Herbology Class: The Sandbox Tree

[MadAlice]

Upon walking down to the greenhouses this cold and sunny December day, students will see a sixth building sitting out behind the others. Yes, Professor DeVries has erected yet another temporary greenhouse for his class today--wonder what he's up to now?

The greenhouse looks ordinary enough, but once inside it's immediately clear that it is much taller than the outside of the building seemed to be (ah, magic!) It is very tall and very long, and down at one end stands an extremely large looking tree with a cluster of branches covered with dark green leaves way up high and a bunch of spiky-looking things all over the trunk. Dotted here and there are strange, orange-red, round looking things that very much resemble small pumpkins.




A whiteboard standing immediately inside the entrance bears a message in large letters:

Text Cut: Whiteboard

STAY AWAY FROM THE TREE!
Please sit down and wait for class to start

There are a number of stools set up at the other end of the room from the tree, and
Professor DeVries is in a corner nearby bending over some trunks, checking to make sure everything is there.


Greetings and Question 1
Answers and Question 2
Mini-Activity
Main Activity
Class has ended! [Thread will remain open until 6/16 pm]

[FearlessLeader19]

Clad in sweatpants, an old shirt and a batter pair of Nike sports shoes he didn’t mind getting dirty, Char made his way to the Greenhouses for Herbology on this fine day. For some reason, he was unsurprised to find yet another building had been put up. Professor Tapio was always being creative with his plants. What intrigued him immediately was that tree. My, my. It was quite the sight to see but he knew better than to approach it thanks to that message on the whiteboard. Also, he really did not fancy getting in the way of the tree should it function like the Whomping Willow. No… Char intended on having a good long life filled with happy Quidditch days.

“Hello, Professor,’’ the Puff called in Swedish, but not saying more because DeVries was obviously busy. Instead, he took a seat with his eyes fixed on the tree once more.

[MadMadamMalfoy]

Didn't everybody know by now that there was no such thing as clothes Desiree didn’t mind getting dirty?! Every time she saw that on the Hufflepuff noticeboard, she had to shake her head and giggle a bit. She arrived wearing her usual herbology attire: pink coveralls designed to repel dirt, tall boots, and a hat to keep her hair clean and out of the way. Even with the warming charms she’d placed on her clothes, she shivered a bit in the cold. At least the sun was shining!

The first thing she noticed upon her arrival was the tree. Wow, that thing was tall! She craned her neck as far as she could but still couldn’t see all the way to the top. Were those orange things what she thought they were? Whatever they were, they kind of reminded her of the pumpkin in Cinderella. Ooh, was there a spell to turn one of those things into a coach? She'd have to research that later!

“Hi, Professor,” Desiree greeted her Head of House with her usual cheerful smile and wave. Another smile and wave followed as she joined her older housemate. “Hi, Charlie!”

[Cassirin]

The worst thing in the world to a curious little muffin like Mercer Branxton was to put something fascinating in front of him and then label it DO NOT TOUCH. Merlin knew that all he wanted to do was touch. He would hug that darn tree if the professor weren't right there watching.

Instead, he meandered to a seat near his fellow fifth year Desiree and immediately sat on his hands. "Y'think he'll let us touch it later, or is this one of those never-to-be-touched trees? I reckon it wants a hug."

[Holmesian Feline]

To say Nadia was extra curious about the fact that there was suddenly a new greenhouse added to the rest that she had previously been aware of was an understatement. Add to that the fact that she could see it very clearly had an extension charm on it when she passed through the doorway and inside only to see all that it held, and the Gryffindor had to try and keep cool.

Wow! One very large tree.

And a warning not to touch it. So much boo but the second year would obey that request…for now. Better to wait and see what was what before risking missing out as punishment. “Hello Professor,” she greeted the man as she moved to where the stools resided, taking one of the free ones for herself.

[Chelliephone]

Herbology was oftentimes more fun than other classes because she was allowed to wear whatever she wanted. Which usually was the clothes she reserved for running outside with Nat Attack in the mornings. Heading down to the greenhouses, her hair pulled back in it's usual ponytail with a few wisps framing her face, she'd chosen to complete her look for the day with a pair of black leggings with a whole in the knee - from tripping over a tree root, to be sure - and an oversized gray sweater with with some permanent graphite stains around the sleeves from drawing. They weren't her best clothes, but they were comfortable and she didn't mind them getting more stained or messed up then they already were.

