Last edit performed on June 8, 2010Welcome to our Castor Bean page...
a special section of Wuv'n Acres
First and foremost we emphasize the seeds and plants of the Castor Bean are poisonous.We encourage you to read and research and be aware of what you are growing. These seeds are not for irresponsible gardeners.
Scroll down to order. For detailed information about ordering, click here.
Two small seeds began growing. Six months later...
Wub and Cody measure a Castor Bean by the road. Fifteen feet tall and counting!
Two seeds were planted side by side in April. This picture was taken in October.
Yes, fifteen feet tall in six months. No fertilizer, no chemicals. Just ordinary soil.
Zone 7-ish. Imagine if we had fed the silly thing!
The plant above was still growing as of November 13, 2007, frost was a certain demise!
(Apologies, we need an updated photo. As of November 19, 2009, this year's castor beans were still standing!)
Update, November 29, they were bitten by cold temperatures, but still standing strong!
Click images for larger version of the pictures
some of our customers have sent in.
A grand example of what our customers grow!
Mr. and Mrs. Donald Esau of Nebraska were kind enough to share a few photographs
of the castor bean plants they grew from our seeds.
Mr. Esau reported growth of 16-18 feet tall with leaves 3 feet across!
You can see for yourself that a majestic and beautiful plant will emerge and grow
from a small seed about the size of a fingernail.
Indeed grand! Thank you so much, Mr. and Mrs. Esau, for sharing these glorious photos with Wuv'n Acres.
If you have photos you'd like to share on our website, send them our way and we'll be sure to credit
the photo for you.
A few of the beautiful hues of the castor bean, one of many varieties we grow each summer.
The growth progress of a few castor beans in 2007:
(Click on images for a larger view)
Purchase your seeds at any time of the year.
They will keep in a cool dry place until spring.
Be sure to keep them away from anyone who might consume them, as they are poisonous!
Don't forget, we have a very diverse garden thanks to our Honeybees!
PLEASE NOTE
We reserve the right to refuse shipment of these oilseeds out of the United States.
Certainly we do not wish to imply a thing by such a rule, please understand many countries
prohibit import of garden seeds, with Castor Beans no doubt on top of such a list. For additional
information before ordering out of the U.S. click here.
These seeds are sold for the sole intention of ornamental foliage in a garden setting and prevention
of garden pests such as moles. We keep records of all sales for castor beans and will not hesitate to provide such records to authorized law enforcement or other professionally licensed investigative parties
in the event these seeds have been used in a manner other than which they were intended, which is strictly
for garden beauty.
Basically, if you are gardening with them and have no ill intent, there should be nothing to worry about.
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Seeds above which are labeled with numbers are special selections. We grow many castor beans and we try to keep them labeled correctly according to variety. However, in all the research I have done, I have come to the conclusion that there are many varieties out there which are mislabeled, and yes, I may even unknowingly do the same for some. This creates a problem in selling seed, because what one calls Carmencita Red, another calls pink and so on. It is also my opinion that several varieties are not widely grown, and thus not many know exactly what the proper names should be. As the numbered seeds do not truly fit into any of the named cultivar categories I have yet to find, they are simply listed by a number, which is a specific plant in our garden. We are not claiming to have created any new species, we're simply acknowledging the fact that some of these vary in height and color pattern too much to be considered a specific cultivar.
Seedlings of Ricinus communis Sanguineus at a mere two weeks old.
Check out the root system on those little boogers!
Out of stock??? What do you mean, out of stock??? These seeds seem to be out of stock all the time, why?
Over the years, our customers have learned that if they want the cream of the crop, they have to get the seeds at harvest time.
Many gardeners realize finding castor bean seeds can often be very difficult, and so they have learned to order early.
In late summer, and typically by at least September / October, we have harvested just about all of the seeds.
It is this time the orders for seeds roll in. While we have had to raise our shipping rates, please know the one time charge
pays for your entire seeds order, and we are always generous with seed count.
If you are hoping to get a particular package of seeds, you might consider checking back to our site in August of each year.
I try hard to keep the site updated as we harvest and as we run out of stock.
Will these seeds get rid of the moles or voles in my garden?
Over the years, this question has come up many times. People from all over the country have written letters to me
asking about moles and castor beans. Moles are in your yard seeking grub worms and earth worms. Voles eat seeds and roots and such, which is where the rumor may have initiated.
They burrow and tunnel in search of a meal. The result is a maze of humps in your yard.
Some people claim planting castor beans in these areas will encourage the mole to eat the plants and die. Others suggest placing seeds into the
tunnels, the mole is thought to eat the seeds or other item set out for them, and die. The trouble with this is the extensive underground system. Unless a hungry
mole encounters a seed in a specific spot, your seeds will either lay where you put them or will sprout, depending on whether
viable seeds were placed.
Unfortunately, I cannot vouch for the validity of any claims. Many a gardener has used Castor Beans with varied results.
Because we are not fans of using chemicals, killing the earth worms just to kill a few grubs to get rid of a few bumps in the yard is not an issue for us. We'd rather have the earthworms.
Click any of the images to view a larger version:
When things are very busy for me, I often leave the carpel (hard shell) on the seeds. Fear not, you can easily remove them. Be sure to use
common sense and be careful when using any tool, folks. Simply place the edge of a knife blade (or other strong tool with a flat edge)
on top of the section where the knife tip rests in this photo:
Pull the blade towards yourself, using the edge of the blade to pull back on the little nub on the castor bean. The nub will release,
then you can separate the dried carpel from the seed. You can also use a strong thumbnail to do this. Be careful, you may even wish to wear
gloves - the spines of the carpel are often sharp. Be sure to wash your hands after touching the seeds and / or carpels.
