July Photo

Plant Characteristics:  Evergreen shrub to 20 ft.; lvs. narrowly oblong-lanceolate, 4-12 in. long, acuminate, tapering at base into short petiole, dark green above, paler beneath with prominent midrib, glabrous; fls. white to red or purple, 1.5-3 in. across, often double; appendages of corolla 3-4 toothed; pods drooping, 4-7 in. long.

Habitat:  Commonly cult. in southern countries; naturalized in s. Calif.  Bloom dates are not published in Bailey.  The photos of the blooming plant were taken in July, however, the bloom period is much longer.

Name:  Greek, nerion, the oleander.  (Jaeger 165).  The species name refers to the resemblance of the leaves to the olive.  (Bailey 812).

General:  Uncommon in the study area, with a few plants here and there.  Photographed in the Delhi Ditch and along Back Bay Dr. (my comment).      The leaves and wood of Oleander are poisonous.  In the closely related milkweed and dogbane families, the nature of the poisonous compounds remains largely undetermined, though several have been known to be present in each family.  (Kingsbury 53).    Oleander poison acts much like digitalis, the poison in foxglove.  It causes stomach pain, vomiting, and irregularities in the heartbeat.  There may be enough poison in a single oleander leaf to kill an adult, though most cases of accidental poisoning do not end in death.  There is at least one recorded case of a group of people being poisoned at a cookout when they used oleander twigs to roast hot dogs over an open fire.  The fire caused the poisonous sap to seep out of the bark and into the meat.      All parts of the oleander, including the dried leaves, contain deadly glycosides (oleandrin) that stimulate the heart.  A child can become ill from eating a single leaf, or from sucking nectar from the flowers.  Also, nectar collected by bees produces poisonous honey.  (James 55).     Three upright shrubs or small trees native from Mediterranean region to Japan.  (Bailey 811).

Text Ref:  Bailey 812.

Photo Ref:  July 1 85 # 23A, 24A; July 01 # 12,13,14.

Identity: by R. De Ruff.

First Found: July 1985.

Computer Ref:  Plant Data 132.

Plant specimen given to UC Riverside in 2004.

Last edit 7/4/05.

                             July Photo                                                                    July Photo