Entering the larger temporary greenhouse, her eyes were immediately drawn to the giant tree and it was only seeing other students NOT near it that got her to look around and notice the sign on the whiteboard. Which was... immediately a drag, because there was nothing she wanted to do BUT touch it Professor! With a small soft sigh, she made her way towards the stools and settled into an open one near Nadia. "Do you think that tree feels like a cactus?"

[sweetpinkpixie]

Mitsuki rather enjoyed the spontaneous temporary greenhouses the professor erected. The ever changing scenery of the Herbology area felt rather befitting of the subject and she had to admit that she also enjoyed seeing the Herbology professor so riveted by the subject. She offered the man a polite nod of the head and accompanying tiiiiiny smile as a greeting before quickly deciding where she would sit.

Sauntering over to Mercer and her zone of comfort, she remained quiet while he spoke with Desiree. Once seated in seiza, Mitsuki inched just a liiiiittle closer than she would usually, ensuring the tiniest brush of her fingers over the arm before her hands both settled on her thighs, and tucked some of her long black hair that her glittery deep indigo bat barrettes had neglected behind her ear. Her hazel-green eyes wandered to the red-orange pumpkin-like fruits on the great tree and was reminded of Dirigible Plums. Perhaps the same genus? She had, admittedly, been neglecting her Herbology studies in favor of other pursuits as of late.

[Lottiepot]

Boing, boing, boing.

Aurora practically bounced her way into Herbology humming a song which was unfortunately not in tune thanks to her lack of singing ability but that never stopped her from attempting anyway. The Ravenclaw was in a great mood as Herbology was one of her favourite lessons. Not that she was ever really in a bad mood, in fact she was entirely unsure whether she was capable of being any other emotion than perpetually happy. Yes it probably grated on the other students especially some of the older and much wiser ones but oblivious little Aurora was very unlikely to change.

Ever.

She quickly glanced around the classroom, offered the Professor a little finger wave before spotting the big tree with the warning sign. Obviously the fact that they couldn’t touch it just made the blonde even more curious but she refrained for now not wanting to get into trouble before the lesson had even started.

Boing, boing, boing.

Her braid which had been expertly plaited by her sister that morning bounced as she went again looking for a friend to stand with.. or just anyone really. She had a talent for talking the ear off of whoever was in the vicinity at the time.

[Nordic Witch]

Clad in clothes and shoes that could get dirty Will headed down to attend plants class in yet another greenhouse. Coming inside it was hard not to miss the gigantic tree that immediatly took all his attention from the leaves to the pumpkin things or the sign that stated clearly to not walk near. Will figured this tree was a buddy to the whomping willow so he had no trouble with following that instruction. He knew from experience that at least the whomping willow didn't like it if anyone got too close.

"Hello Professor!" Will greeted with a smile, and a wave before he went over plopp himself down on a stool near Charlie.

[astrocat]

Brandon immediately noticed that there were one too many greenhouses today, and sped up a little to investigate. When he stepped in, he was surprised to see that the suspicious new greenhouse was bigger on the inside. Right... that happened sometimes with magic. It bothered him a little, but was also very useful for when you had a huge tree. Like right now.

Observing the tree, he noticed it was spiky, and he was pretty sure he might have seen one before? He felt no urge to touch it... in fact, he didn't want to at all... the sign on the board only confirmed to him that he was correct in that. But what were these strange pumpkin things? He wasn't sure if they could touch those or not, but Brandon would rather not risk it.

"Hi Professor DeVries. Hi Aurora." He picked a stool right next to his friend, pleased that they were each far from the suspicious new tree.

[MadAlice]

Tapio was satisfied that he had everything in order that he needed today, and also he noticed the students were arriving, so he left the corner and came over to the front of the seating area. He didn't want to leave them unattended for too long, because he knew what a temptation an interesting new plant with a sign saying "Do Not Touch" was for a young person. But he really, really needed them not to get near this particular tree today, not without instructions and the proper protective equipment.

