If the evil queen in Snow White had given the titular character an apple from the manchineel tree, then the story would be a lot shorter: there would be no subsequent meddling from the dwarves, nor would Snow White ever resurrect from the grave. A deadly poison that acts swiftly, all parts of the manchineel tree are poisonous, including its fruit, which the Spanish dubbed the ‘arbol de la muerte’ – the tree of death. 

On the surface, the manchineel tree is seemingly innocuous, bearing resemblance to a wild apple tree, with small, green fruit. But a single bite can prove fatal. Before the modern taxa of plants became well-elucidated, shipwrecked sailors and Spanish conquistadors were felled by the poisonous manchineel tree. In the present-day, every now and then, unlucky tourists have fallen prey to its clutches. An endangered species native to the brackish coastal waters of Florida, the manchineel tree is considered the most dangerous tree in the world. 

Just How Toxic is the Manchineel Tree?

The ultimate forbidden fruit, the fruits of the manchineel tree are always out of reach, unless you want to endure a less-than-savory ordeal. Those who have unwittingly ingested its fruit, including an unfortunate vacationer to the Caribbean Island of Tobago, report a ‘pleasantly sweet’ flavor, then a ‘strange peppery feeling’, progressing to a burning, tearing sensation at the throat that makes a ghost pepper seem mild. Much of these maladies require immediate medical attention – abdominal pain, burning sensations in the oropharynx, and severe stomach irritation. Symptoms worsen until the victim can barely swallow food because of the “excruciating pain and the feeling of a huge obstructing pharyngeal lump.” 

In short, eating a manchineel entails experiencing the most horrific pain, which isn’t an exaggeration. But even being in the immediate proximity of the tree can be lethal. All parts of the manchineel tree are chock full of toxins, some of which are yet unknown to mankind. When it rains, the milky sap of the manchineel tree leeches down, resulting in scalding skin irritations even with a single drop. Minimal contact with any part of the tree can lead to breathing problems or even temporary blindness. 

The sap is exceedingly corrosive, containing toxic compounds, including phorbol, that is responsible for blistering and swelling. The Indians, as a way of resisting colonial rule, attempted to fend off the Spanish by contaminating water supplies with it. The Spanish explorer Ponce de León was allegedly killed by an arrow tipped with the poisonous sap, succumbing to its toxins after developing complications from a wound. 

The Silent Killer in Paradise

This tree isn’t one you’re likely to encounter in a causal garden setting. Tourists who frequent coastal areas of Florida and the Caribbean, however, need to be vigilant when wandering hiking trails or beach paths. As well as popping up along beaches, it also grows in brackish swamps, twining among mangroves. The leaves of the manchineel tree are rounded, with finely serrated edges, though if you’re close enough to examine the tree, then it’s possible that you’re already in danger. A better way would be to note its gnarled, knotted appearance and telltale fruit, though they may not always be apparent. An even smarter way would be to refrain from putting random fruits in one’s mouth. It can grow up to 40 ft in height, with a thick trunk and umbrella-like branching habit. 

Why Does This Tree Exist?

A tree that amounts to a biological hazard warrants eradication. It seems to solely exist to spite others, persisting through sheer willpower and toxicity. However, cutting the tree releases toxins, which are borne into the air in the form of smoke. Despite its problematic removal, Florida has made various attempts to eradicate it; this, coupled with habitat loss, has pushed it into the endangered species list. Since burning and cutting down the tree won’t work, in coastal regions like Curaçao, the trees are marked with a warning sign. In other places, they are marked with a red X on the trunk, much like plague crosses, etched onto the doors of the dying to condemn them as carriers of pestilence.  

Many plants rely on animals to scatter their fruits, or in the case of the pitcher plant, lure them in with sweet-smelling substances. The manchineel tree seems counterproductive, its fruit repelling both dispersers and humans. It likely evolved to deter herbivores from eating its fruit, relying instead on seed dispersal by water, though that doesn’t fully explain its high toxicity. 

Curiously, the black-spined iguana (Ctenosaura similis) is the only known species able to crawl among the crevices of the tree, feast upon its fruits, and live to tell the tale. If you spy a lizard scurrying among its branches, don’t be fooled into thinking that you can take a closer look. 

Practical Uses

Other than being used in biological warfare, which even then is hotly contested as a ‘practical use,’ the manchineel has few redeeming properties, though oddly, it has been used in woodworking in parts of the West Indies. The wood is left to dry in the baking sun, which is thought to neutralize many of its deadly properties. Native tribes have also used it as medicine, and the dried fruits as a diuretic. 

On the shorelines where it dwells, it acts as a natural windbreak, fighting against erosion in the face of rising sea levels. Other than that, it lives on much in relative obscurity, though its poisons may prove useful in the future in furthering medical research – many toxic flowers have been both bane and cure throughout history.