Broomrape, and all are deadly to their host. 

These plants have a unique organ called a haustorium that pierce into the host, draining it of nutrients, water, and minerals slowly killing the host. They’ve evolved over time to be able to detect which plants to drain by detecting strigolactones in the soil. While deadly, these plants can also save ecosystems by draining dominant plant species that drown out others, giving each plant in the region a chance to thrive.

Forests are amazing retreats for city people, and amazing places to hike and bird watch. But some forests call to the locals for more nefarious reasons and can lead to disorientation and death.

• Aokigahara Sea of Trees of Japan is nicknamed “suicide forest” and “the sea of trees” known for its beautiful but eery trees that supposedly lure you in. Once inside the souls of past visitors begin whispering bad thoughts into your ears to the point where you may want to end your own life.

• The Parallel Forest in Oklahoma is a man made forest covering 16 acres with more than 20,000 red cedar trees. If you suffer from allergies you already know to avoid this place, and if you’re a hiker it may sound like a nice place to explore, but with the even columns and rows, disorientation happens. The creepy atmosphere and 400 year old circular stone structure towards the back help to further power the urban legends around this place.

• Shady Dell Trail and the Candelabra Redwoods may not be as “haunted” as other forests, but the unique candelabra shapes of these massive trees caused by the wind and environment have led to multiple myths and urban legends. Some consider it a storybook forest for the unique shapes, others may claim they see paranormal activity throughout the brands and trunks. Almost everyone will agree they’re worth seeing at least once.

Some plants eat meat as a way to find nutrients when their natural surroundings do not have enough in the soil. There are at least 800 species of plants that eat meat, and many have intricate variegation, foliage, and flowers that attract unsuspecting prey. 

Some like the venus fly trap close around the victim while pitfall trap plants create a large cone or cylinder that contains a pool of digestive enzymes where the victim gets digested. Some develop a sticky substance that traps and digests their prey. Others will use a vacuum like organs to suck in the prey when it lands. 

Fun fact: While most of us know the venus fly trap as they’re easy to care for and fun to have in a collection, the Sarracenia (Pitcher Plants) have the highest kill rate due to their ability to trap prey in their “pitcher like” containers filled with digestive fluids.

With multiple large forests like the Amazon left to be explored, there’s no telling what other ways carnivorous plants have developed to trap and eat their prey.

While all plants are beautiful, some have hidden secrets and have been the inspiration for urban myths. Others are known for bringing luck, prosperity, and can be used as medicine. If you’re curious about the plants in your home, a quick search online may share some fun and interesting urban legends around the genus or species.