"God eftermiddag, Herr Bergstrand," he greeted Char, also in Swedish, for he'd spent some time in most of the northern European countries. Checking the large pocketwatch he carried, he decided that it was five minutes past the hour and time to get started. "Hello, Miss Marchand", he continued as more students arrived. "Hello, Miss Atreyu-Rehman". He gave an equally polite nod to Mitsuki Rasting, as well as to some of the other students who came in without saying anything. "Good afternoon, Mr. Whitlaw, Mr. Fox" He smiled to himself as he saw them all looking at the tree. He knew that he was becoming known among the students for his use of temporary greenhouses by now, but today he had a good reason for it, as indeed he always did, and they would soon see why once class got underway.

Checking the large pocketwatch that he carried, he decided it was time to start class, five minutes past the hour. "Good afternoon, everyone, please settle down for class. Thank you for paying attention to my sign and not disturbing the tree, because it's actually a bit dangerous if you don't take proper precautions.

"This tree is the topic of the day. It's called the Sandbox Tree, also sometimes called the Dynamite Tree. So the first thing I want to ask you is what, if anything, do you know about it?" Tapio stood there smiling and looking expectantly at the class.

[Chelliephone]

One thing that could be appreciated about Professor DeVries, he certainly did not make them wait long to get to the point of the lesson. Not that she minded the guessing game that some Professor's had them play, using deductive reasoning and logic and all those things to surmise what was the topic of discussion BUT... she wasn't great at those. So the straight and simple to the point 'this is it' was something the Gryffindor appreciated. Particularly when she was SO curious about what the giant prickly tree was.

... A dynamite tree? That certainly promised some fun, didn't it?

As for what she knew, nothing but that wasn't going to stop her from making assumptions. Raising her hand, Vera waited to be called on. "Judging by the name, I'm assuming all the pumpkin looking things are actually explosives!" This seemed not a safe lesson, but maybe just as much not so as when they talked about bombarda.

[FearlessLeader19]

Such a delight it was whenever anyone responded to him in Swedish. Char gave DeVries a thumbs up and a broad grin. Such a gesture from his Head of House made him feel rather over the moon. It was not at all surprising that the other students’ attention was immediately occupied by the tree. The thing was magnificent. “Hi, Desiree. Quite a tree, huh?” He snuck another glance at it before turning as another stool beside him suddenly became occupied. “Hi, Will!” Char was always enthusiastic to see his close buddy. So enthusiastic that he gave the Ravenclaw a friendly punch in the arm.

The Sandbox Tree or Dynamite Tree, huh? Charlie squinted at the tree again because truthfully? The Puff hadn’t heard of it before. And for that reason, he really hadn’t a clue about what the tree was about. Still, the name ‘Dynamite’ had him hazarding a guess. “Perhaps some aspect of the tree explodes,’’ Char volunteered. “Perhaps it’s those spikes that burst their way out of the trunk at rapid speed.”

[sweetpinkpixie]

Sandbox and dynamite were quite different words to be applied to the same tree. Mitsuki could not form a logical comparison nor figure out how the two could be synonymous with one another. What this meant, to her, was that these spoke to two very different traits of this particular tree. Since she did not know anything about the tree, the Ravenclaw continued to theorize on her own...and her thoughts continued to wander more towards the sandbox approach rather than dynamite. It was a given that something on the tree presented itself as an explosion...and whether or not this particular tree was magical or mundane would provide a bit more insight as to what that explosion could entail. Magical would likely imply that it was more of a defense mechanism...mundane more likely to be a means of reproduction which drew her attention to the fruit just as a rambunctious Gryffindor spoke to them. Fruits had seeds on the inside and should those fruit explode it would launch those seeds elsewhere to grow more of its species.

Hard to know for certain, hence her silence.

The sandbox aspect, however, kept her coming back to the little bedside tabletop zen garden she had back on her dresser in Ravenclaw Tower. It was rude, insensitive really, to call such a thing a 'sandbox' but it was now where her mind was fixated - especially with the frame and gardening took made from wood. Therefore, she surmised that it was the wood of this tree that was useful - more so than the spikes and fruit - and perhaps particularly sturdy to make containers. Or...perhaps it was a particularly flexible wood.

