The MGS Forum
Gardening in mediterranean climates => General Cultivation => Topic started by: Kriticat on July 18, 2015, 12:10:29 PM
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Since all parts of the oleander are toxic I don't really want to compost all the prunings (a massive amount this year).
Locals advise to throw it into the riverbed but this doesn't feel right at all! If it's left in a pile it will be a fire hazard...any suggestions?
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Do you have a municipal refuse collection point near you? If so you could perhaps put the waste material in bags and leave it there. (Even if you didn't have the fire hazard problem, burning it's not a good idea as even the smoke could be toxic.)
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We're a long way from the dump, and anything left by the bins seem to get left for ages (changing the location of the fire hazard but not the risk!) . Besides, it would take a small mountain of plastic bags to contain all the 'cuttings', these things, planted by previous owners, have gone wild! I will see if I can borrow a trailer to haul it to the official dump. Thanks anyway
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Oleanders are toxic, no doubt about that, so don't eat them, but some of the scares seem rather exaggerated, there are studies showing that composting is an easy way to destroy oleandrin, as shown in the article 'Toxicity of Oleander Derived Compost' http://slosson.ucdavis.edu/newsletters/Downer_199829067.pdfe, which concludes that:
Composting is an effective method means of destroying one of the toxic glycosides in oleander. The composting process causes a rapid decline in oleandrin concentration and eventually its complete disappearance from the compost.
further:
It appears from our growth studies that oleandrin is not transported into plants.
I wouldn't recommend eating fresh oleander compost, though.