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Hura crepitans, the sandbox tree, [2] also known as possumwood, monkey no-climb, assacu (from Tupi asaku) and jabillo, [3] is an evergreen tree in the family Euphorbiaceae, native to tropical regions of North and South America including the Amazon rainforest. It is also present in parts of Tanzania, where it is considered an invasive species. [4]
Similarly, the fruit of the sandbox tree burst open to disperse seeds, but the reaction is so violent that it can injure nearby people or livestock. [31] Some plants such as the dogwood bunchberry and white mulberry will also fling pollen from their flowers. Peat mosses are known to explosively launch their spores. [32]
A notable example is the sandbox tree (Hura crepitans), which can fling seeds 100 meters (300 ft) and has been called the "boomer plant" due to the loud sound it generates. Another example is Impatiens, whose explosive dehiscence is triggered by being touched, leading it to be called the "touch-me-not".
I scanned the trees and saw that a maple tree had "exploded". The explosion caused a big crack in the tree about three feet high. When a winter wind stirs the frozen trees, they sometimes appear to burst vertically. When it was 40 degrees below zero at night, I lay awake and listened to the trees explode. That's a true wilderness thermometer!
In 1783, Johann Gerhard König used the name Hura to refer to a very different plant from the one Linnaeus had named. Thus was created an illegitimate homonym. [8] [9] Under the rules of nomenclature, Koenig's name had to be abandoned.
Brad Spafford, 36, was found to have over 150 homemade explosive devices, an illegal short-barrel rifle, a target-practice photograph of President Biden, and bomb-building materials at his Norfolk ...
Even though winds are lighter than last week, their dry and gusty nature means they are still capable of causing explosive fire growth. The Santa Ana wind is very dry. With humidity levels ...
Giant abatis, made from entire trees, can make an effective anti-vehicle obstacle. This formation can be achieved by use of explosives—note the splintered stumps Abatis can be defeated by dozer blades, as fitted here to a British Challenger 2 tank. An important weakness of abatis, in contrast to barbed wire, is that it can be destroyed by fire.