Again, hard to know for certain so she would simply wait for the professor to elaborate. She had no desire to climb it...though she did wish she had her watercolors with her to paint it. The salt technique she favored would work really well to capture the texture of its trunk.

[2111jen]

Ally looked up at what the proffessor had asked. Sandbox tree? Yeah. She hadn’t a clue about anything about it. So she listened carefully at the other answers.

[Nordic Witch]

Will beamed at his buddy Charlie and returned the punch in the arm with one of his own. He would have whispered a question about getting the trio together for a game of something when Prof DeVries began class. Straightening in his seat, and paying close attention Will made big eyes as the name of the tree was announced. The dynamite tree or sandbox tree sounded wicked.

Racking his brain William raised his hand to offer a guess since something came to mind that he had heard or read somewhere. "Professor is the sandbox tree the tree where the fruit explodes out when its ripe to eat?"

[Lottiepot]

Aurora thankfully didn’t have to wait long before a friend joined her to prevent her from having to tag along to one of the older students friendship groups like a probably annoying little limpet. Brandon got a huge grin in response to his arrival and a link of the arms from the blonde to show that they would be working together today even if the activity didn’t call for working in pairs. Rora was one of those children who absolutely hated being by herself and didn’t understand the concept that others actually enjoyed alone time. She was about to start talking to Brandon when the class was hushed for the lesson to begin.

Ooooooh. Big pretty tree was actually big pretty scary tree.

What was it with Hogwarts and trees that wanted to harm you? First there was the Whomping Willow and now this tree that judging by the other students answers was equally as dangerous. Of course being a naive little twelve year old Aurora had never actually heard of a Sandbox tree but the name did fascinate her. She raised her hand being the curious little kid that she was to ask a question. “Professor, why is it called a Sandbox tree if it’s that dangerous? Because Sandboxes are where little kids play to make sandcastles and you wouldn’t want a scary tree in a playground?” Perfectly reasonable question in her opinion.

[MadMadamMalfoy]

Desiree smiled, nodding in reply to Charlie. “It’s soooo tall!” she said, looking up at the tree once more. “I hope we don’t have to climb it later.” Probably not, since the sign said not to touch it, but you never know!

Another smile greeted Mercer as he joined her. “Hi, Mercer,” Desiree said, considering the question carefully. You know, that was a good question! She’d never thought about trees liking hugs, but it kind of made sense that they might. Most people and some animals (like her cat) liked hugs. Trees were living creatures too, so why should they miss out on hugs? That specific one, though… “I don’t know,” She shrugged. “Those spikes on the trunk don’t look very huggable.” It didn’t mean the tree shouldn’t get a hug, though. Maybe there was a charm to soften the spikes… unless they were poisonous or something.

Desiree was still trying to think of a way to safely hug the tree when the lesson began. Jerked out of her thoughts, she turned her attention to Professor Devries. Sandbox Tree? Dynamite Tree? She’d never heard either of those terms before! Until then, she thought the tree might be a hybrid between a dirigible plum bush and something else because the orange fruits kind of looked like dirigible plums. Looks like her guess was way off!

If that was called a Dynamite Tree, it stood to reason that part of the tree exploded… either that or caused something else to explode. Was that why they weren’t supposed to touch it? DId it make anything that touched it explode? That was a scary thought, one that she wasn’t about to voice out loud so as not to frighten the younger students! Instead, she considered the other name. Sandbox Tree… that didn’t really go with dynamite, did it? Maybe it was called that because the wood was used to make sandboxes, or maybe…

Her hand went up. “Is it called a Sandbox Tree because it likes sandy climates?” she asked.

[MadAlice]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chelliephone

Raising her hand, Vera waited to be called on. "Judging by the name, I'm assuming all the pumpkin looking things are actually explosives!" This seemed not a safe lesson, but maybe just as much not so as when they talked about bombarda.

Quote:

Originally Posted by FearlessLeader19

Charlie squinted at the tree again because truthfully? The Puff hadn’t heard of it before. And for that reason, he really hadn’t a clue about what the tree was about. Still, the name ‘Dynamite’ had him hazarding a guess. “Perhaps some aspect of the tree explodes,’’ Char volunteered. “Perhaps it’s those spikes that burst their way out of the trunk at rapid speed.”

