Our planet is full of trees, considered by most as a mere part of the landscape, a calm green sea in which we live. Nobody usually gives much importance to trees, and they are certainly not considered especially threatening or deadly.
However, throughout our history there have been legends on some trees that defy this tendency, that not only instilled fear, but also killed. These mysterious trees refused to be only part of the landscape, and it seemed that they were thirsty for blood. They threaten the world around them and consider them bearers of demons and sinister spirits, much more than just a collection of branches, leaves, and a trunk.
Electric Elassia, the electric tree of death
There are a lot of stories about killer trees around the world. A very peculiar one occurred in 1885, when a German expedition from New Guinea, under the command of Lieutenant Von Immer Gassende and together with the prestigious geologist Dr. Henry Barnard Kümmel, they found a singularly strange and life-threatening tree in the thick jungles.
On his trip, the expedition had to face the swampy jungle, hostile native tribes, and swarms of poisonous creatures. After an exhausting 12-day trip through the almost impenetrable vegetation, they finally found a beautiful valley in the middle of nowhere. But what seemed to be an idyllic place will soon become a real nightmare. Lieutenant Lieutenant explained in his memoirs that his compass began to move meaninglessly. After a while they began to see several skeletons of animals scattered across the clearings, in addition to the curious absence of the usual sounds of the jungle.
While Dr. Kümmel collected new specimens of animals and plants, he found a huge tree in a clearing, a species he had not seen before. One of the soldiers took a fleshy bump with his machete. Among the remains of rotten meat was a kind of strange black core. Dr. Kümmel, who had never seen anything like it, went to collect the sample when he suddenly screamed in pain. When the other members of the expedition asked him what had happened to him, he explained that at the time of collecting the sample he felt a powerful electric shock all over his body.
Another of the men also tried to collect the sample and experienced the same, but in this case it was much stronger since the soldier was completely stunned without being able to speak.
That was when Lieutenant Lieutenant decided to do an experiment. He took a piece of copper wire, placed it on the end of each side of the sample and then a violent reaction was generated. Everyone present was stunned and they witnessed how the strange tree had its own current.
Unfortunately, the expedition was forced to return after Lieutenant Lieutenant became seriously ill. They say they managed to take samples of this “supernatural” tree. However, today the whereabouts are unknown.
Dr. Kümmel said that the strange tree was the cause of the death of animals by electric shocks, so he named the new species as “Electric Elassia”. It is not clear if the supposed New Guinea electric tree was actually carnivorous or simply attacked with its supernatural powers for defensive purposes.
Jubokko, the vampire trees
And if an electric tree is not strange enough, more mysterious and frightening is a vampiric tree in the forests of Japan. It is said that in places where there had been bloodshed as in battlefields or places of execution, trees that feed on blood grow. Called Jubokko, these “Vampiric beings” are hidden between the branches, leaves and trunks.
Far from being completely satisfied with feeding on the blood of the dead or executed, they get to grab and tangle all those brave ones who get too close, draining their blood until they are left as a lifeless shell. Because of its ruthless cunning, it was believed that the tree grew intentionally among other normal trees in order to be waiting for unsuspecting passersby.
Other stories say that when a branch of the Jubokko is cut, red blood sprouts. Although it must also be said that if one is lucky enough to escape from its claws, he will acquire incredible medicinal qualities. It was also believed that the Jubokko healed quickly and when someone inflicted any damage, the cuts disappeared quickly.
Other of the supernatural abilities attributed to these vampiric trees It was to confuse the mind, as well as the ability to speak with other plants. There are also traditions that say that the Jubokkos began like normal trees, but that little by little they were deformed and twisted by the blood-stained earth. While most believe that the Jubokkos are pure folklore, the stories around them are undoubtedly one of the most sinister in Japan.
The story of Bohon Upas
Apart from the stories, myths and legendary throughout history related to killer trees, there are also well-documented cases. The story of Bohon Upas became popular in the 18th century, when a German doctor named J.N. Foersch stated in an article published in the magazine “The London Magazine” in 1783 that he had collected several real testimonies about the existence of these killer trees when he traveled to the Netherlands East Indies as a surgeon, so he decided to prepare an expedition to find them.
In his memoirs, Foersch claimed that there was only one of these trees, and that he found it hidden in the jungle, protected by high mountains. According to the German doctor, the earth around the tree was devoid of all vegetation, not even a simple grass, and every animal that entered ended up dying quickly from a harmful gas, and even the birds flying over the area fell spontaneously dead. Foersch said he toured this deadly desert and was guided by an old hermit who lived in the area, in order to provide criminals with extreme unction.
The old hermit explained to the German doctor that these criminals had two options, take the resin from the killer tree or a death sentence. Before entering the “restricted area”, these criminals were dressed in protective clothing consisting of a long leather cap and sturdy gloves. According to the hermit, only one in ten of these poor souls managed to return alive. Foersch explained that the tree’s toxic resin was used to execute the criminals, and even claimed to have witnessed the power of the poison, saying that the victims died in terrible suffering.
At the time the existence of this tree was questioned, with some botanists claiming that such a tree could not exist. But as incredible as it may seem, today its existence has been proven, although scientists say Foersch exaggerates history. In Indonesia there is a tree that produces a deadly poison that the locals use to poison the pointed arrows, but the tree does not produce toxic gases that kill anyone who approaches.
There’s also a “Barren circle of death” that surrounds the tree, but it is believed to be the result of toxic gases generated by an extinct volcano called Guava Upas, which had a crater that threw carbonic gas and sulfur. Even so, it is unknown if the Bohon Upas tree really existed or not, but it is an intriguing story.
We don’t really know if any of these killer trees existed or not. However, what we can be sure of is that some trees are hidden in dark natural spaces in remote regions of the world. Just thinking about the existence of predatory or supernatural trees is disturbing and mysterious, and if they really exist, then we would be talking about another type of nature that goes beyond what we can understand.