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A castor bean is often given a bad rap and left out of gardens
because of it's toxicity. Yes, it is poisonous.
But why would you eat it???
RICINUS COMMUNIS (ry-cih-nus ka-myu-nuhss)
Scared of planting these because of what you've heard? Egads, poisonous? Harmful? Deadly?
Yes, if you eat the seeds. Simply cut the seed stalks off before they grow. Now wasn't that easy?
Let's get back to gardening, shall we?
Beautiful seed pods forming, taking on a red-pink tinge!
A member of the spurge family...
Euphorbiaceae
Ricinus communis
The various hues in the leaves are amazing!
Short growing season in your area? Start them indoors for a big jump start! Gigantic and fast growing.
This is such an interesting plant! Soak the seeds overnight and bury them.
Note the white filmy tissue which coats the seedling leaves. This will fall off or you can assist if your seedling if
doesn't seem to be able to shed it before it dries.
Below is a castor just a few weeks old:
Soon your large leafed beauty is on it's way. Best treated as an annual, though often volunteer here in Oklahoma.
Each Spring I find them popping up in our garden!
Seed pods typically have three seeds, but I grew this five seed pod in the summer of 2001.
Four chamber pods are pretty common oddities around here as well.
A hardy perennial in the warmer climates. I strap mine to the chain link with cable ties when they are younger
to protect them from strong winds & keep them growing straight when facing northern winds.
Dense leaf coverage, excellent shade for poultry.
We have many pets and have yet to find one of them interested in eating our plants.
Fear not for Fido.
Gorgeous statement if several are planted together as a focal point in your yard or garden.
Changed your mind about planting them?
Just cut them down, and they are gone. Though I live in zone 6-7, I was amazed to see many castors voluntarily pop up in Spring!
Looks like they're quite a hardy self-seeding annual!
Stalks may be green, mint, pink, red, mottled and more! The stalks are incredibly thick.
My Zanzibar castors have reached to 15 feet without fertilizer! Size depends upon soil and weather conditions.
Wait 'till you see the seed pods! Gorgeous!
Harvested from my own trees!
THESE SEEDS AND PLANTS ARE POISONOUS
But actually, so are many plants you already have right now, but you wouldn't eat them, would you?
Though the castor has a bad reputation for it's toxicity, there are number of poisonous plants right in your own home.
You teach your child not to eat certain things. Make sure he or she knows not to eat plants, too!
Not advised for persons with horses or livestock; they may eat the plants, pods or seeds.
Also known as Castor oil plant / Bush / Tree, Castor bean, Eranda, Gana Garchak, Higuerilla, Hintyagi Agaci,
Huile Ricin, Jarak, Christi or Pei, Khirwe, Palma Sittamoonaka Ma, Pi Ma, To-Goma, Tartago, Ricino
But we'll just stick with 'castor bean'
HOW TO GROW CASTOR BEANS...
Plant them, water them. It's that easy.
If you want to get technical or live in a cold area, you might play around with different methods, but they do
require warm soil to germinate. While they tolerate drought, they perform quite well in warm weather with regular watering.
If you begin your seeds indoors in peat pellets, watch out.
Some of the castor bean varieties seem to take off like crazy, while others may just sit there doing nothing for weeks.
This is good and bad. The good thing is, that means your seeds are healthy. But you have to watch the roots, castor beans develop
very vigorous roots in a short period of time. If they are developing roots which have grown outside the peat pot,
transfer them to a plastic pot. When warm weather arrives, simply transplant them to a full sun location.
CASTOR BEANSDAYLILIESFLOWER SEEDS AND PLANTSFROGS, FROGS, FROGS!FRUITS AND VEGGIESGOURDS, SQUASH AND PUMPKINSGRASS AND GRAINHERBS AND WEEDSHOLLYHOCKSLUFFA SPONGE SEEDS & SOAP MAKING HOW-TOLUFFA SPONGE ARBOR PAGEMORNING GLORY / GLORIESPASSION FLOWERPOND / AQUATIC PLANTS & SEEDSRECYCLED TIRE PLANTERSRECYCLED GLASS ARTSOAPS AND LOTIONSTREES AND SHRUBSHOMECONTACT / MEET THE FAMILYCHEAP IDEASEMAIL USMAIL ORDER FORMABOUT ORDERING FROM USFIND YOUR PLANTING ZONEAMERICAN GOURD SOCIETYNew project underway to help sort the multitude of names out there for castor beans:
BLACK BEAUTY DARK BROWN LEAVES TURN GREEN?
CARMENCITA DEEP RED, REDDISH BROWN LEAVES 6' TALL
COCCINEUS BRONZE LEAVES
DWARF RED SPIRE
GIBSONII MIRABILIS 4' TALL DARK RED LEAVES AND STEMS
GREEN SPIRE
IMPALA 4-5 FEET, REDDISH PURPLE , MAROON TO CARMINE YELLOW BLOOMS
NEW ZEALAND DEEP COPPER RED IN ALL PARTS
RED SPIRE
ROYAL THAI
SANGUINEUS DEEP RED
SCARLET GREEN BURGUNDY
SCARLET QUEEN BURGUNDY