Quote:

Originally Posted by Nordic Witch

Racking his brain William raised his hand to offer a guess since something came to mind that he had heard or read somewhere. "Professor is the sandbox tree the tree where the fruit explodes out when its ripe to eat?"

Quote:

Originally Posted by Nordic Witch

Racking his brain William raised his hand to offer a guess since something came to mind that he had heard or read somewhere. "Professor is the sandbox tree the tree where the fruit explodes out when its ripe to eat?"

Tapio smiled; he had guessed that this massive, impressive-looking tree would get the children's attention. "Many of you have correctly guessed that the tree gets its nickname "Dynamite" because something on it explodes, but it's not the spiky-looking prickles. It is in fact the fruit, which resembles a small pumpkin. However, this fruit is not safe to eat, even when ripe. In fact, many parts of this tree are poisonous--the fruit, leaves, bark, and seeds. And the ripe seeds explode with enough force to injure people or livestock, so it's a rather dangerous tree to have around."

Tapio noticed some of the other students--Mitsuki Rasting and Ally Rory --seemed to be thinking of some ideas, but they didn't volunteer to share them with the class, so he moved on.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Lottiepot

She raised her hand being the curious little kid that she was to ask a question. “Professor, why is it called a Sandbox tree if it’s that dangerous? Because Sandboxes are where little kids play to make sandcastles and you wouldn’t want a scary tree in a playground?” Perfectly reasonable question in her opinion.

Tapio laughed and replied, "No, you certainly wouldn't. But that's not the reason it's called the Sandbox Tree. In fact, people in the British West Indies used to saw the seeds in half and use them as decorative sandboxes for blotting ink from their pens. Some wizards in the region still do, though the Muggles gave that up long ago. They considered quite elegant in some social sets.



So--as I have said, this is called the Sandbox Tree, or Huro Crepitans, also called possum wood, monkey-no-climb, assacu, jabillo, and, of course, the Dynamite Tree. It's a member of the spurge family, Euphor biaceae and is native to tropical America. It's an evergreen tree, with long-stalked, dark-greenleaves which grow high in a round crown. It's larg--nearly 30 meters, or 100 feet, tall and its trunk is studded with short, conical prickles. Its globe-shaped seed capsules resemble small pumpkins and when ripe, they explode loudly, scattering the seeds . It likes wet soil, partial shade or partial-to--full sun, and prefers a warm, humid environment. It's often cultivated for shade and, if you can believe it, is sometimes grown as what they call "boulevard trees", used to mark the boundaries of property, though I myself don't think I would want to risk using it for this purpose. Fishermen in the tropics use the caustic milky sap to stun or kill fish to make them easier to harvest, and some tribes have been known to use its sap to make a poison for their arrowheads. It's wood is used in furniture, which is then d 'hura'. Parts of it are also used as herbal remedies.

This tree, though it seems like something that ought to be in the Forbidden Forest, is actually common in Muggle environments, but wizard arborists have cultivated a magical hybrid variety, which you see here. Its seed pods are a redder orange than the muggle variety, and are more clearly shaped like little pumpkins, It's also less poisonous, though it's still not advisable to eat the fruit or touch the sap. Also, the seeds are softer and squishier, so they're less dangerous when the pods explode. Besides the herbal remedies used by Muggles, there are a number of additional healing and other potions that use parts of the tree, including an old lotion that they used to use on Dragon Pox pustules. These remedies tend to be rather expensive because of the difficulty in harvesting the ingredients.

Now, as you have no doubt begun to guess, this can be a rather dangerous tree, or at the very least, uncomfortable. What do you think are some of the problems one might encounter when trying to harvest parts of this tree or work with it, and how might those be overcome?"

[Cassirin]

Just because a tree (or person) was hard to hug didn't mean that it didn't want to be hugged. Probably it wanted to be hugged even MORE so because it was so hard to hold on to. Mercer wiggled in his seat, his focus on the tree intense and his attention only giving Mitsuki the barest flicker when she appeared at his side.

She was magic. It didn't surprise him anymore.

"Oh. Professor!" Mercer's hand went up and he nearly fell out of his seat from the effort of pulling it free. He remembered this tree, especially the bit about the fruit exploding. His dad had taken some pictures of one right when it exploded while in the Amazon doing a photo essay on caipora. "Maybe if you aren't careful and you try to harvest the little fruits and they explode, then you get... fruit shrapnel. Or whatever, but it might hurt you."

[FearlessLeader19]

He had been partially correct so that counted for something. Char winced when it was mentioned that the majority of the Tree was poisonous. Then there was no way the class was getting close to it? Or was there a workaround to that issue? He couldn’t decide if it was the poison or the fruit shooting seeds like a deadly weapon was scarier.

There was so much information on today’s subject. The Puff tried his best to tuck a few key points in his brain; points that most likely will come in handy for later in the lesson. All in all, even if there were benefits from the Tree, it was decided that Charlie did not want one of these around. “Choosing the incorrect equipment to work with? For example, one might not use a strong or thick enough pair of gloves when handling the tree parts. That could lead to one coming in contact with the poison through the glove’s material.”

[2111jen]

Allly nodded with the others soaking in the information the professor had said. She raised her hand at the question. “You need to do some reasearch before to kake sure you’re harvesting what you might need safely”
She snorted at Mercer. Excuse me, the what now?

[Lottiepot]

Oooooh. That made much more sense. Aurora was a Ravenclaw for her curious and inquisitive nature and not for her natural intelligence. She loved to ask questions whenever the opportunity arose. She thought it would be better named the ‘ink blott tree’ to avoid any confusion though so that unsuspecting muggles didn’t plant it near their sandboxes.

However the Monkey No Climb tree was a great name and received a little giggle from the twelve year old. It reminded her of Tarzan with its slightly broken English.

She listened intently as Professor DeVries explained the uses of the tree and the differences in the variations between the Muggle and Wizarding types. Personally, she didn’t think that it was even worth the risks but she supposed someone would have to do it. The other students were discussing equipment like gloves and avoiding the exploding seeds. Her hand raised up. “Can you just use magic to remove the seeds and fruits and then you don’t have to go anywhere near the tree?” Logic.

[Nordic Witch]

The muggle's used the dynamite tree to show bounderies of properties? Yikes was Will's instant thought. Talk about having an explosive tree guard your house. He was really glad that nobody in his extended owned a sandbox tree. Sheesh, the fruit and sap was poisonous so why would you wish harm on another unexpecting person by having such a tree at home? Will did not understand, but some people no matter if they were muggle or wizard usually took extreme measures to secure their house and family so he supposed this tree would be a good guard.

Will contemplated the question quite a far bit before he hazarded a guess by raising his hand in the and then speaking. "Since the sap is poisonous, and the fruit is explosive which both can cause injuries and/or sickness then you need to as a safety and health precaution wear protective dragon hide gear from top to toe when handling it. I also think you shouldn't do any tree care when the tree sap is active or the fruit is in it's ripe phase to minimize the risks."

[MadMadamMalfoy]

So apparently it wasn’t called a Sandbox Tree because it liked sandy climates… Desiree was mildly disappointed that her answer had been incorrect, but she didn’t dwell on it. She listened intently, both unnerved and intrigued by the tree the more she heard about it. Ooh, parts of it were used as herbal remedies. Okay, this just got interesting! She jotted down the tree information in her notes, paying special attention to its use as a dragon pox lotion. That knowledge could be useful when she became a healer!

Exploding fruit, caustic sap, prickly trunk… that tree had a lot of potentially dangerous parts! As she considered the question, her thoughts immediately turned to protective equipment. Maybe something that covered the whole body, like a magical version of a hazmat suit, would be useful in harvesting the tree… or hugging it. But that sounded similar to the other answers. Another thought occurred to her. Had anyone mentioned safety goggles yet? She didn't think so. Her hand shot up, and she said, “You wouldn’t want to get hit in the eye with fast-flying seeds, so it’s important to wear safety glasses.” Unless… An idea popped into her head, and she added as an afterthought, “Is there a charm to neutralize the explosion?”